The Insight
The two organizations merged for operational and mission efficiency, to deliver literacy in deeper ways to more people. The two organizations also shared a similarity in their brands because both built themselves on providing the same core service: literacy. But research showed that current and potential donors wanted more.
The bold opportunity we presented to elevate their work didn’t just focus on literacy itself. It focused on what literacy can do. For students, their families, and communities at large, literacy is a gateway to a better life.
The Journey
Their most important audiences are students, donors, and civic leaders. What do they all have in common? They share a belief in a brighter future for people through the power of literacy. We created a new name to signal that literacy delivers on those aspirations: Aspire.
With a new tagline, “Ready to Learn,” the brand strategy, messages, new logo, and website we created reinforce that. Aspire believes learning turns obstacles into opportunities. They walk alongside their students as they make the brave decision to change their lives.
The Impact
Many nonprofit mergers fail to inspire and engage their communities. However, Aspire’s brand fired up board and staff members from both organizations. Students, donors, and civic leaders who share Aspire’s goal also responded positively. Their community united around their ultimate goal: help students feel confident as they fulfill the promise of learning.
This BrandEquation you developed for us is the way I feel about the organization, put into words.
Aspire Board Member