Brand Personality

Each of us, as humans, carry with us a particular personality defined and developed through experience and influence. The same is true of WCU: it has an institutional personality characterized by the people who are and have been a part of it and influenced by decades of defining experiences. That personality defines how we relate to the tens of thousands of people who experience our brand every day. It also sets us apart from our peers and should always serve as the foundation for WCU communications.

Personality Traits

Rooted

Rooted means: connected, resilient, secure and supportive.

WCU is deeply connected to the mountains as a source of recreation and resources, and we incorporate both into our scholarship and our service. Our strong sense of place serves as a secure, supportive foundation for our university and its students to grow and evolve.

How this impacts branding:
We proudly showcase our location and our engagement with the broader community, highlighting our connectivity with the resources in our region. We demonstrate WCU’s secure, supportive community bolstered by faculty mentorship and student involvement. Our language and our imagery are warm and open but also assured and straightforward.

Purposeful

Purposeful means: intentional, applicable, impactful and directed.

We prepare students to serve needs, solve problems and drive impactful change in our region and in our state. Our curriculum goes beyond the classroom to provide students with experiences that will change not only what they know but who they are.

How this impacts branding:
We don’t just tell our students what they can expect to learn; we show them what they can do with that knowledge. We focus less on university accolades and more on the impact of our research and service. Our language and imagery is active and moving in a way that is more human than mechanical.

Limitless

Limitless means: boundless, reaching, inexhaustible and innovative.

We believe that opportunity is open to anyone, and we are inspired by those who fight the hardest to achieve it. We are not afraid to fail, because we recognize that failure is necessary for innovation.

How this impacts branding:
We celebrate stories of exploration and innovation, not only focusing on the accomplishment that comes in the end but on the journey. We’re never afraid to pull back the curtain and show the process to success – the making of the costume, the laborious perfecting of the machine design, the weeks of training before the game. In our language and imagery we endeavor to highlight effort above outcome.