Fordham University
© Marketing Campaign & Brand Expression
Campaign
Messaging & Production
Environmental Signage
Motion Design System
Bring Fordham’s evolving brand identity to life, building excitement among both prospective students and within their own community.
We developed a live action campaign, graphic toolkits and animated motion pieces to promote Fordham’s brand refresh both internally and externally.
A Jesuit University in New York City, Fordham’s brand essence can be distilled to the “poised pursuit of good.” In crafting a campaign, we sought to embody this essence and to highlight some key differentiators for Fordham, such as its ‘best of both worlds’ offering: a classic campus experience amid the opportunities of NYC.
In the process of concepting, scripting, casting and shooting spots, we held the tagline “For what matters” as our north star.
Many schools promise similar benefits and programs to attract students, but how do you stand out from the herd and become the school that a student identifies as their number one?
Rather than creating yet another montage spot highlighting a ‘something for everyone’ approach, we focused the campaign on providing living proof of what Fordham stands for. By casting current students and alumni who embody the spirit of the school, we bring the brand attributes to life and offer real stories and outcomes to prospective students.
Brandon :30
A successful Fordham alum and entrepreneur, Brandon organically expresses how Fordham shaped his path.
Shot in a fresh, verité documentary style, these spots offer prospective students a view of the University through a personal lens.
Carli :30
A Fordham alum and practicing psychiatrist, Carli embodies the way a Fordham education offers not only knowledge but human perspectives that positively shape the character of students.
The Combo :90
In the 90 second spot, we weave together the stories of students and alumni to provide a broader picture of what makes Fordham unique.
We created this animated piece to express to the community how the brand was evolving. Although this refresh modernizes some of the University branding, the goal was to remain true to Fordham’s essence.
With stakeholders that have strong emotional and nostalgic attachments to the brand, we felt it was important to use dynamic visual storytelling to express the thinking behind it all.
We scripted, animated and edited this piece for an internal event at Fordham to unveil Fordham’s evolving brand expression.
While creating videos for Fordham, we developed a motion toolkit for the marketing team to create guidelines for ongoing brand expression. Our motion is meant to directly express our brand values and how the Fordham brand should make you feel. Below are a few samples from our guide.
Uplifiting
Animated typography and icons can animate upwards into position to reinforce the encouraging spirit found throughout Fordham University.
Supportive
Sometimes our communication requires a softer touch. The supportive motion style is more subtle. Already in position, the element quickly fades on while slowly tracking out letter spacing, reflecting Fordham’s welcoming spirit.
Confident
Headlines can move with power and purpose into position. Once the element lands, it should remain steadfast in it’s decision and not continue to drift away from camera.
Driven
Continuous movement towards viewer is allowed, while shrinking back or contracting should be avoided.
“Fantastic - thanks, team. The finished product is REALLY well done. I previewed the body of work with my colleagues in Cabinet today, and our President teared up (which means - SUCCESS!).
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The admissions year following our brand & campaign work with Fordham, the school received a record number of applications, representing an unprecedented 23% increase over the year before. This increase in applications far exceeded the nationwide 5% increase for public and private institutions that use the Common App platform.
Reference: Fordham Now