embracing the brandcase Study of the Y graphic Standards applied to Staff trainingStaff training resources by mcgaw Ymca

Ymca OF the uSa

reViSed 08.02.2012

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mcgaW Ymca

taLKing tO StaFF abOut the brand, and What iS “brand” anYWaY?

We explained to our staff that we needed to change how we presented ourselves because people don’t fully understand what it is that we really do. Our staff members are teachers, personal trainers, social workers, coaches, and camp counselors and do not use marketing terminology. “Brand” needed to be explained so we all understood that it does not just mean “our logo.” We explained that our brand is what people think of when they think of our Y. It’s what they feel every time they come into one of our facilities and interact with us. We create and are in charge of our brand.

We identified three ways for staff to uphold this responsibility:

• Actions – Continue doing our work to impact the lives of the people in our community.

• Voice – Tell people about the work that we really do at the Y. Give examples of a child who improved her reading, or a senior who improved his health, or a student who volunteered to tutor.

• Visuals – Follow our graphic standards so that our materials are as good as the work that we do.

We felt the need to develop a strong understanding of the brand before teaching staff how to use the new visual system, so I will briefly overview the first two steps before looking more closely at training staff on the visuals and sharing the resources we created for that aspect.

Project Lead Juliet Garrardd 847 475 7400 x261 e julietg@mcgawymca.org

mcgaW YmcaEvanston, ILAssociation and 2 Branches

We explained that our brand is what people think of when they think of our Y.

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mcgaW Ymca: StaFF training reSOurceS

actiOnS – it aLL StartS With What We dO

First, we wanted staff to understand how they impact the lives of others. We started our staff trainings with cross-departmental meetings where staff began to share stories of impact. We intentionally mixed and matched departments so that we shared stories among people with wide-ranging roles such as preschool teachers and swim coaches. In this way, we broke down silos and reinforced how we all share the same purpose. Staff felt validated and understood the importance of their work.

VOice – uSe reaL eXamPLeS

After the story-sharing meetings, staff now had a reservoir of stories to use when talking about the Y. Staff no longer had to ask themselves, “What am I supposed to talk about? What is this new brand language and how do I remember it?” We remember it because it is natural and easy to talk about our own work, the work we know and love.

This also reinforced staff behavior. Knowing that we are working to make an impact every day, we are conscientious in our interactions with others. We also started to take notice of the impact our colleagues are creating, too.

We remember it because it is natural and easy to talk about our own work, the work we know and love.

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mcgaW Ymca: StaFF training reSOurceS

the WaY We Were – a gOOd teaching tOOL

Using actual examples from around our Y, we created a compilation that showed staff exactly how confused our total appearance was. The illustration to the right depicts our old look.

Staff were surprised when they saw this image, which made it an effective tool in supporting our new visual look and feel. We stated that all of this was going to change, and that we would work together for a new look.

neW LOOK, neW cOntent, neW reaSOnS tO taLK

Staff teams were formed to remove all collateral from the building and decide on official “posting areas” in their spaces. This gave staff ownership and reduced the “policing” by marketing staff. The image at right shows how staff chose to organize program information in one of our branches. The clearly organized and clean look is a significantly positive contrast to our old appearance.

We also formed a staff web advisory team to make sure we met their needs for functionality and content, and to give them input. This also built staff into the process of leading with stories of impact. They saw their stories taking pride of place.

We did not want anyone to be in the position of having to say “I don’t know” if asked about the new brand. It’s their Y. They are on the front line and marketing must support them. Modifying some of the Y-USA materials, we created a booklet, with frequently asked questions and answers with talking points for staff to use in contact with the public. (See page 6 for a reproducible copy.)

Old look

new look

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mcgaW Ymca: StaFF training reSOurceS

heLP With graPhic StandardS

Lastly, we held hands-on graphic standards workshops for staff in small groups. Staff was given templates in Microsoft® Word that included specific instructions, including what a “benefit statement” is. We also created a tool that walked through how to correctly apply color to benefit statements, which is shown at right. (See page 7 for a reproducible copy.)

We created a guide that showed both common errors and the fixes for them. Everyone got one of these, and this proved to be one of the most effective tools we created. This is shown at right. (See page 8 for a reproducible copy.)

KeePing brand tOP OF mind

We continue our efforts to unite our look, message and feel. New staff members get a graphic standards workshop and a “brand introduction” as part of the on-boarding process. We revisit the standards with staff as needed but reinforce that we all need to bring our actions, voice and visuals together to create brand at our Y.

We shared a member’s quote at a recent staff meeting that reinforces how vital our staff is, and the impact we have. Ted Loda, a Y member, volunteer and donor, said, “The McGaw YMCA provides the fellowship whose value cannot be measured.” We told staff, “Ted Loda feels this way about our Y because you, the staff, have made him feel that way.” If we can use all the assets and tools at our disposal to make everyone feel the way Ted Loda does, then we have done our job.

document on aligning to color Palette

document showing common errors

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mcgaW Ymca: StaFF training reSOurceSDuplicate and use this FAQ document to provide staff with talking points, or download the file from the Brand Resource Center (BRC > Marketing Materials > Sample Marketing Materials from YMCAs > Staff Training).

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mcgaW Ymca: StaFF training reSOurceSDuplicate and use this document to assist staff with aligning to new color palette, or download the file from the Brand Resource Center (BRC > Marketing Materials > Sample Marketing Materials from YMCAs > Staff Training).

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mcgaW Ymca: StaFF training reSOurceSDuplicate and use this document to show staff how to avoid common errors, or download the file from the Brand Resource Center (BRC > Marketing Materials > Sample Marketing Materials from YMCAs > Staff Training).

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cOntact inFOrmatiOn

For questions regarding this case study, please e-mail theYbrand@ymca.net.

111280 08/12