Rock Point: Redefining a Local Narrative

Consistent brand messaging is crucial for building a strong and recognizable brand identity. With it, your brand’s values, personality, and unique propositions are cohesive across touchpoints, reinforcing your brand’s positioning in the minds of your target audience.  

Creating consistent messaging to engage community

Since 1885, Rock Point has been a welcoming sanctuary in the heart of Burlington, Vermont. A unique center of the Episcopal Church in Vermont, Rock Point provides visitors with an outlet to learn, conserve, and restore.

In 2017, Rock Point leadership realized it was time for a rebrand to engage the greater community with the organization’s latest initiatives. LONDONmiddlebury offered a Brand Discovery program with an aim to identify market positioning, target markets, deliver aesthetic recommendations, and develop a new value proposition for the property as a whole.

Aligning branding with target audience's expectations

After meeting with diocesan liaisons Maurice Harris and Rev. Craig Smith, our first step was to create a Branding 101 presentation to bring the Board of Directors up to speed on the process they were about to embark on. In the presentation, we explained the often intangible goals of our Brand Discovery process to board members from various industries and backgrounds.

With all team members on board, we began the journey towards discovery. We ran an intensive in-person workshop designed to draw out both resonant and dissonant concepts of Rock Point and its purpose. Analyzing our findings helped us discover that Rock Point faces an obstacle common among nonprofits: its core messaging was lost amongst the similar and overlapping messages emanating from the multiple facets of the organization.

We used this analysis to identify Rock Point’s value proposition, themes, personality, and aesthetics, and how the organization fits in the current market.

Value Proposition

Rock Point’s value proposition was split into two parts: what it is and what it offers. Through its land use, conference center, camps, and school services, we identified Rock Point as a meeting place, a garden, sustainable, sacred, spiritual, and more. When people go to Rock Point, they find that it offers education, conservation, recreation, community, and deeper connection. This identification helped us find Rock Point’s value proposition: a welcoming sanctuary in the heart of Burlington. It’s a phrase that captures the energy and wonderment of Rock Point, while still staying true to the roots of what it is. 

Themes

Choosing themes for your brand can help refocus internal efforts when they begin to go askew and guide them when there is stagnation or confusion. Target audiences align with values and themes throughout messaging, making your brand’s connection with them that much stronger.

For Rock Point, we explored three themes: recreation, conservation, and education. These terms came to us through the Brand Discovery process, where we determined brand themes through stakeholder workshops, market research, and organizational audits. In our analysis, we found these words to be recurring patterns and ideas, capturing the brand’s core essence, values, and unique qualities. This helped us craft a cohesive brand narrative that would resonate with the organization’s target audience. 

Visuals

We wanted Rock Point’s brand image to be current and prospective visitors’ primary point of association. Pinpointing brand colors, typography, and a beautiful logo for Rock Point allowed us to create a physical representation of the brand. This fresh, new logo incorporated deep symbolism for the organization; the flying eagle is a symbol of God’s word, reaching the ends of the earth. This connection to spirituality perfectly represents the main facets of Rock Point’s brand. This helps past and potential visitors with brand recognition and recall. 

Market Analysis

To gain a comprehensive understanding of Rock Point’s current and potential markets, we conducted extensive research focusing on three key areas: community, recreation, and spirituality. This approach allowed us to identify the various groups and individuals that Rock Point’s organization impacts and influences.

Community Profile

We examined the local community surrounding Rock Point, including demographic data, socioeconomic factors, and cultural characteristics. This profile provided insights into the needs, preferences, and values of the community members, enabling Rock Point to tailor its offerings and engagement strategies accordingly.

Market Snapshot

We analyzed the broader market landscape in which Rock Point operates, considering factors such as industry trends, competitor analysis, and consumer behavior. This snapshot helped identify opportunities for growth, potential partnerships, and areas where Rock Point can differentiate itself from other organizations in the community, recreation, and spirituality sectors.

Points of Entry for Potential Visitors

We identified and evaluated the various channels and touchpoints through which potential visitors can discover and interact with Rock Point. This included online platforms, social media, local events, referrals, and collaborations with other organizations. By understanding these points of entry, Rock Point can optimize its marketing and outreach efforts to attract and engage a diverse range of visitors.

Through this comprehensive market analysis, Rock Point gained valuable insights into its current and potential markets, enabling the organization to make informed decisions, develop targeted strategies, and effectively serve the needs of its community while promoting recreation and spirituality.

Impact: a culmination of research to find a common message

We delivered Rock Point a new brand identity, including representative logo, fresh colors, and appealing typography. We identified a common message throughout the multiple branches of the organization: Rock Point is greater than the 130 acres upon which it sits and offers tremendous value to the community through recreation, conservation, and education.

Rock Point uses these themes and consistent branding to attract and retain members of their target audience, leaving a lasting impact on visitors.