5° + Carroll College
Brand Promise • Messaging Theme and Map • Brand Book • Enrollment Materials • Photography
The Challenge: A brand built around place and calling
With more than 100 years of history and a rich Catholic tradition set in the extraordinary beauty of the Montana Rocky Mountains, Carroll College is recognized for academic distinction in liberal arts and professional programs. In the context of a five-year strategic plan, Carroll sought a cohesive branding and communications strategy with a vision for achieving sustainable growth while elevating purpose and impact.
The Plan: A Compelling Story to Tell
The project’s Research & Discovery phase assessed the baseline brand reality and identified strengths and challenges in order to clarify Carroll’s vision for success.
In clearly articulating the exceptional qualities of the Carroll experience, the 5° team then led the college’s leadership team to develop a new brand promise, messaging framework, and activation plan.
The setting for Carroll College is unparalleled and has always been part of the school’s identity.
The Brand Book includes: Telling our Story, Building our Reputation, and Managing our Image
The Results
Capturing the essence of the college’s singular identity, Carroll now tells its story with the multi-dimensional master theme, For the Adventure. In undergraduate admissions recruiting, a targeted application of the theme emphasizes that each student is “Made for Adventure”—grounded in a search for truth, to live a life of meaning and consequence.
What has the new branding accomplished so far?
For the fall of 2022, Carroll College enrolled its largest first-year class in three years, with a 5% increase over the previous year and a 10% increase over 2020.
Delivering on the Promise
Carroll used the momentum from the new branding work to activate a new enrollment campaign, a brand anthem video, and more recently, a new website.
“Searching for the right consultant to assist with communicating our brand is like agreeing to pose naked in front of a professional photographer. There are no secrets. If you’re smart you get professionals who make you feel comfortable being who you truly are (scars and all) and through that honesty, the outcome is authenticity. That is what 5 Degrees provided for the team at Carroll College. We were pleased with the process. We are ecstatic about the outcome. We are grateful for the enduring relationship.”
- CHIP HINTON, FORMER AVP OF ENROLLMENT
Campus Photography
