BRAND OWNERSHIP: The International Trademark Association’s recent rebranding initiative focused on conveying its strength, according to Marketing and Brand Strategy Manager Devin Toporek.
CERTIFICATION MADE POSSIBLE
A Trademark Look
About three years ago, several creative managers at the International Trademark Association (INTA) realized their “brand”—their look—hadn’t been updated in nearly 20 years. It was high time, they decided, to launch a comprehensive rebranding effort. “INTA is a dynamic, forward-thinking, powerful organization,”
said Devin Toporek, manager of marketing and brand strategy. “We are the brand owners’ association, a global leader of trade- mark professionals. However, our own image didn’t radiate that.” The group kicked off its redesign with its website, asking
members what they wanted from it and how it could be improved. Their collective vision was then brought to life. Rebranding for everything else followed—from INTA’s print and digital collateral, to its slogan (“Powerful Network Powerful Brands”), to its annual meeting. “The new branding brings to the forefront that this is our
133rd Annual Meeting,” Toporek said. “It highlights the location better withpictures and colors, and uses a clean, crisp design of cubed squares that’s very simplistic and modern.We reworked our annual meeting promotional messaging completely to include facts and selling points upfront—why you should attend, who should attend, what you’ll get out of it.” Other changes included a new boilerplate blurb about the meeting and expo, more use of attendee testimonials in printed pieces and online, and the treatment of the new brand throughout the meeting and its promotions. Toporek said member reaction has been positive; meeting
registrants are up by more than 300 (and counting) this year over last, and website traffic is up as well. “INTA is valued for its prestige,” Toporek said. “We felt like we owed it to our attendees and our members to make the annual meeting just as strong.”
www.pcma.org BETTER BY DESIGN: INTA’s new logo, slogan, and
annual meeting messaging are meant to better reflect the strong reputation of the 133-year-old association of trademark professionals.