When reminiscing about past school days, most remember their school’s logo and colors. For many working adults, the nostalgia and memories of school spirit rarely fade as the years go by.
All of this is the result of effective school branding. It creates a powerful and firm concept of a particular institution, often driving positive emotions about the entire experience. For an untrained eye, the process of generating school branding may appear fairly straightforward. But, there are a lot of essential details to consider when originating school branding ideas.
Besides providing a variety of services, including selling custom products and equipment, we also specialize in branding. On this page, we’ll share the six most effective branding tactics that can be of great use if you’re embarking on a rebranding project.
1. Make the Most of Fencing to brand your outdoor field
Most outdoor athletic facilities have fencing wrapped around the field. It keeps the players and fans safe and marks the field of competition. If your school has an outdoor sports facility, you should have fencing around it. If you already have fencing, you shouldn’t miss the opportunity to plaster it with your school’s colors and logos to create an unbeatable home atmosphere. When your athletes see the field plastered with your school’s symbols, they will feel more immersed. They’ll give their all to win and make their classmates and coaches proud.
Putting walls pads or even adding simple vinyl covers on the fencing is a great way to give your student-athletes the extra motivations to outperform their opponents on home ground. At J&J Gym Floors, we create custom padding that’s easy to install and is second to none in durability.
2. Be Creative with the Dugouts and Railings
Dugout structures and railings are often underrated, both in terms of their role in ensuring player safety and offering branding possibilities. They are essential if you want to maximize the protection of your student-athletes. These safety structures also provide a lot of free space for displaying your school’s logo, mascot, culture, sponsors, or anything else that can play up team spirit.
Although dugout branding is only applicable if your school has a baseball or softball field, railings are present in most outdoor stadiums. Consider using these surfaces and other structures, like barriers and railings on track and field stadiums. They provide a simple and effective way to promote your school’s brand and build a culture.
3. Take Advantage of Wall Space
School gymnasiums provide you with a lot of free space for building up your school’s brand. You can add logos on each of the walls and even set aside an entire wall to highlight your school’s achievements and records. Another great way to take advantage of free wall space is to invest in wall graphics that depict students’ famous moments and past accomplishments. If you have an outdoor stadium with a press box or other nearby structures, consider putting logos and wall graphics on them.
4. Don’t Forget Columns and Corner Walls
Posts and corners in a gym facility can pose a significant safety hazard for your students. In high-contact, fast-paced sports, students can quickly lose control and collide with nearby posts and corner walls. For this reason, you should have custom padding for every column, post, and corner of your indoor sports facility. They can significantly reduce the risk of injury.
Installing these pads presents another opportunity to increase your school’s brand awareness. By customizing the pads with school symbols, mascots or logos, you’ll make your gym pop with colors and instill a positive feeling in every athlete who steps foot on the court. If your gym court is next to your school’s stage, you can include custom-made stage pads. All of these little details together make a bold statement and leave a lasting impression on every student.
5. Keep the Logos Simple to brand your school gym
While it’s important that you use the free space in your facilities to promote your school’s spirit, you should also be careful not to go overboard with the design. Complex logos with too much visual details and convoluted information often fail to convey the message. Remember to keep the logos simple, bold, and sleek.
You can draw inspiration from other school’s logos, but avoid imitating them. This makes for a poor branding strategy and could potentially bring legal trouble. If you need help brainstorming logos and brand ideas, our staff is at your disposal. They can help you design symbols that best represent your school’s spirit.
6. Make Your School Brand Unique
Your school is unique, and you should be proud of it. Your logo should reflect your facility in the best possible light. But while your logo is critical to brand awareness, it’s only one part of building your school’s brand identity. That’s why it’s worth taking some extra time to think up other ways to build team spirit around it. Don’t be afraid to get creative and, if necessary, don’t shy away from an experienced professional’s advice.
Developing or rebuilding a brand can be a challenging task to handle. If you need help with building up your school’s brand, we’re here for you. From design work to custom branding products, you can count on us! With over fifteen years of industry experience and more than 17,000 completed projects, we offer a superior service unrivaled in the industry. We’ll make sure you get the logos and graphics that best represent your school. Contact us about how to brand your school gym and outdoor field.