The document provides two proposed brand concepts for Dominican University, including taglines and supporting commentary. The first concept, "That's Dominican", focuses on sharing stories about how the collaborative Dominican community has inspired students through challenging academics, excellent teaching, and opportunities to gain experience and build relationships. The concept aims to communicate Dominican's opportunities and outcomes in a credible way by featuring voices from within and outside the university. The second concept takes a similar approach of communicating Dominican's strengths and impact through stories, facts, and profiles of students, faculty and alumni.

1. Brand|Creative

2. Dominican University Brand Creative
Stamats welcomes the opportunity to present the following creative concepts to
Dominican University (also referred to herein as Dominican or the University). In this
document, you will find a summary of our findings about the strengths and benefits
of a Dominican education, as well as proof points that support our conclusions.
We also present two proposed brand concepts — treatments that could drive the
creative messaging for all of Dominican’s institutional communications. These include
two brand campaign taglines and commentary.
Our recommendations are based on the following:
■■ Insights gained during all of Stamats’ 2011 research conducted on
behalf of Dominican University
■■ Information and statistics included in current print publications
■■ A comprehensive review of the University website, www.dom.edu
■■ A two-day campus visit by Stamats’ creative team, which included:
›› interviews with students, faculty, and administrators
›› a tour of campus
›› information collected from or on behalf of students, faculty, and staff
■■ Stamats’ review of Dominican messaging, past and present
■■ Stamats’ comprehensive understanding of audiences based on client
research surveys, and decades of experience and expertise working
with this market throughout the United States and in Canada
■■ Brainstorming sessions by Stamats’ creative team
Dominican University’s dedicated Stamats team includes Chuck Reed, Senior Vice
President for Client Services; Cary Jordan, Principal Writer; and Chris Reese, Director of
Creative Integration.
Building Dominican’s Brand Loyalty
Initially, our work with Dominican was regarding the graduate programs: Their value
propositions, issues related to recruiting, their marketing messages, and short- and
long-term recommendations to help.
What emerged was a clear need for the broader University to rebrand itself — not a
simple tagline, but a true assessment of what the University was offering its various
audiences. The soft messages, the way the marketplace seemed to not know Dominican
(much less know what to say if they had), and the time that had passed since Dominican
had last evaluated its messages combined to tell us something had to be done.
Proper branding is essential in this increasingly tough marketplace for communicating
the value, personality, and mission of Dominican to both internal and external audiences.
For a brand image and tagline to truly “work,” they must resonate with what the
stakeholders believe is true about the organization with whom they’re connected. And,
to have maximum effect, the brand message must be used both consistently and often.
The most recent campaign taglines, I Can and Inspired Minds. Amazing Possibilities.,
had merits in their time. However, I Can spoke in a curative/remedial voice and was in
opposition to the “We” of Dominican; Amazing, still with its strong proponents, is
generally seen as having lost its appeal as a defining statement of the Dominican
experience. This lack of effectiveness is due in part to the fact that it was never
universally utilized in a consistent, evolving manner by the University over a period of
time; your community, as a consequence, saw it implemented inconsistently.

3. Research Findings
In the body of research we did prior to
branding, Stamats learned a number of things
worth consideration. Of this body of
knowledge, we recognize the following as the
most important considerations:
■■ Dominican will need to improve the
performance or promotion of these
core graduate program components as
they received low performance scores:
›› Quality of field placements, student
teaching, practicums
›› Quality of specializations
›› Convenience of off-campus locations
›› Availability of courses
›› Career networking opportunities/job
placement outcomes
■■ Students and faculty cite the following
attributes as strengths (what
stakeholders say you do best now):
›› Expertise and knowledge of the
faculty in their field
›› Small class sizes
›› Real-world experience of the faculty
■■ In our qualitative research portion
(interviews), the human element of
Dominican emerged as a major
common denominator when
discussing graduate programs, the
undergraduate programs, and the
whole of the University population
itself. It wasn’t so much individual
stories, but more the relationships in
all their forms — peer/peer, faculty/
student, staff/student, student/
employer, and alumnus/the world.
This certainly fit with the data from
the quantitative work.
Finally, Dominican ranks well among Midwest
regional universities, according to U.S. News &
World Report, and is cited as one of three Illinois
schools offering a best value. However, “value”
is a word that audiences tend to view as “your
justification to charge me higher tuition” and,
in the end, the University has to do a much
better job — per the research — of making its
case as a place of action and results.
Brand Attributes and Promise
Dominican invested in a Stamats stakeholder
and prospective student examination of
attributes in the form of brand promises. More
than 20 descriptors were tested with audiences
on the criteria of believability, importance,
distinctiveness, and engagement (the desire to
act upon an attribute).
While considering a new brand image and
tagline for Dominican, the Stamats creative team
kept in mind the winning brand promise and
three additional supporting attributes that were
deemed to best characterize the University:
Dominican University is a collaborative,
opportunity-rich community for students who
wish to explore challenging academic fields
and experience excellent teaching from faculty
with real-world experience.
■■ Prepares, encourages, challenges
(what you do for your students)
■■ Make a positive difference
(graduates’ contribution to the
greater good)
■■ Confident they will be employable
after graduation (speaking of
outcomes again)
Our campus visit underscored the validity of
each of these attributes and their integral role
in bringing the Stamats-tested winning brand
promise to life.
In reviewing the brand promise, how do these
components all work in developing a brand
campaign for any Dominican audience?
Collaborative
Dominican cannot afford to be the cliché “small,
friendly, supportive” — it is better than that. This
single word is the hub of the brand promise.
Being “collaborative” implies intentional (as well
as organic) interaction with purpose. It is a way of
life which fuels the rest of the Dominican value
proposition — the opportunities, construct of
the community, faculty/student relationships,
and all the exploring, preparing, encouraging,
and challenging.
Opportunity-rich
Complementing “collaborative” is the fact
Dominican is intentional in its size yet, by
design, is rich in academic, co-curricular, and
relationship opportunities. It is also tied to the
supporting attributes of “prepares,
encourages, challenges” and all nods to
outcomes; “opportunity-rich” does not suggest
that all are engaged, but rather that chances to
be so are abundant and intentional — a more
believable foundation for a campaign.
Community
This is the singular word that defines the
Dominican culture. Relationships are critical
here, and the University is a positive and
encouraging environment in many ways.
“Community” addresses the humanness of
Dominican, something that sets it apart from
larger universities (DePaul, Loyola, UIC, etc.)
who have strong research components and
more complicated identities. And, as a
Sinsinawa Dominican-sponsored institution,
community is a descriptor for the University’s
mission to prepare students to “give
compassionate service and to participate in the
creation of a more just and humane world.”
Explore challenging academic fields
The phrase is important as it provides a notable
academic component and raises Dominican
from being simply supportive and other “soft”
attributes that many institutions might claim to
something suggesting there is more rigor and
focus. This infers that students are in control of
“exploring” said rigor, and academics have a
major place — a bold statement.
Experience excellent teaching from
faculty with real-world experience
Experience experience — an intentional
wordplay with substance. The catalyst for the
academic involvement at Dominican is a
faculty which provides challenge and support,
grounded in the real-world experiences they
bring to the classroom. One of stakeholders’
highest-rated strengths of Dominican, this
portion of the brand promise is important
because it recognizes from within an asset
that applies to all. Notable — faculty are
defined less by academic credential and more
by life experience.
Brand Creative
This concept is rooted in the institutional
values identified by Dominican’s brand
promise statement and brand attributes.
Visuals and text will focus on communicating
stories about how the collaborative
community of Dominican has inspired
students as they:
■■ Strengthen their knowledge of their
chosen fields through exploring
challenging academic programs
■■ Realize their aspirations through
the inspiration and encouragement
of faculty and staff who act as
trusted mentors
■■ Gain valuable, relevant professional
experience in the classroom and out
■■ Develop confidence and leadership
skills through many opportunities to
participate in campus activities and
organizations
■■ Build lifelong relationships with other
students and faculty
We evaluated all factors in establishing the
believable, relevant themes in these two
campaign concepts that will serve as a
launching point for any and all messaging.

4. Rationale
Without question, the Dominican University community is about
impact. Coupled with this, the marketplace in which Dominican
recruits and operates is full of hardworking, driven people who
simply desire to succeed — be it a first job, a promotion, a career
change, or placement in a graduate or professional school.
Where larger institutions build campaigns on expansive platforms of
urban, “big city,” national, and even international opportunities,
Dominican’s role as a right-sized institution provides us a great
opportunity to tell the story in a one-to-one way.
Throughout our research and in the time we spent at the University
speaking with students, faculty, administration, and staff, it became
abundantly clear that there are countless human stories waiting to
be told. The problem is that, even within Dominican’s backyard, too
many people don’t know about the really impressive
accomplishments being made at the University and by its people.
This concept — That’s Dominican — will shine a light on those stories
and present the very real, distinctive strengths of the University in
ways that will leave no doubts about what Dominican represents,
embodies, and offers. Built greatly on the quotes and words of
people rather than the institution, this campaign is more credible by
illustrating the real humanity of Dominican.
When telling the story of a student or faculty member, we will put
the focus not simply on what was accomplished, but instead, the
impact it had and why it was accomplished. When appropriate,
we will let those from outside the University community — the very
individual who was impacted by the accomplishment — tell the
story, as a way to reinforce its significance. For example:
■■ if we’re focusing on an education major who spent
time student teaching at a local school, we will feature
one of the elementary schoolchildren from the
Dominican student’s class talking about how
impactful the experience was for her.
■■ an executive at a Chicago business, law, or health care
firm can talk about a Dominican alumnus who has
made a difference.
■■ a representative from a nonprofit agency can talk
about a group of Dominican students who volunteered
time for a worthy cause.
During our visit with President Carroll, she made the point that,
“This is a transforming education for students, one that inspires
them to think differently.”
This concept will make it clear to the world that there is a
“Dominican University” way of solving problems, of empowering
student growth, and of positively impacting lives and communities.
Strategy
To position Dominican University as an
institution distinguished by its people and
the impressive stories of impact that students,
faculty, and alumni have had on each other,
on their communities, and on their world. In
short, success as they define it and in a manner
appropriate to a Dominican education, and told in
a relevant and therefore compelling manner.
Why It Works
We think this concept works for a number of reasons, many of which are to be expected. It’s believable. It’s
relevant. It’s important. In addition to those, here are other specific reasons we think this is an effective concept.
It Communicates
Opportunities
As conveyed in
the Dominican
brand promise,
the University’s
opportunity-
rich learning
environment is a
crucial element
of the student
experience. By
featuring a variety
of stories and
communicating
strengths that span
from academics, to
student activities,
to service learning,
to internships,
and all points
in between, we
will hit upon that
“opportunity-rich”
strength in a subtle,
albeit effective way.
It Centers on
Outcomes
We often limit
the notion of
“outcomes” to
what happens to
students beyond
graduation. And
while that is a very
important and
worthy focus, we
think outcomes
also relates to the
impact students
can have during
their time at
Dominican. By
presenting stories
of students and
faculty having a
real impact, as
well as impressive
alumni, this concept
will add a layer
of depth to the
idea of outcomes
and frame that
conversation.
It’s True to
Your Mission
Much emphasis
within this concept
will be placed
on social justice
and stories, facts,
and statistics
that emphasize
the way students
and faculty work
to improve their
communities and
help to create a
more just world.
That is very much
at the heart of
the Dominican
University mission.
“That’s Dominican.”
will incorporate
how that aspect
of the experience
creates a more
academically
enlightening and
rigorous place.
It’s Credible
and Versatile
By incorporating
stories, facts, and
statistics that come
from third-party
sources, it will
immediately
establish a level of
credibility with your
audiences who
might otherwise
be skeptical of the
institution singing
its own praises.
Additionally, the
concept is versatile
in that the focus
of the stories/
facts/statistics can
vary based on the
audience, whether
it’s a prospective
student, a parent, or
a well-heeled donor.
It’s Inspiring
It’s crucial that
audiences are
able to visualize
themselvesengaged
with the University
in a meaningful
way. When
those audiences
encounter That’s
Dominican.,
prospects will
visualize making
those same kinds of
accomplishments,
current students
will be able to
relate to recent
graduates and
strive to carve out
similar paths after
graduation, and
alumni and donors
will see the impact
Dominican makes
and be motived
to help empower
it themselves.
That’sDominican.

5. Editorial Approach
While this concept will
incorporate a variety of voices
through the different stories,
profiles, and testimonials, they
will all reflect a similar elevated,
intelligent tone. They will be
conversational, but not overly
casual. Whether it’s the principal
at a local school talking about a
Dominican graduate, an
internship supervisor in
downtown Chicago talking
about a DU intern, a leader in
business or industry talking
about the importance of a
Dominican University faculty
member’s work to the field, or a
member of the local community
talking about participating in a
meaningful event at the
University, these will be stories
of impact — going beyond what
the accomplishment was, and
focusing on why it’s so important,
from his or her point of view.
The limited institutional voice will
have a presence only through
brief running narrative and
certain profiles/stories coming
from those within the Dominican
community, and will have the
same elevated tone, be very
concise, and very to-the-point.
The stories themselves will come
in the form of brief paragraphs/
narratives and extended
testimonials, and will always focus
on some key strength or attribute
of the University — whether it’s
the collaborative nature of the
school, the opportunity-rich
environment, the academic
excellence, the exceptional
teaching, or the outstanding
outcomes. So, too, will the
presentation of facts, rankings,
and statistics that support these
essential strengths.
Design Perspective
This concept is characterized by large typographic elements and an understated
design. Fewer and larger photographs highlight campus beauty, student and
faculty interactions, and students in leadership roles, as well as students engaged
with community leaders and employers in service and internship opportunities.
The overall visual feel is one of sophistication and elegance but with a forward-
thinking, modern edge. This design coordinates with previous designs the use of
strong background colors — Dominican blue and gold. A modified, yet still bright
secondary palette continues to look rich on smooth uncoated stocks.

6. Utopia Display
Utopia DisplayItalic
Utopia Semibold Display
Utopia Semibold Display Italic
Helvetica 35 Thin
Helvetica 36 Thin Italic
Helvetica 55 Roman
Helvetica 56 Italic
Helvetica 65 Medium
Helvetica 66 Medium Italic
Helvetica 75 Bold
Helvetica 76 Bold Italic
Helvetica 95 Black
Helvetica 96 Black Italic
[ F O N T E M P H A S I S]
[DESIGNANDEDITORIALDETAILS]
[ S E C O N D A R Y C O L O R S ]
[SCHOOLOFPROFESSIONAL&CONTINUINGSTUDIES]
[BRENNANSCHOOLOFBUSINESS]
[GRADUATESCHOOLOFLIBRARY&INFORMATIONSCIENCE]
[SCHOOLOFEDUCATION]
[GRADUATESCHOOLOFSOCIALWORK]
[ P R I M A R Y S C H O O L C O L O R S ]
PMS 295
PMS 131 C 25
M 35
Y 85
K (0)
C 100
M 65
Y (0)
K 45
PMS 258
C 45
M 75
Y (0)
K (0)
PMS 703
C (0)
M 80
Y 55
K 10
PMS 3272
C 100
M (0)
Y 45
K (0)
PMS 360
C 70
M (0)
Y 85
K (0)
PMS 2925
C 85
M 25
Y (0)
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PMS 152
C 10
M 55
Y 85
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PMS 129
C 5
M 25
Y 85
K (0)

7. An incredible journey of
26,000 miles begins at Dominican.
Evangelina
Covarrubias ’13
has a clear strategy for a career
path studying international
business at Dominican.
“Third-party endorsment
tells Evangelina’s story
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at it vercipi, vie semrit.”
William J. Scott
VP of International Relations
Exelon Corporation
[PROFILEPHOTOSTYLE]
[ PROFILE DE TAIL S]
Profiles in this concept build off
the cleverly worded intros (from
previous work) that identify the
student, but stories are shorter
and uniquely told from a third-
party perspective (friend/mentor/
employer). To illustrate this, they
consist of two photographs (one
image interacting with the
“storyteller” and the other a
camera-aware shot of the student).
For Exelon,That’sDominican.

8. Empowering Mentors. That’s Dominican.
Invigorating Discussions. That’s Dominican.
[ PH OTO G R APHIC CONTENT | ST YLE]
The photographic style for this concept is straight forward in keeping
with the “That’s Dominican.” concept. A “fly-on-the-wall” perspective is
used to enhance the third-party endorsement angle, and heavy use of
shallow depth of field allows foreground and background elements to go
soft, focusing all attention on the subject. Using soft focus “shoot
through” elements also enhances the sensation that the viewer is actually
in the room with the photographed subjects in a very compelling way.
n through photos, this concept visually
emphasizes personal interactions,
but does so in a way that does
not exclude the context of their
surroundings — not only is the interaction
itself important, but also the collegial
environment in which it is fostered.

9. Rich Campus Experience. That’s Dominican.
[GENERALPHOTOSTYLE]
Choosing to Lead. That’s Dominican.
n large and elegant typography is used throughout
in combination with fewer and larger photos for a
sophisticated, yet clear and approachable presentation.

10. undergraduate viewbook
Future
Opportunity for Success
That’sDominican.

11. undergraduate viewbook spread
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pa pa dicitist velitia alitat.
Megan Foster ’14
dolecus et et et labo adit
volupistiae. Oluptibus
magnatqui non consedit
quas con doluptus.
Sapid magnima
solesequibus es es
et as por soluptatem
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modis santur.
14
15
13Consecutive years we’ve
been ranked in the top-tier
of Midwestern universities
by U.S. News & World Report.
For Whitter Elementary, That’sDominican.
“We’d never had a student-
teacher like Megan. She
came in with such an
unconditional passion for
the kids and for the kind of
teaching she felt they
deserved. She connected
with such ease. You could
see the students light up on
the days she was there. And
you just know that this is
what she was born to do. I
know my students are better
learners because of her.”
Alice P. Jamison
Principal
Whitter Elementary

12. graduate brochures covers
That’sDominican.Making an Impact in Education

13. That’sDominican.Lifelong Learning and Continuing Studies
That’sDominican.Innovations in Library and Information Science

14. That’sDominican.Preparing Graduates for Service in Social Work
graduate brochure cover and spread

15. Rovidelest aut iducilia pa
pa dicitist velitia alitat.
Anna Lynneli ’13
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9
8
For this Expert Panel,That’sDominican.
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Marcus E. Johannsen
Chairman
Council on Social Work Education
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Choosing to Lead. That’s Dominican.

16. transfer print ad
Jason Martinez wasn’t sure where he wanted to transfer
after his first year of college. What he did know, as did his
mom Maria, was that a huge state university was not for him.
Then, one Saturday afternoon, they visited Dominican.
“I knew immediately that Dominican was a better fit for
Jason. I could see it in his face the minute we got there. This
wasn’t a place where he’d get lost in the crowd. This was a
place where his talent, and his potential, could really shine.”
For This Mother, That’s Dominican.
www.dom.edu/thatsdominican | 708.366.2490

17. service print ad
When Dominican sophomore Eric Smith spent
his spring break helping renovate and repair a
home for a family in need, little did he know that
a house wasn’t the only thing he would build.
“Eric came every day, he worked on the house
and ate lunch with us, and played with us
when he took breaks. It was awesome.
Now we’re friends, and our house is fixed!”
For 10-year-old Austin, That’sDominican.
www.dom.edu/thatsdominican | 708.366.2490

18. business digital ad

19. program web page

20. billboard
student service learning hours last semester spent to better the world.
www.dom.edu/thatsdominican | 708.366.2490
That’sDominican.