Stephen F.

Austin State University

SFASU New Logo

Public Relations Proposal
Submitted December 9, 2014
Benjamin Dodson
Logan Watson
Symantha Dickens
Amber Juarez
Linsey Bing

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Stephen F. Austin State University had come to the conclusion of adopting a new school
logo that would promote better statewide perceptions of the university. Richards/Carlberg
Houston Advertising Agency was hired by SFA to produce a new school logo that would
reinforce the universitys pride among other objectives. Richards/Carlberg found it necessary to
have a more correct outline of the location of the university within the state of Texas. The new
logo was designed in a manner to be more simplistic and modern in order to attract a higher
quantity of students along with excellent faculty/staff members.
Publics including the student body as well as the surrounding Nacogdoches community
found the finished logo inaccurate and upsetting. Photos of the new logo had been leaked before
the revealing event on the college campus and swept through the social media network
surprisingly fast.
Our group has been chosen to put together a Public Relations plan that will encourage
acceptance from the various publics and to boost awareness of the new logo. Our group has
taken into account the negative publicity that has circulated around the SFA student body, faculty,
alumni and surrounding community. We will address the problems and concerns around the new
logo.
Our main goals will be to promote general acceptance of the new logo by informing and
creating well-rounded awareness. Our strategies to achieve this mission involve multiple social
media, networking, print sources, and other forms of communication that involve active
participation of those effected by the new logo.
The main message we want to get across to students is that the Pride Logo is about the
betterment of the university. It is meant to attract new students and aid in the progression of SFA.
It is more important to focus on the future of SFA than it is to fight positive change. The future of
SFA is now.

SECONDARY RESEARCH
Ad Agency/ Firm

Richards/Carlberg is an ad agency outside of Houston, Texas. They have been an

ad agency for the last forty years, winning numerous awards. They have worked
with numerous other educational institutions and embraced working on the SFA
logo. (http://www.richardscarlberg.com/about/)

The university also hired SimpsonScarborough. They are a firm focusing in

ingenious plans, market study, and marketing specializing in higher education.
They develop strategies to increase visibility. They use qualitative and
quantitative research tactics to determine the attitudes and viewpoints of
individuals who matter the most to a university. In qualitative research, they use
focus groups via the internet and face to face. In quantitative research, they are
unique from other firms because they use brand approach development for the
college and university sectors. They use advanced techniques. Telephone surveys
are conducted and data through the internet when appropriate. Then cultivate
strategies that engage and connect with the imperative stakeholders and build a
personalized marketing plan that enthuse and lead to significant results.
<http://simpsonscarborough.com/our-services/>.

The Making of the Logo

SFA began managing examination one year ago to deliver statistics for a
marketing enterprise to increase the mindfulness of SFA and launch the academia
as an uppermost choice for exceptional students in Texas and elsewhere.
<http://www.sfasu.edu/branding/2014-02-13-regents-approve-new-logoadvertising-campaign.asp>.

The official logo receives votes not from students or faculty, but from the Board
of Regents. They consist of nine members and one student member. The logo can
only be changed through a vote.

The logo was to be revealed on March 29, 2014 at 12:30 P.M. in the Spirit Lounge
of the Student Center. The logo was meant to initiate a kickoff for a huge
advertising campaign that was going to be displayed statewide. The campaign was
named Lumberjacks make great
.
http://www.thepinelog.com/news/article_f618cf7c-b497-11e3-ad14001a4bcf6878.html

The old logo was created in a day in the field house while the new logo was created in a years time with extended thought processes and marketing strategies. It
cost SFA around $14,000 to have the logo created.

The newly implemented logo shows more purple and white. It is more accurate to
university colors.
The letters are clearly distinguished instead of overlapping. The logo has a clean,
professional look which makes it easier to understand.
Texas is easily recognizable.
Old logo reads as 9FA. It was created in a day in the field house. The new logo
was by far more planned out.
The star in the middle of the A more accurately represents the location of
Nacogdoches. The old logo showed SFA to be closer to Louisiana than it really is.
Taking detail away from the outline of Texas makes SFA pop more. There is no
need to show Galveston Bay.
The A extends into Louisiana. This portrays that that SFA is open to out-of-state
students.
The old logo is outdated; 10 years old.

The Logo

Reaction

100,000 living alumnus and roughly 13,000 students attend SFA. Less than 10%
of the constituents reacted to the logo dispute. The goal is to advertise near some
of SFAs feeder high schools to show that SFA has what these students desire in a
university. <http://www.thepinelog.com/news/article_4bbc22dc-ba09-11e3-b686001a4bcf6878.html>.

PRIMARY RESEARCH
Shirley Luna, Executive Director of University Marketing Communications, spoke with
the Linsey Bing about the Spirit Logo. The following questions were asked to Luna during the
face to face interview:
What was the main reason for the development of a new logo?
The Board of Regents hired a company to evaluate what was needed to make the school
more successful; they also wanted the logo to be easily read. One third of the student
population comes from Houston. Another one third comes from Dallas / Fort Worth area.
The school wanted to reach students who have not heard of SFA to get them excited and
consider SFA as an option for the education endeavor.
What was the criterion given to the designer for the new logo?
There was not much criteria given to the graphic designer. Richards/Carlberg are
specialists in the field of making graphics for colleges and universities.
Why do you feel the new logo was unsuccessful?
Pride is in the university and there's so much buy-in of the logo. The first meeting the
Board of Regents had, there were concerns for adjustments for the logo to be made. The
consultant was award winning. The pride of the university ended up being the main cause
for refusal. The logo was not a failure. It strengthened the alumni base, students and the
community. It brought the SFA community together.
Why did the school choose to use an outside firm instead of student-submitted
graphics?
Almost every university uses a professional agency. The fact is they did not want to crush
any students spirit if their logo was not picked. The constituents must have a strong
foundation.
What process was chosen to select the logo?
The Board of Regents was given 12 different logos to review and on the final decision
they were down to 4. Still, they had reservations and asked for more work to be done on
the one that was chosen.
Why did the students and faculty not get a say in this logo transformation?
The logo was chosen by a committee known as the Board of Regents, which consists of
nine members and one student member. According to the policies of changing a logo, the
student board member doesn't get a vote regarding the changing of the logo.
<http://www.sfasu.edu/policies/university-logo-seal.pdf>.

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Was it planned to roll out after the publicity of the basketball teams?
The Board of Regents meets 4 times a year and after 6 months of work on getting this
logo correct, they were going to unveil it at this time.
What do you think could have been done differently to make the logo successful?
If embarking on a different logo, they would involve more alumni and students to put
more pride into the logo.
Our team has also conducted the following survey on surveymonkey.com to
reveal how students feel regarding the logo. The question asked was, If you had the
opportunity to vote for the new logo, would you have been more supportive of the
change? 61 people in total answered the survey question. 68% said they would have
been more supportive of the change. Only 24% said they wouldnt have had a changed
opinion. 8% said they didnt care either way.

GOALS
Our goals are, if not the most important, one of the most important aspects of our plan.
Our goals are what provide the direction in which we are going with the new logo. Our goals
also give our target audience more insight on the new logo, and leave them with the information
they will need to support the change more fully. We have two main goals that we will plan to
reach through multiple tactics.
Our primary goal is to gain acceptance of the new logo among the student body and
surrounding community. The publics closely relating to or identified by Stephen F. Austin State
University were not actively involved in the production or advancement of the new logo. We
have collected data that suggests if student and faculty participation was available, there would
have been more of open-mindedness toward accepting a new logo. Without that activity, people
were already taken off guard and had their minds set in a disapproving direction. We have
devised multiple tactics that we will be applying to gain more of an acceptance towards the new
logo developed by Richard/Carlberg. These will be included in the strategies section of our PR
plan.
Our secondary goal is to utilize the new logo to better SFAs image as a university that
has evolved into a more successful, statewide, establishment. The logo represents the university
moving toward positive change and how its student body is progressing both in knowledge and
image. The new logo is clean, modern, and pristine, which is the image that was expected and
presented to the university.

STRATEGIES
We have a multitude of different strategies that we will be using to implement our goals.
The majority of these strategies deal with involving the student body, faculty and alumni of SFA.
Everyone involved with the university must know and feel their importance in the new logo
changing process. These strategies will provide the publics affected by the logo change with the
ways that actively involve usable feedback and compensation.
1.
We will use the multiple social media networks to allow the student body to voice their
opinion concerning the logo changing and the process by which the change was accomplished.
The sudden unveiling of the new logo was shocking for the effected publics. Voting polls and
surveys will be available for students to participate online. Giving students the opportunity to get
involved in the process will gain more of an acceptance and approval of the new logo. Having a
say in big changes involving the image of the university sets up a good foundation towards the
approval of change regarding something that is already widely accepted.
2.
Our next mission will be to use multiple means of communication to inform those that
might still be against the new logo of the reasons behind the design and the effort that was put
into it. Giving the opposing audience more information about the new logo will educate them on
how and why the logo change is important. Forms of communication involvement include:

Pamphlets will be passed out at an event table as well as available for pick up in
the main office of every college. Pamphlets will include information about what
was involved in the making of the new logo. Educating the student body of the
information pertaining to the process put into the new logo design will make them
feel well aware. The new logo is designed to better the student body, as well as
the universities overall image of academic and disciplinary progress.

Our goal also involves SFAs alumni and the surrounding community in
Nacogdoches, Texas. To keep these important people filled in and educated on the
new logo, we will maintain connection with the Pine Log, The Daily Sentinel, and
the alumni magazine, Sawdust. Through these print media sources, we can keep
our publics updated through informational and educational news articles and
focus stories. It is important to keep these people informed so acceptance and
awareness of the new logo is well-rounded. It is important to have the acceptance
of these people because the schools alumni and the surrounding community
invest a lot into the school. Stephen F. Austin State University has a lot of reliance
on its alumni and Nacogdoches community members. The alumni sponsor events,
are important leaders, and finance many movements that SFA holds. Keeping
them informed about the change is very important and will be done through the
three print sources we previously stated.

Our focus is also on the faculty at SFA. These people maintain the grounds, keep
the university clean, keep the cafeterias and other important parts of the university
functioning, and have supported SFA as an important part of their community.

Another form of communication will be SFAs TV station, the locally used radio
station KSAU 90.1 FM, and other local news broadcasting sources of the East
Texas region. Along with informing the public of the meaning behind the logo and
the efforts put forth into creating it, interviews with various representatives of the
school and our informed agency personnel will allow for a more direct and
personal insight on the new logo. Broadcasting on local airwaves is just as
important as using local print news sources because it is time efficient. It allows
busy people who don't have enough time sit down to read a magazine or a
newspaper a way to be educated about the new logo.
o Shirley Luna, Executive Director of University Marketing
Communications, would be a good possible guest speaker on
KSAU as well as the SFA TV station. She would inform the
viewers of how the new logo will be good for moving the
university forward in academic standings. She is a very important
member to the marketing and image aspect of SFA because she has
a great deal of knowledge of how the university and its image have
progressed over time. It is vital for the public to see and hear from
someone who is knowledgeable and connected to the university on
accepting and moving forward with the logo. Therefore, the public
is able to support the change more fully and with a better
understanding.

Our final aspect of our strategies emphasizes the importance of buzz. You can have
positive and negative buzz. With all the tactic plans taken, our main goal is to create positive
buzz regarding the new logo. When buzz is created, information of the new logo and its positive
movement will be spread across Texas and beyond. While most SFA students are based out of
Texas, there are a many individuals studying abroad and from further regions of the United
States. Buzz will travel through the internet, through phone lines, from students to the friends
and family in different locations, and much more. The lack of buzz or communication at all is
what made the unveiling of the new logo a disaster. That is why our goal is to now let the buzz
factor be the main reason why the new logo has success. By involving the public as much as we
can, our goal should be reached sufficiently. Taking a more active approach will result in more
satisfying results regarding the new logo.

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TARGET AUDIENCE
Current Students
Students created most of the uproar following the release of the new logo, so they are
our most important audience. They have a strong sense of pride for SFA. The best
ways to reach the student body are through the student newspaper, Pine Log, and
Social Media. Other tactics will be used accordingly.
Alumni

Faculty

Alumni caused quite a stir as well, so it is important to reach them with our campaign.
Many SFA alumni read Saw Dust magazine, so that will be our main channel of
communication with them.

While the faculty of SFASU seemed more understanding of the logo change, there
was still some unrest. With SFA being the center of most of these peoples lives, the
logo change is just as important to them as it is to anyone else. They will also be
reached through the Pine Log and other tactics such as a pamphlet.

Nacogdoches Community
SFA is a big part of what makes the city of Nacogdoches so special. The flux of
students brings business as well as prosperity. The community surrounding SFA truly
cares about the school and its progress. The Daily Sentinel will be our main channel
of communication with the Nacogdoches community.
Parents

Parents want to send their kids to the best university possible. The whole point of the
new logo is to progress the image of SFA. Therefore, information about the changing
of the logo should be made available to parents of both current and prospective
students.

Prospective Students
The logo is being updated in order to draw in more students from across Texas and
beyond its borders. With billboards going up as part of the marketing campaign, a
significant logo is needed to get the attention of high school students who may be
looking to choose where they will attend college.

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KEY TARGET MEDIA

Pamphlet
Create a short 2-3 page pamphlet that will highlight the positive differences between
the logos.
Focus on how the new logo will promote the betterment of the university.
Explain to the main public (current students) that the logo change is necessary to
allow SFA to continue to grow and compete with other Texas universities.
This should be short and eye catching. Students should want to pick this pamphlet up
and skim through it in a minute or two. It should improve their stance on a number of
issues with the new logo.
Stories in the Daily Sentinel and Saw Dust
Releasing a story in the Daily Sentinel will be the main tactic in reaching the
community directly surrounding SFA.
It is important to reach the Nacogdoches community on these issues because they are
an important part of what makes SFA successful.
This should be in-depth in explaining the positives of the new logo as it relates to the
improvement of SFA and its community.
Articles in the Saw Dust magazine will adhere more to the alumni community.
Pine Log
A story on the front page of the Pine Log will make students want to pick it up to read
about the logo.
This, like the story in the Daily Sentinel, should be an in-depth explanation that
tailors more to the current student.
Emails to faculty/students
Send out an energizing video that boosts their school pride
Title should be appealing. It should draw in both the student and faculties attention
(for example: SFA's Future is Now)
T-shirt/memorabilia (with new logo) giveaways
Free T-shirts containing the new logo will be handed out around campus and at
certain SFA events.
This should rapidly change students attitude towards the new logo.
Social Media
Facebook and Twitter are the two main social media sites that SFA uses. We will have
posts pertaining to the new logo several times a week. They should be something like
the following: Did you know that the star on the new SFA Pride Logo accurately
depicts the location of Stephen F. Austin State University?

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RECOMMENDATIONS
News Conference

Within a few days of the logo release, we recommend a planned and announced
news conference to take place directly in front of the Student Center.

The conference should take place at 11 a.m. or 12 p.m. in order to reach the
majority of SFA students in-between classes.

A brief email should be sent to all students and faculty to announce the conference.

The conference should be no longer than five minutes and should give a brief
explanation as to the purpose of rebranding the University and how the logo is a
step forward. It should be mentioned that the Pine Log, among other publications,
will soon be giving a detailed view of the making of the new logo and why it is
best for the students and the school.
Features

The features mentioned in the above news release will be present in the Pine Log,
Saw Dust and Daily Sentinel.
These stories should be ready in time for the next publication, if possible. All
stories should be in-depth on the background of the logo and how it will help the
school move forward.
These stories should be released as close together as possible. For example, the
Pine Log only prints once a week. The story should be held from the Sentinel so
that the two publications will be released simultaneously in order to reach our two
largest publics at the same time.

T-shirt Give-Away

A great way to get students on the side of the new logo is to offer free material
with the logo on it.

Everyone wants new T-shirts, so we recommend a table in front of the Student

Center or Library where a good number of students can pick up a free shirt
containing the new logo. There should be at least 200 to 300 shirts given away.

This should be done within a period of 2-3 weeks following the logo release.

If there are any school events or activities taking place during this period, it
should be announced on Social Media that the first 100 to come will receive the
free shirt.
Publishing Survey Results

We think its important to address the feedback that we receive on the logo. The
survey that was sent out on social media should be analyzed for how many people
participated and what their opinions were on getting to vote for the logo.

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It is in our favor to publish these results in at least the Pine Log because the
results express a lack of motivation of the students to participate in the logo
change. In other words, we will express that the survey revealed little negativity
toward the logo and that the initial uproar was made to be more widespread than it
really was.
The story, as it appears in the Pine Log, should also contain any positive feedback
statements from students.

Measuring Outcomes

In completion of the tactics used, we will design another survey to measure the
attitude that SFA publics have toward the Pride Logo.

Budget
Total: $14,000
Our budget is short and sweet. Most of our plan involves free promotion and puts an
emphasis on community dialogue.
Pamphlets $3,000
3,000 at $1 each through the SFA Graphic Shop.
T-shirts $5,000
500 shirts at $10 each.
Pay Ourselves $6,000

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ACTION PLAN
News Conference

The University Marketing Department should be in charge of writing the material

to be presented at the news conference.

Shirley Luna should speak on behalf of the Board of Regents.

Features

Benjamin Dodson and Amber Juarez will work alongside the Marketing
Department to create the best feature stories possible explaining every aspect of
the logo.
The stories will be tailored to each publication as it pertains to the audiences
reached by that publication.

T-Shirt Give-Away

Linsey Bing will meet with the Marketing Department to discuss a shirt design
that incorporates the new logo. Even a simple purple shirt with the logo would
suffice.

Tattoo Productions T-shirt Co. would be the best fit for our order to get back in a
timely manner.

Members of the Marketing Department should be called to volunteer to work the

tables giving away the shirts. This shouldnt be a big burden as it wont take more
than an hour for the free items to go.
Pamphlet

Symantha Dickens will be in charge of creating a short, informational pamphlet

that students can read through in a quick minute. She will work with the Board of
Regents to summarize the best points of the new logo and why it outshines the old
logo. This should be in circulation around campus and the community shortly
after the feature stories are published.

Social Media

Posts on Facebook and Twitter will be monitored and authored by the Marketing
Department. We will approve any messages pertaining to the logo before they are
posted. Posts should appear on these sites at least once daily following the news
conference.
Publishing Survey Results

Logan Watson will be monitoring the survey posted to Social Media. He will
analyze the data collected and create a press release that will also serve as a
follow-up to the original feature stories.

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WORKS CITED
"About - Richards Carlberg." Richards/Carlberg. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
Dickerson, Kaci. "Jacks Take Stand." The Pine Log Online. 2 Apr. 2014. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
"SFA Regents Approve New Logo, Advertising Campaign." sfasu.edu. 13 Feb. 2014. Web. 18
Nov. 2014.
Gilligan, Jessica. "SFA to Revamp Look." The Pine Log Online. 26 Mar. 2014. Web. 18 Nov.
2014.
"University Logo/Seal." 29 July 2014. Web. 28 Nov. 2014.
Web. 28 Nov. 2014. <http://simpsonscarborough.com/our-services/>.

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APPENDIX
Email to Richards/Carlberg Houston Ad Agency:
To Whom this may concern,
I am currently a enrolled in Stephen F. Austin State University earning a BA in Mass
Media with a concentration in Strategic Communications with a minor in Marketing. In
my principles of Public Relations class, we were separated into groups to come up with a
plan book over certain subjects. My group chose to address the SFA Logo that had been
petitioned earlier this year. Our mission is to come up with a strategy to improve the
opinions of students and the surrounding communities toward the logo.
It would be highly appreciated if someone that worked on the Logo and its design could
please reply with good incite to what work was put into it. For example, how long it took
just to come up with the idea for the logo, how many other candidates were designed,
how many people worked on the logo, and what were some of the opinions was the
company hoping to gain from the final logo design.
If I could get a reply of information sometime this coming week, then it would be great. I
understand this may be asking a lot and I am thankful you have taken the time to read this.
Have a great Thanksgiving!
-Amber C Juarez
(Junior at Stephen F. Austin State University)
P.S. The professor of the course is Dr. Madison in the College of Liberal and Applied Arts

Social Media Survey: