New corporate identity

grdaHopeful

What will it be like in 20 years' time when a new batch of senior administrators are in situ?

Tears in Rain

Yeah, I don't like to complain about it too much, because I worry I sound like one of those annoying conservative trolls/twats around here that moan about "promiscuity packs" and the vernacular mass, but god, the whole thing sounds really ****ing stupid. Change the colours on a centuries old crest because apparently people might interpret the blue and yellow as being a "value brand" like Ryanair? Like what, we're in danger of being seen as handing out Tesco Value Degrees?

I mean, on one level, I can understand emphasising the "University" in our name when promoting ourselves abroad in the US or in Asia, but the whole rationale behind changing the crest seems so monumentally stupid, I can't even comprehend it.

Consultants employed under the €100,000 rebranding initiative noted blue and gold were commonly used in heraldry but were also often associated with “value or convenience”.
They cited Rynair, Ikea, Visa and Walmart as among a number of brands that are associated with blue and yellow, a colour combination which they said “lacks a sense of quality and sophistication”.

I wonder if they did a survey, and if so if a single person thought that the colour combination "lacked [...] quality and sophistication". I can understand if they're applying this to some corporate brand trying to market itself as selling high-quality products, but it applies to a coat of arms about as much as it applies to the flag of Ukraine.

Just leave things as they are. How's that for a novel idea?

Lawliet

They didn't want the colours to be associated with a lack of quality and sophistication, so instead they opted for blue and white. Which is used by almost every social website ever.

Idiots.

partyatmygaff

Sophistication is apparently following design fads.

There's a good reason why no one else on the planet is changing their coat of arms to make it look like an icon for a phone app.

grdaHopeful

"app icon". Lol.

I'm surprised the graphic designer didn't go the whole hog and do it in pink -- the colour that is most representative of the ideology of contemporary Trinity.

Polka_Dot

I'd heard about the name changing ideas but hadn't heard this about the crest. Has it already been decided on or are they just in talks? Sounds ridiculous!

Tears in Rain

http://brianmlucey.wordpress.com/2014/03/30/rebranding-tcd/

Says it better than I could.

New crest is in the blog post too, apparently:

Amirani

Can't really disagree with Brian there.

Mr Pseudonym

Nobody shout at me...but I actually prefer the proposed new crest!

I'm not sure that it'll make much of a difference. Technically (I think), the uni is currently called Trinity College, University of Dublin. The change is only to how the university will be promoted and branded.

Tears in Rain

Guys, I improved the crest by making it shiny like an iOS icon. I also added on a dexter bulbazaur statant guardian since research shows the lion wasn't in keeping with the image of a contemporary university. Can I have €100k pls?

grdaHopeful

Tears in Rain wrote: »

Guys, I improved the crest by making it shiny like an iOS icon. I also added on a dexter bulbazaur statant guardian since research shows the lion wasn't in keeping with the image of a contemporary university. Can I have €100k pls?

Nice job. I thought the lion needed to be emasculated alright. It was too threatening for the lady folk.

Pink is a much better colour IMO. Plus, pink is the racing colour of our founder, Queen Elizabeth.

Mr Pseudonym

ProfBL wrote: »

except of course it wont be so. Its only in Chindia that they feel the need to do this.

Well, then - what's the matter? Irish students and staff are oblivious to the change, the university benefits from attracting high-paying students or talented researchers, and the ambiguity regarding Trinity's name is clarified. Regrading the last: I know of several who were unaware that TCD and UoD are one and the same.

grdaHopeful

We have a shield that was bought and paid for 100s of years ago.

We could probably commission our own custom font and "graphic design" the coat of arms a little (the heraldry does not change):


Here's Cambridge's:


And Oxford:


Of course we've gone down the semesterization route now... Trinity is experiencing much wider identity issues if you ask me.

Mr Pseudonym

grdaHopeful wrote: »

Of course we've gone down the semesterization route now... Trinity is experiencing much wider identity issues if you ask me.

I'll ask you then! What other "identity issues" do you think there are?

B_Rabbit

Should the average student really care about any of this?

Mr Pseudonym

B_Rabbit wrote: »

Should the average student really care about any of this?

How dare you accuse me of being an average student!

Longwalkhome

B_Rabbit wrote: »

Should the average student really care about any of this?

This attitude really irks me, to be honest. The contemporary Trinity student sees the university as just another generic conveyor-belt college. Their uniform consists of hoodies, GAA jerseys and denim jeans. They stumble drunkenly through 4 years of college unaware of the history and traditions of Trinity. Instead they're more concerned with denigrating Front Square with huge SHAG week banners and placing huge concrete slabs over the cobblestones. Why don't you do us all a favour and transfer to DIT instead? I'm sure you could have your "American Pie" college experience over there.

B_Rabbit

Longwalkhome wrote: »

This attitude really irks me, to be honest. The contemporary Trinity student sees the university as just another generic conveyor-belt college. Their uniform consists of hoodies, GAA jerseys and denim jeans. They stumble drunkenly through 4 years of college unaware of the history and traditions of Trinity. Instead they're more concerned with denigrating Front Square with huge SHAG week banners and placing huge concrete slabs over the cobblestones. Why don't you do us all a favour and transfer to DIT instead? I'm sure you could have your "American Pie" college experience over there.

Im sorry I irked you. I'll be sure to get rid of my jeans at once and replace it with a cloak and scarf. I'll be sure to bow at the front arch daily to honour the history and traditions of trinity.

Jesus, get over yourself.

lfqnic

Longwalkhome wrote: »

This attitude really irks me, to be honest. The contemporary Trinity student sees the university as just another generic conveyor-belt college. Their uniform consists of hoodies, GAA jerseys and denim jeans. They stumble drunkenly through 4 years of college unaware of the history and traditions of Trinity. Instead they're more concerned with denigrating Front Square with huge SHAG week banners and placing huge concrete slabs over the cobblestones. Why don't you do us all a favour and transfer to DIT instead? I'm sure you could have your "American Pie" college experience over there.

Steady on! I'm all for civic pride and I do care about these changes, but of the two of ye it seems like you're the one with a narrow concept of how a Trinity student should be. What do clothes have to do with anything? Many a good student, myself included, has no interest in a daily fashion parade. Is that somehow disloyal of me?

B_Rabbit

Longwalkhome wrote: »

placing huge concrete slabs over the cobblestones.

For accessibility reasons, how are wheelchair users supposed to get from place to place?

hfallada

Longwalkhome wrote: »

This attitude really irks me, to be honest. The contemporary Trinity student sees the university as just another generic conveyor-belt college. Their uniform consists of hoodies, GAA jerseys and denim jeans. They stumble drunkenly through 4 years of college unaware of the history and traditions of Trinity. Instead they're more concerned with denigrating Front Square with huge SHAG week banners and placing huge concrete slabs over the cobblestones. Why don't you do us all a favour and transfer to DIT instead? I'm sure you could have your "American Pie" college experience over there.

College is so much more than just getting a degree. But it's about experiencing new things and expanding your horizons. Stuff like rainbow week forces people to think about lgbt students and shag week forces people to deal with mental health discussions. Both are issues Irish people choose to ignore.

Even university of Munich has frats like American universities. Which are based on friendship and learning about new people. If you go to college and spend your entire time in the library and lecture hall. You are missing the whole experience of college.


BTW I love the granite slabs on the main square( the same stone used on the Georgian foot paths all over the city and what most of our landmarks are made from). I like how you can walk on them without tripping or slipping like the stones

Lawliet

Longwalkhome wrote: »

placing huge concrete slabs over the cobblestones.

Off the point but I am so sick of people bitching about those. Like how dare the college make front square more accessible for people with mobility issues.

Longwalkhome

Lawliet wrote: »

Off the point but I am so sick of people bitching about those. Like how dare the college make front square more accessible for people with mobility issues.

Yeah and let's make a wider tunnel at Newgrange so mobility scooters can fit.

B_Rabbit

Longwalkhome wrote: »

Yeah and let's make a wider tunnel at Newgrange so mobility scooters can fit.

Now you're being ridiculous. Newgrange is a 5000 year old monument, Trinity is a university.

Lawliet

Longwalkhome wrote: »

Yeah and let's make a wider tunnel at Newgrange so mobility scooters can fit.

That's a hell of a false equivalent you just played there. I suspect you're trolling because it really should not be necessary to explain to someone why a university is obligated to ensure universal access, while a prehistoric heritage site might not be. I believe the 2005 Disability Act covers this sort of thing though if you are genuinely confused.

Mr Pseudonym

Longwalkhome wrote: »

Yeah and let's make a wider tunnel at Newgrange so mobility scooters can fit.

They should fill in the gaps on the Giant's Causeway, as well!

Imagine the discomfort and embarrassment for a wheelchair user of juddering across the cobblestones. It's patently wrong and (as said) possibly illegal to have what is probably the most picturesque part of our college inaccessible to wheelchairs. There was a worry that the College would do a bad job of the walkways, but I think they did it tastefully.

Extrasupervery

Those paved slabs are helping a lot more than students with mobility scooters. Have you ever tried wandering through cobblestones with an acute back injury? It's not fun.

I think the blue and white logo looks like it belongs to an insurance company or a corporation or something. The colours in the old one were much more university-like.

Wonder how much college are paying out for all of this design business...

nommm

Ridiculous that they're spending so much money on silly things like this when the standard of the education at the Univeristy is dropping due to cut backs.

A shiny new logo isn't going to make TCD a better university.

languagenerd

This is completely pointless. The new crest looks more like a "value brand" than the old one! It looks like the logo for an antivirus program (or an app icon as others have said). The old one at least looked traditional... If they're trying to promote the college based on its history and reputation, they've made the complete wrong decision.

Also, why do they think blue and yellow is associated with "value brands" but blue and white isn't? What about Tesco Mobile, every social network, several Premiership football jerseys, Aldi in most parts of Europe, Walmart and Dealz (have blue, white AND yellow), adidas, Pepsi (with a bit of red, in fairness), etc.?

hfallada

nommm wrote: »

Ridiculous that they're spending so much money on silly things like this when the standard of the education at the Univeristy is dropping due to cut backs.

A shiny new logo isn't going to make TCD a better university.

But it will make it easier to market abroad. Foreign students fees make up about 35% of revenue for the university. You have to spend money to make it. Like Ludwig Maximilian Universitaet is marketed as University of Munich abroad