How to Rebrand a Nonprofit: Grow Wild
The Gallatin Invasive Species Alliance had been protecting the Upper Gallatin Watershed from invasive species for almost 20 years when they approached me about a potential rebrand. After conducting their own market research and partner interviews, the organization had committed to changing their name to Grow Wild — but they needed guidance on the next steps.
This is when I entered the picture. From creating a new visual identity to establishing a fresh strategy for the brand, I had a hand in everything. Here’s how it all came together.
How do you rebrand a nonprofit?
Have conversations. A lot of them.
The rebrand began with conversations with Grow Wild’s executive director, Jen Mohler, on the organization’s past, present, and future. I wanted to understand how they got here — and how a rebrand figured into their vision for their organization in the years ahead.
From those discussions came a list of needs: a rebranded mission and vision, a new logo, and marketing materials to announce the new name. I also added an important item to the to-do list: a brand strategy to tie all of these needs together.
Make a brand playbook.
Once it was clear that we had a shared vision, we developed a new brand identity for Grow Wild: new logo, colors, fonts, and brand approach. This took time, and several iterations. I designed and refined the logo — an elk within an aspen leaf — after detailed feedback from the board. We then established an overall design approach that would inform everything from newsletters to signage to the website.
Brand identity goes beyond design. My work with Grow Wild required that we revisit their values and establish a new strategy for their messaging and tone, which would affect how they communicated with their Big Sky community, how they applied for grants, and how they talked to their supporters.
Rebrand the website. (And everything else.)
For Grow Wild’s new website, applied our new design strategy while restructuring the site’s information for a clearer, simpler message. I used this same approach for Grow Wild’s digital newsletter and social media channels.
The result was a unified brand at every crucial touchpoint of their organization.
Visit the new website here.
Create a rebrand campaign.
With the new brand in place, it was time to announce it to Grow Wild’s community. The campaign featured a video, a digital newsletter, and social media posts — all of which I wrote and produced to coincide with Grow Wild’s annual Big Sky Wildflower Festival in July.
The core message of this announcement was to reintroduce Grow Wild’s audience to the organization’s values, mission, and vision for the future.
How do you measure a rebrand’s impact?
In many ways, a rebrand is a long game. Most of the results do not become clear overnight. But some significant outcomes are easy to spot.
Internally, from the board to the executive director, Grow Wild has been reinvigorated by the new direction. The responses from donors have been extremely positive, and the rebrand has deepened Grow Wild’s relationships with their partners and supporters.
Looking ahead, the organization’s renewed vision for the protecting the Upper Gallatin Watershed is supported by a clear and refined brand — one that aims to make their mission more prominent, memorable, and accessible.
