The Children’s Museum of Richmond has been an important part of the Richmond region since 1977. But like many brands that have been part of the community fabric for so long, it’s easy to be taken for granted. This fact, paired with several years of “quiet” from a brand marketing standpoint, left the museum facing a significant brand challenge: awareness and visitation had steadily declined, and understanding of the brand’s mission was at an all time low.
Elevation was brought in as the agency of record collaborator to help right the ship. Our work began by defining a new brand messaging platform for the Children’s Museum. We defined the brand position simply and elegantly: At the Children’s Museum, we inspire growth in all children by engaging families in learning through play. Then we created a simple brand promise that would serve as the springboard for reintroducing the museum to the community: Play Ahead.
Play Ahead addresses two critical components of the museum’s messaging. From a mission standpoint, it allows the museum to tell the story of how children have better outcomes in life when they experience play on their own, with other children, and with their parents. From a promotional perspective, it lets the museum remind the community how there is always a good time on the horizon—thanks to the wide variety of special programs and activities the museum offers.
In addition to creating new messaging, Elevation refreshed the museum’s communications platform. We updated the logo for the digital age, simplified the naming structure and created an entirely new graphic platform that applies to everything from ads and websites to brochures and signage. Then we developed and launched a new, integrated brand campaign to reveal the museum’s fresh perspective to the community.
One year into the campaign, the museum is seeing improvements in brand awareness, site visits and overall visitation. And our collaboration continues as we work toward introducing phase 2 of the campaign soon.
