A unified brand for locally-led social change

ORGANIZATION: Rural Opportunity Institute
WHEN: FALL 2023

Rural Opportunity Institute (ROI) is a North Carolina-based organization that uses human-centered design principles to drive locally-led solutions to systemic trauma and poverty. This work’s combination of traditionally disparate non-profit operating models — direct service, capacity building, advocacy — led to an common problem: different stakeholders talking about the organization in very different ways.

ROI needed a defined brand identity to ensure all audiences understand its message and its value, and I began this project with research. I interviewed a range of key stakeholders and surveyed many others, which provided a foundational dataset showing how ROI community members relate to the organization.

With that understanding, the core team gathered for a live workshop to brainstorm and discuss different approaches to positioning and personality. This was an iterative process, as teammates were fully engaged in weighing the merits of each possible approach based on their own knowledge of, and relationship to, the work.

Once a clear direction emerged, I presented a proposed brand positioning statement, character, and voice with ROI’s board and key funders. Their feedback and approval ensured we could move forward with a brand identity that resonated with those most accountable for the organization’s success.

And to ensure this brand identity is faithfully represented in all creative work, I worked closely with an agency partner to develop a new brand book, in which anyone writing or designing on behalf of ROI can receive clear guidance on maintaining these standards in all creative work.

RESULTS

The new brand identity has clarified ROI’s storytelling across key stakeholder groups, including community members, funders, and other key partners. This has enabled the statewide expansion of the organization’s work, including its role in administering $3m+ in Medicaid funds to benefit thousands of North Carolina children over the next 5-10 years.

View the brand book →

Brand Identity & Messaging: Landed

Growth Marketing: Landed