Branding is a "squishy" word in higher ed that often gets conflated with identity or branding components. This presentation helps enunciate what brand is, shows examples of how Mt. Holyoke and other institutions support their brand in key areas on the web, and provides some testing examples to help you measure how well your creative work is delivering the messages you want your audiences to understand. Presented at HigherEd Web 2009 by Doub Gapinski, mStoner, and Patricia Vndenberg, Mount Holyoke College.

1. This is not a brand.
or Using the Web to Better Present
Your Institutional Brand
mStoner

3. Patricia Vandenberg Doug Gapinski
Mount Holyoke College mStoner

4. Assumptions.

5. What a brand isn’t.

6. What a brand is.

8. The web has become
the brand medium.

9. • authentic
• experience-oriented
• effective distribution
• cost-effective over time
• persistent
• searchable
• convenient

10. Answering your
audiences’ questions
with branding in mind

11. What’s it like
to be at
<your institution
name here>?
What can
<your institution
name here>
do for me?
What do
other people
think of
<your institution
name here>?

12. What’s it like
to be at
<your institution
name here>?

13. • Excellent liberal arts
• Unusually international and diverse
• Connections for life
• Legacy of Women leaders—believes women
can and should make a difference in the world

15. What can
<your institution
name here>
do for me?

16. • Do you have my major?
• What is the quality of the academic program?
• Can I get a job?
• Can I afford it?

18. What do
other people
think of
<your institution
name here>?

26. Covering your brand in
key areas on the web

41. clients.mstoner.com/hew

42. mStoner
photo credit: psd on flickr