In the mid-2010s, university branding became popular. Schools signed multi-million dollar contracts with agencies who promised to excite prospective students with brand work radically different from the boring old “three and a tree.”

Sometimes these rebrands went smoothly. Nike, for example, first overhauled Oregon State’s brand (athletics only) in 2013. It was refreshed even more by Pentagram and Ologie in 2017, who gave it a new look and the tagline “Out There.” The project cost roughly half a million dollars. OSU stakeholders received it well. Attendance crept upwards after its unveiling, and the brand remains in place today.

Oregon University experienced the exact opposite. It attempted a rebrand in 2016 with the new slogan “We If,” more suitable for a bad Silicon Valley startup than an established University. Students, boosters, and alumni revolted, calling it vague, naive, and disrespectful to school tradition. OU had no choice but to cut ties with its branding agency early…but not before wasting $5 million on the project…

This episode covers setting expectations around rebrands. Please subscribe the written version of The Carousel at thecarousel.substack.com and follow Isaac Simpson on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @BrandingDork.

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