Comprehensive Branding Initiative: Research, Strategy, Development, Deployment and Measurement Services

The Vendor is required to provide a strategic partner to lead a comprehensive branding initiative over an anticipated two-year period.
- This work will build on our existing strengths while positioning the university more competitively in key regional and national markets.
- Agency will collaborate with internal stakeholders to research, develop, and activate a compelling brand platform that resonates with prospective students, families, alumni, faculty, staff, and community partners.
- The institution is significantly different from what it was a generation ago, with a more diverse student body, modernized facilities, and a growing portfolio of scholarly and research excellence aligned with regional and global needs.
- Project Goals and Key Objectives:
•    Understand current brand perceptions among key audiences
•    Identify opportunities for differentiation in the higher education marketplace
•    Develop a compelling, research-informed brand campaign with a strong brand foundation
•    Create a suite of creative assets and usage guidelines
•    Activate the campaign across channels and measure its impact over time with prospective students, current students, and alumni
•    Support and drive enrollment growth in new markets, especially among first-generation and cost- conscious students
•    Ideal proposal will consider how the brand lifts enrollment by looking at the performance of the campaign vis-à-vis enrollment preferably through slate (comprehensive platform designed specifically for higher education, offering a range of features to support various aspects of the student lifecycle)
- Research and Discovery
•    Stakeholder interviews and workshops
•    Quantitative surveys (prospective students, parents, internal audiences)
•    Competitive and peer analysis
•    Market-specific research and segmentation: each designated new market- particularly border states and metropolitan areas within one flight of couty – must be explored individually to understand local perceptions, behaviors, and opportunities
•    Baseline measurement and tracking framework: establish benchmarks for each market to enable longitudinal tracking of brand awareness, engagement, and enrollment impact over time.
- Brand Strategy and Development
•    Brand campaign framework (promise, pillars, personality, proof points)dashboards
•    Creative concepting (2-3 directions)
•    Messaging framework
•    Visual identity refinement or redesign (if needed)
•    Integration of existing university brand guidelines with flexibility to refine or augment specific elements as supported by findings from the research and discovery phase
•    Alignment with “unleash greatness” brand platform and pillars, while allowing for research-driven enhancements, adjustments, or extensions needed to strengthen market resonance and strategic effectiveness
- Brand Campaign Activation
•    Campaign strategy and media planning, including the purchase and management of digital and outdoor advertising
•    Creative production (digital, print, video, social, etc.)
•    Internal brand training and rollout support
•    Campus visits and stakeholder engagement
- Measurement and Optimization
•    Campaign performance tracking
•    Brand health metrics
•    Market-specific reporting and refinement.

- Contract Period/Term: 2 years
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: February 10, 2026