The first impression you give to someone when you meet them, is usually the one that sticks, which is why it’s so important to make that first impression count. This is the same for any business and particularly schools in this day and age of competition. When people are looking for schools or colleges for their children, they will always want the best one for obvious reasons. Many people think that having a brand is a term usually used for businesses but schools need to have a good strong brand as they are probably the brands that people see the most on a day to day basis. When the children are in their uniforms going to school, on the bus, in the high street. When the school mini bus takes them on trips and football or netball matches to other schools. All of these things will influence people and give them an opinion of the school.
Branding for schools and colleges is a must in this day and age. Schools and colleges have generally accepted that good branding is essential for their success. So the logo or motto that the school use is as important as all successful businesses’. It is the schools way of marketing itself. When designing the logo, the school needs to make sure that as well as the parents and people in the locality, the logo appeals to the children as well. Modern fonts and bright colours that will make the school easily identifiable from the rest. A logo that will look good on not just uniforms but the school stationary, signage, PE kits and school bags to name just a few, even having the school mini bus wrapped with the logo or if budget allows supply the students with branded bags.
There are many different ways that the school can market itself. League tables and reports will always be really important to people. The calibre of the teachers will also reflect as will the way that the students carry themselves when they are outside of the school, but without a good logo or brand the school is not as easily identifiable as it could be. This means that people won’t be able to identify with the school and it may miss out to other schools in the area, in the same way that a business with a poor brand will miss out to its competitors.