Spencer Harding-McDermott Prof. Colleen Syron GRPH 426 ...€¦ · Rebranding High School Sports...
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Spencer Harding-McDermott Prof. Colleen Syron GRPH 426 February 5, 2018 Rebranding High School Sports Programs High school sports programs often find themselves in trademark disputes with college or NFL teams due to logo appropriation. I intend to show how the history and design of sports logos can relate to logo design for high schools that want to have the same feel as the logos they borrow. By looking at multiple graphic standard manuals and design processes of current college and NFL teams, I will see how designing a sports logo can contribute to a high school program. In particular I will take a deep dive into each high school’s culture to create a logo that is unique to them. I will use Lincoln High and Lincoln Southwest as examples of how to rebrand a high school sports program. Logos have always been important to a sports team. It allows people to identify the team easily, but most importantly it gives people the feeling of being connected to the team. In the article “How important is it for a company to have a great logo?” by Peter Shadbolt, he says “For most people the logos of such firms immediately connect our minds to the business in question, without the need to see its name.” Having a successful logo and brand is essential to these sports teams in order to insure that they can make the most money. One of the greatest examples of this is the University of Oregon. Oregon has one of the most recognizable logo and brand in the sports industry. They pride themselves in being untraditional and always having different flashy uniforms. But their logo never changes, the signature “O” stays the same while the brand of changing and pushing the envelope is what
Transcript of Spencer Harding-McDermott Prof. Colleen Syron GRPH 426 ...€¦ · Rebranding High School Sports...
SpencerHarding-McDermottProf.ColleenSyronGRPH426February5,2018
RebrandingHighSchoolSportsPrograms
Highschoolsportsprogramsoftenfindthemselvesintrademarkdisputes
withcollegeorNFLteamsduetologoappropriation.Iintendtoshowhowthe
historyanddesignofsportslogoscanrelatetologodesignforhighschoolsthat
wanttohavethesamefeelasthelogostheyborrow.Bylookingatmultiplegraphic
standardmanualsanddesignprocessesofcurrentcollegeandNFLteams,Iwillsee
howdesigningasportslogocancontributetoahighschoolprogram.InparticularI
willtakeadeepdiveintoeachhighschool’sculturetocreatealogothatisuniqueto
them.IwilluseLincolnHighandLincolnSouthwestasexamplesofhowtorebrand
ahighschoolsportsprogram.
Logoshavealwaysbeenimportanttoasportsteam.Itallowspeopleto
identifytheteameasily,butmostimportantlyitgivespeoplethefeelingofbeing
connectedtotheteam.Inthearticle“Howimportantisitforacompanytohavea
greatlogo?”byPeterShadbolt,hesays“Formostpeoplethelogosofsuchfirms
immediatelyconnectourmindstothebusinessinquestion,withouttheneedtosee
itsname.”Havingasuccessfullogoandbrandisessentialtothesesportsteamsin
ordertoinsurethattheycanmakethemostmoney.Oneofthegreatestexamplesof
thisistheUniversityofOregon.Oregonhasoneofthemostrecognizablelogoand
brandinthesportsindustry.Theypridethemselvesinbeinguntraditionaland
alwayshavingdifferentflashyuniforms.Buttheirlogoneverchanges,thesignature
“O”staysthesamewhilethebrandofchangingandpushingtheenvelopeiswhat
makesOregon’sbrandsorecognizable.Havingsuchauniquebrandingstrategy
bringsattentiontosportsprograms.Inanarticle“HowNikeandOregonCreated
CollegeFootball’sPerfectBrand”forBleacherReport,AdamKramerwrote“The
lookandfeelofafootballprogramfromtheuniformstothelockerroomtothe
overallvibecansereasakickerinadecision.”Athletesseeasportsprogramand
dependingonhowtheyfeelaboutthebrandoftheprogramitcanhaveaheavysay
astoiftheywanttobeapartofit.Havingasuccessfulbrandcanalsoleadtoothers
wantingtoemulatethatsuccess.
LikeOregon,manycollegeandproteamshavecontractswithcompanieslike
Nikewhohavedesignteamsthatdesignthebrandsforthem.Thesepeoplehelpthe
schoolscapturethefeelingofbeingpridefulofthebrand.Butitiswhatthepeople
withintheprogramdothattrulymakesasportsprogrambrandspecial.Inanarticle
titled“Brandingincollegefootball:Identitygoesbeyondjustuniformsandlogos”
AndyStaplessays“Likeanythingelse,afootballteam’sbrandismostlydefinedfor
betterorforworsebythequalityoftheproduct.”Regardlessofhowgreatofajob
companieslikeNikedo,peoplewillfeelmoreconnectedtoateambyhowwellthey
aredoingonthefieldandinthecommunity.Havingalogoandbrandisjustaway
forthemtoshowotherstheyareconnectedtotheprogram.Whenpeoplefeel
connectedtoateamitwillinreturnmaketheteamfeelliketheyaredoing
somethingworthwild.
Highschoolsportsprograms,likecollegeandproteams,wanttocapitalize
onthesuccessofhavingagoodbrand.Somehighschoolswillfeeltheneedtotakea
successfulcollegeorprologoandapplyittotheirbrand.Theywilldothisby
switchingthecolorsofthelogooraddingtheirhighschoolnametoit.Thisiswhere
alotofthemfindthemselvesintroublewiththelaw.Thecollegeandproteamswill
havetheirlegalteamssenda“ceaseanddesist”ordertothehighschools.Inthe
article“CollegesTellHighSchoolsLogosAreOffLimits”AdamHimmelsbachwrites
“Universitiessteadfastlyprotecttheirtrademarkedlogos,whichappearson
everythingfromovenmittstounderwear,andtheirreachisincreasinglystretching
towardhighschools.”Collegesarecrackingdownonhighschoolsevenmorenow
withtheincreasingratehighschoolfootballgamesarebeingtelevisedandstreamed
online.Withhighschoolsgettingmorenationalattentionthisalsobringsin
additionalmoneyfrommerchandiseforthathighschool.Thathighschool’sreach
becomesbiggerthanitwas,whichallowstheirbrandtoexpandnationally.Justlike
howmostcollegeandproteam’sbrandsdo.Inthearticle“TrademarkIssueswith
UseofCollegeNames,Logos,Mascots”LeeGreenwrites“Theriseinconcernby
collegesovertheuseoftheirtrademarkshasbeenattributedtotheincreased
revenuesderivedbyuniversitiesfromlogoedapparelandmerchandise,the
increasedvisibilityofhighschoolmarksontheinternetthroughschoolwebsites
andsocialmedia.”Greenissayinghowwiththeincreaseofaccessibilitytothese
highschoollogosthehigherlikelihoodthattheywillbringinrevenuefromthat
logo.Thisdoesnotsitwellwithcollegeandproteams,astheybelievehighschools
shouldnotbeallowedtousetheirlogos,letalonemakemoneyoffofthem.This
problemisonlygettingworseandwillnotgoawayanytimesoon.
Asstatedaboveformyseniorthesis,IamusingLincolnSouthwestand
LincolnHighasexamplesofwhatarebrandingofahighschoolsportsprogram
lookslike.Havinggreatsuccessbringsaboutimitation;Oregonisoneofthemost
imitatedbrandsinthesportsworld.AprimeexampleofthisisLincolnSouthwest
highschool.LincolnSouthwest’sprimarylogoisahawkbuttheyusealotof
Oregon’swingssecondarylogos.InordertostartrebrandingSouthwesthighschool
Ineededtheathletes’input.Igaveoutasurveytotheathletesonthegirlsbasketball
teamthataskedthemninesimplequestionsabouttheircurrentlogoanduniforms.
Thequestionswere,ingeneraldoyoufindyourcurrentlogoappealing,doesyour
currentlogomakeyoufeellikeyouhaveaswagger,inyouropinioncanyour
uniform’sdesignimprove,whichoneisyourlogo,doesyourbrand/logofeel
modern,whatwouldyouliketoseeinaredesignofyourschool’sathleticlogo,do
otherschoolsyouplayhavebetterlogos/uniformsthanyourschool,inyouropinion
doesyourhighschoolathleticbrandmatter,anddoyouthinktheathleticlogo
shouldbethesameastheacademiclogo.Fromthesurvey,Ifoundthatthemajority
oftheathletesdidnotfindtheircurrentuniformsappealingandmodern.About75
percentoftheathletessurveyedthoughttheathleticbrandmattered.AquestionI
didnotaskbutalotoftheathletesbroughtupwasthefactthattheyfeltliketheir
uniformsandbasketballlogofeltgeneric.
Fromresearchingarticlesandconductingmysurvey,Ifoundthattwoofthe
biggestreasonsalotofhighschoolsprefertousecollegeandproteamslogosisit
“fits”theirschoolthebestanditisthecheapestoptionforthehighschool.Many
schoolsdonotrealizehowmuchlegaltroubletheycangetintoifacollegeorpro
teamordersa“ceaseanddesist”onthem.Therearenumerouswaystogoabout
rebrandingthataren’tusingfoundlogos.Sincehighschoolathleticsarebecoming
morepopularonTVandonstreams,highschoolsareseeingmore“ceaseand
desist”.IintendtoshowSouthwestandLincolnHighthattheycanhavealogoand
brandthatfitstheirschoolthatwillnotbeasexpensiveandwillnotgettheminthe
legaltroubleofstealinganotherteam’slogo.LincolnHighdoesnotuseanexisting
logobutwouldliketohaveanupdatedlogothatgivestheirathleticdepartmenta
modernfeel.
AsIcontinuetomoldmythesis,IintendtoimplementthesamestrategyIdid
withSouthwestatLincolnHigh.ThesurveyIgivetotheathletesatLincolnHighwill
betheexactsame,soIcangetconsistentresults.OnceIamabletosurveyLincoln
High,Iwillbeablebegintheprocessofrebrandingtheirathleticdepartment.Iwill
startwithSouthwest’sgirlsbasketballprogramandcontinuetocommunicatewith
theirheadcoachJeffRump.Iwillsimultaneouslyworkwithbothschoolstoensure
theyreceivethebestendproductthatfitstheneedstheywerelookingfor.Through
outthisprocess,IwillcontinuetoconsultmycommitteethatconsistsofMatt
Mejstrik,JoeMcDermott,andAlexJacobsen.Thecommitteewillcontinuetogrow
alongsidethecreativeprocess.Eachoneofthesethreebringsadifferentviewtothe
sportsanddesignworlds.GoingforwardIwillcontinuetocollectresearch.Iwilldo
thisbylookingatgraphicstandardmanualsofcollegeandproteamsinorderto
fullyunderstandwhatittakestocreateamodernbrandthatwillgetfanstofeela
connectiontotheschool.
AfterIhaveconductedalloftheresearchanddesignedfinalbrandmodels
thatfitstheneedsforbothhighschoolsIwillcreategraphicstandardmanualsfor
theschoolsandaphysicaljerseyforthemthatwillshowcasethefinalproduct.The
connectiontotheseschool’scultureandfanbaseswillbeonfulldisplayinthisfinal
product.Theendproductwillallowschoolstoseethereisnoneedtoborrow
collegeorproteam’slogos.Thecreationofalogothatisuniquetoahighschoolwill
allowthemthesamefeelasacollegeorproteam’slogo.
Bibliography
Green,Lee.“TrademarkIssueswithUseofCollegeNames,Logos,Mascots.”NFHS,13
Apr.2015.www.nfhs.org/articles/trademark-issues-with-use-of-college-names-
logos-mascots.Accessed18Jan.2018.
Himmelsbach,Adam.“CollegesTellHighSchoolsLogosAreOffLimits.”TheNew
YorkTimes,26Nov.2010.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/27/sports/football/27logos.html.Accessed18
Jan.2018.
Kramer,Adam.“HowNikeandOregonCreatedCollegeFootball’sPerfectBrand.”
BleacherReport,12Apr.2017,www.bleacherreport.com/articles/2118855-how-
nike-and-oregon-created-college-footballs-perfect-brand.Accessed29Jan.2018.
Shadbolt,Peter.“Howimportantisitforacompanytohaveagreatlogo?”BBC
NEWS,7May2015,www.bbc.com/news/business-32495854.Accessed23Jan.
2018.
Staples,Andy.“ThePowerofbrandingincollegefootball.”SI.com,26Jun.2015,
www.si.com/college-football/2015/06/college-football-branding-oregon-ducks-
tennessee-volunteers.Accessed24Jan.2018.
SpencerHarding-McDermottProf.ColleenSyronGRPH426January23,2018
LiteratureReviewAdamHimmelsbach(2010)ThisarticlefromtheNewYorkTimestalksabouthowhighschoolprogramsarebecomingmorepopularontelevision.Astheygrowinpopularityontelevision,collegesandNFLteamsarebeingmorevigilantabouttellinghighschoolsnottousetheirlogos.LotsofhighschoolslikeGladesDayhavebecomeunderfireforusingacollege’slogo.LeeGreen(2015)ThemainissuethatisaddressedinthisarticleisthefactthatmanycollegeandNFLteamsaresendingoutceaseanddesistpaperworktohighschoolsforusingtheirlogos.TheCLC(CollegiateLicensingCompany)isoneofthemaincompaniesthathelpcollegesdealwithhighschoolsusingtheirlogos.RonBishop(2001)Bishoptalksaboutthechangesthathappentosportslogosovertime.Heusessemioticsandpostmodernideologytoconnecthispoints.Onepointhebringsupishowthelogoshouldbringaboutapositiverelationshipbetweentheteamandthefans.Ifthelogoisgreatthenthefanswillwanttobuymoreofthingsthatareteam-related.Thelogoisthefan’s“contact”totheteam.DevonElizabethEstes(2011)Theworldofsportsisabilliondollarmarketandteamsbenefitfromfanloyalty.Whatcankeepfansevenmoreloyalthantheteambeinggoodisawell-designedbrandandlogo.EstesanalyzeshowcurrentNFLlogoshelptheteamsinbeingsuccessfulwithfansandmakingmoney.PeterShadbolt(2015)Thisarticledoesnotjustfocusonsportslogosbutcompanylogosingeneral.Alogoformostinstantlyconnectsthemtothecompanywithoutmuchthought.Ifacompanywantsagoodlogotheyshouldlookattheircompany’svaluesandstartthere,designingalogoaroundthat.Thiswayitiseasierforeveryonetoconnecttothecompany.ShadboltusesmultipleexamplesofcompanieslikeNike,Gap,andStarbucks.
DanielEngber(2013)Theredskinslogoinrecentyearshasbroughtaboutcontroversy,manyfeelitisbeingdisrespectfultoAmericanIndians.The“IndianHead”hasbeenusedinthesportsworldforalongtime.Theuseofthe“IndianHead”hasbeenshownasdemeaningandshouldnotbeused.Thisarticledoesnottalkaboutwhatittakestomakeagoodcompellingsportslogobutinsteadwhatnottodo.
AnalysisofsurveyAfterconductingthesurveyIfoundalotofthebasketballteamatLincolnSouthwestLikedtheideaofhavinganewbrand/logo.Themajorityofthemthoughtthathavinganathleticbrandmattered.Allmostallofthemfeltliketheiruniformsweregenericandcouldbenefitfromaredesign.WhenIaskediftheyfeltliketheircurrentlogobroughtaboutaswaggermostsaidnobutfeltliketheyhadaswaggerduetheuniformsbeingNike.Againallmostallthoughtthattheiruniformscouldbeimproved.WhenIshowedthemtwodifferentpictures(oneoftheacademiclogoandoneofthemanyathleticlogosusedforbasketball)theymostlyassociatedwiththeacademicone.Someaftertakingthesurveysaidtheythinkthattheircurrentlogolookscartoony.BelowisamastersheetofthesurveythatIgavetheathletes.
Production Schedule Week---> 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26Date---> 6-Feb-18 8-Feb-18 13-Feb-18 15-Feb-18 20-Feb-18 22-Feb-18 27-Feb-18 1-Mar-18 6-Mar-18 8-Mar-18 13-Mar-18 15-Mar-18 20-Mar-18 22-Mar-18 27-March-18 29-March-18 3-April-18 5-April-18 10-April 12-April 17-April 19- April 24-April 26-April 1-May 3-MayTopic: Senior Thesis
What is happening
Listen to others present
present thesis Start ideationfor Southwest
continue Ideology
Narrow downmain ideas
Digitalize top ideas
Meet with Coach
Use feedbackto pushversions
Start ideation For LincolnHigh
Continue LH Ideation
Narrow down main ideas
Digitalize topideas
Continue to meet w/coaches
Use coach's feedback
Finalize final ideas for both HS's
Start planningout graphicsstandards manual
continue towork on manuals
continue towork on manuals
start to finalizemanuals Finalize manuals Finalize manuals
Finalize everything
Fine tone everything
Meet W/ Colleen
Due Thesis Paper 4 sketches 20 sketches digital forms of finalized ideas top 2 SW
20 Sketches for LH
digital forms of finalized ideas
Final brands forboth HS's
Sketches of layouts formanuals
have system for manualsdone Everything
