Evolution of the UGC Logo
The United Greek Council has been established at the University of Washington since 2002, and because it’s relatively new compared to the other three Greek councils (IFC, NPH, and NPHC), the UGC has much work to do to establish its presence on campus. I ran to become president of the United Greek Council because I wanted to make this council more legitimate for the multicultural houses it serves to unite. Throughout my term as president, I’m going to completely tear down and redefine the perception of the UGC to Greeks and Non-Greeks alike as best as I can, starting with the implementation of a new branding strategy.
What is brand? The perceived emotional corporate image as a whole.
What is identity? The visual aspects that form part of the overall brand.
What is a logo? A logo identifies a business in its simplest form via the use of a mark or icon.
What is identity? The visual aspects that form part of the overall brand.
What is a logo? A logo identifies a business in its simplest form via the use of a mark or icon.
[Source: Just Creative]
For now, I’ll focus on the logo. The earliest logo of the UGC I could find on was on the archived version website (circa 2006) is this:
The original design of the UGC logo looks a Poké Ball from a distance, and close up you can pseudo-recursively see "UGC" nested within itself. Nobody knows who designed this logo and nobody can find the original file, which leaves us with a low-resolution image.
Using Adobe Illustrator, I quickly put together a couple of drafts for my EBOD to view. Vectorizing the logo allows for it to be resized without losing any quality to the image. (The pixelated, rasterized version of the first UGC logo shown earlier was a case in point of what not to do.) I decided on the colors white and black for neutrality.
In both designs, the letters of UGC are connected to give the impression of a close-knit community. Upon showing these designs to my EBOD, the staggered arrangement of "UGC" was preferred over the diagonal iteration. I agree with their decision because the staggered version looks more prominent from a distance as it takes up more screen estate. I will be working on releasing a final version soon. I can easily see this logo printed on UGC letterhead, stamped on UGC shirts, and used as an eye-catching piece of any UGC promotional materials.
I've created a pallet of appropriate background colors that align with standards set by the University of Washington's Trademark and Licensing Office. I'm open to additional suggestions and feedback to improve the design of the logo. What are your thoughts?
