FBLA TBL December 22 - 7

INSIDE
FBLA
The Story Behind
FBLA's New Look and Brand
When Columbia University
Professor Hamden Forkner came
up with the concept for FBLA in
1937, his idea was to unite school
business clubs nationwide. FBLA's
rebrand, launched earlier this
year, aims to do exactly that for
its members.
FBLA replaced the red, white,
and blue flag motif, which had been
its logo since the late 1990s, with
the blue and gold delta in August.
The delta represents the three
divisions of Middle School, High
School, and Collegiate, as well as
FBLA's ideals of service, education,
and progress. The individual parts
of the delta-a Greek letter used to
symbolize change-come together
to help the whole achieve success.
The delta logo also brings back the
traditional FBLA colors of navy and
gold, along with a
cobalt blue.
The new
logo seeks to
communicate
this story and
show FBLA as
one association-
meaning that no
matter where
students are located
or what age they are, they enjoy a
core FBLA experience. Gone are the
differentiated logos and the varying
names for FBLA's three divisions
(Middle Level, FBLA, and PBL).
Instead, the new logo is instantly
recognizable wherever a student
is on their FBLA journey and
blue and gold colors. In addition,
they thought the FBLA brand lacked
consistency; instead, participants
desired clearer logos and messaging.
As part of its research, Ignite
also studied the brands of other
Career and Technical Student
Organizations before coming up with
connects them throughout their time
with the organization.
Before launching the rebrand,
FBLA created several task forces
and did extensive research over
two years. Working with market
research firm McKinley Advisors
and branding firm Ignite, FBLA
conducted four student-based
focus groups and held three sets
of stakeholder interviews, which
included students, advisers, state
leaders, and National Center staff.
The results showed that
participants were confused about the
Greek letters in the PBL logo, both
in terms of where they came from
and what they stood for. They also
felt the font used in the old logo was
outdated, and they saw a disconnect
between the red, white, and blue of
the flag motif and FBLA's traditional
six recommendations. In short, the
research found FBLA should:
* Leverage the community and
friendship inherent in FBLA
*
Clarify its messaging as a cocurricular
organization
* Create a meaningful and
modern logo that local
chapters can customize
* Promote the excitement and
prestige of competitions
and conferences
* Create a strong bond that
retains students all the way
from middle school to college
Identify and promote a unified
naming structure for all
FBLA chapters
FBLA's new logo and branding
aim to accomplish all of these things,
and it will be building on the work
done so far in the months to come.
As it seeks to unite
all divisions and
members across
one brand, FBLA is
asking for help from
chapters to ensure
consistency. Chapters
have until August 1,
2023 to switch from
the flag motif logo
to the delta. Once
*
chapters adopt the new logo, FBLA
expects they will adhere to FBLA
Branding Guidelines, which can be
found on the Branding Center at
fbla.org/brand-center. The site also
includes downloadable templates
for local logos, stationery, business
cards, and more.
DECEMBER 2022 | 7 |
http://www.fbla.org/brand-center
FBLA TBL December 22

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of FBLA TBL December 22
