Since its founding in 1989, the HIV Law Project saw the AIDS epidemic evolve and change shape and adapted its responses accordingly. It was successful in adding new areas to its original mission, such as advocacy and advocacy training, but largely remained known for what it was at its origin, when it shaped some key areas of response to the AIDS epidemic. At the same time, similar organizations expanded in number and in size, so that HIV Law’s uniqueness became less perceptible at a time when competition for funding dollars became ever more severe. With a new Executive Director and a renewed vision, the HIV Law Project decided to create a consistent brand image to be communicated in a coherent way to its audiences. They needed a strong identity to highlight the organization’s strengths and establish a clear brand perception to launch major high-dollar fundraising initiatives. Using a brand created 15 years ago, but facing new challenges in a more competitive environment, the HIV Law Project needed a new brand strategy; they asked the Taproot Foundation team to design one.

The Taproot Foundation put together a team of experts who worked closely with HIV Law Project’s management team to develop a new brand identity. The client was highly involved in the process; the project was followed by the organization’s board as well as by employees who participated in every key decision.

The project started with a discovery phase that involved numerous interviews with the organization’s community partners, board members and current funders. Using market research, the team articulated the unique characteristics of the organization and its differences relative to other organizations active in the area. Based on these findings, the team worked closely with the organization to create a positioning statement and three distinct brand strategy options. Peter Dolchin, the Marketing Manager on the team, translated these brand ideas into a design brief; Chip Tolaney, the graphic designer, created three distinct approaches with several logos represented under each approach. A shortlist of ideas was presented and discussed with HIV Law’s Board of Directors; the brand identity and the logo that best reflected the organization were selected by the HIV Law project after input from its Board, its employees and its funders. A guide was developed to assist in implementing the new logo across the different applications. The new brand strategy that resulted from the project marked a key step in the organization’s development. The client was very interested not only in the result, but also in the process that led to this decision, which sparked discussions of critical issues for the organization.

The joint Taproot Foundation/HIV Law Project team developed a brand strategy as well as a consistent image reflecting the organization’s mission. The resulting logo will now be used on stationary, envelopes, business cards, posters, and marketing and fundraising collateral. For the first time, the HIV Law Project will present a unified, readily identifiable image in the community that will make the organization highly visible and attractive. Further, the new logo represents a professional appearance that will enhance the organization’s goals of creating and successfully implementing high-dollar fundraising initiatives.

The engagement team included:

• Anne Olderog, Senior Director of Business Development, Wolff Olins, expert in brand strategy and client management
• Andrew Goldner, Attorney, expert in team management
• Peter Dolchin, Brand Valuation and Strategic Consultant, Interbrand Corporation, expertise in brand strategy and development
• Chip Tolaney, Graphic Designer, West Group, significant experience in design and logos for nonprofit organizations