University’s rebrand is costly and ill-timed

Otago University has been consulting on a major rebrand. It proposes a new logo to replace the historic coat of arms, which will be relegated to ceremonial purposes.

At the same time the university has a $60 million hole in its accounts, has slashed department funding, called for voluntary redundancies and predicted hundreds of further job losses.

With such chunky governance challenges, why the university council gave limited agenda time at last week’s meeting to the multimillion-dollar rebrand ($677,000 to date) is hard to understand. Nero fiddling while Rome burns comes to mind.

The university says there’s a rebrand ‘‘consultation’’, but the alumni survey I filled out had a ‘‘this is what we’re going to do and we are just letting you know’’ sort of tone.

A final decision is due in July. In the meantime it’s hard to find anyone who thinks the multimilliondollar rebrand is a good idea, particularly when facing dire financial woes.

Some marketing experts question the soundness of relegating the heritage brand even if the university finances were in rude health. Marketing consultant (and my former Otago marketing lecturer) Dr John Guthrie is not impressed by the university’s move. He says it ‘‘fails branding 101’’ and that if the university wants to be treated like a top university, it should present itself as one.

He’s right. Would a Harvard, Princeton, Oxford and Cambridge rebrand so dramatically and relegate their heraldry?

The answer is no. Professor of marketing science Byron Sharp told me ‘‘there’s rarely ever a need’’ to change a heritage brand and that marketers can fall into a trap of overthinking them.

I think that’s what’s happened here. The new logo is an elegant graphic design with a purposeful backstory, but the problem is most will never hear the explanation. It will take decades to build recognition for the new design. It can easily be imagined on a bank or insurance company. There is nothing about the new logo that screams ‘‘world-class heritage university’’.

Historic heraldry does that, and even the university admits such designs are generally the way universities are identified around the globe.

Those championing the rebrand say it’s required to show the university is Ti Tiriti-led.

Otago University has evolved. It’s a modern university and its bicultural commitment is evidenced in signage, courses, departments, ceremonies and every aspect of the university’s work, including its current brand identity.

Marketers of 100 years-plus heritage brands understand that they are brand guardians, not owners. As Professor Sharp says, ‘‘brands and their distinctive assets, identify – that’s it’’ and that ‘‘consumers rarely stop to think about whether the logo looks nice, trustworthy, or conveys any other connotation’’.

That’s what Otago University risks weakening, its unique identifier, which is recognised around the world.

But while consumers generally don’t give two hoots about logos in the first place, change them and they get antsy.

Heritage brand marketers know this, which is why they tread carefully. Logos might be tweaked and updated, but few risk alienating customers by rebranding completely.

Many alumni aren’t happy, but some members of the Alumni of University of Otago in America (AUOA) are incensed. The AUOA has been an epic fundraiser for the university and concerns from members do not bode well for future fundraising.

The baby boomer graduate cohort with wills tagging cash to their beloved alma mater is about to shuffle off. If the university gets things wrong there’s a genuine risk some will change their minds.

This week I spoke to Dr Bill Lindqvist in San Francisco. He’s a Bluff boy whose life was transformed by his 1960s mining degree that launched his career around the globe. His gratitude to Otago has been repaid many times through regular significant donations and as a former vicepresident of the US alumni he’s helped raise millions of dollars for the university.

I asked him whether my concern that some disheartened baby boomer alumni might change their wills was valid. He said: ‘‘It’s already happened. I know of four people who have taken Otago University off their wills.’’ Sadly, he expects more will follow. As a good citizen he doesn’t want students to suffer, so he’s looking to divert his donations to go directly to Otago student clubs and activities.

Rebranding is not just changing signs, letterheads and carrying on. The costs of establishing and promoting a new brand are always high. Signage can be written off in a year, but the cost of lost alumni donations and lost goodwill could span decades.

This weekend my son is graduating from Otago. He’s the fifth generation in our family and we are grateful to be part of the 154-year unbroken chain of students since 1869. With appropriate guardianship and leadership Otago will remain a world-class university for future generations, but this won’t happen automatically if current leaders do not respect heritage, education and research excellence, and the basic principles of heritage brand management.

Katherine Rich is a business adviser and director with experience in the public and private sectors. She was previously chief executive of the NZ Food and Grocery Council.