// Rebrand & Creative Direction

The RISE department at Texas Tech University, a nationally recognized leader in health promotion and holistic wellness, required a rebrand to modernize its identity and establish a sustainable system for managing internal operations and communications.

Challenges

Despite being a nationally recognized program, RISE faced significant challenges in brand recognition, awareness, and differentiation among the numerous programs and resources available to Texas Tech students. Additionally, there was general confusion regarding RISE’s purpose. The organization also struggled with inefficient workload management due to a lack of necessary protocols, processes, and structures. Specifically, there was no system for requesting events, scheduling appointments, prioritizing tasks, or automating emails.

Solutions

To address these challenges, Haley rebranded RISE to stand out within the university landscape and align with the organization’s purpose. She developed a comprehensive brand guideline to ensure consistency.

Haley redesigned RISE’s website from the ground up to clarify the program’s offerings. She enhanced navigation to clearly outline what RISE is, what they do, and their focus areas. Additionally, she launched a wellness blog written by students for students, which is easily maintained, enhances SEO, and drives RISE’s purpose through the eyes of the student body.

Haley developed and implemented dynamic workflows and protocols to meet the office’s needs. By integrating self-sustaining event scheduling software, she automated reminder emails, calendar invites, and general communications. Additionally, she introduced a comprehensive task management program to handle the wide variety of cross-functional tasks efficiently. She also optimized marketing workflows, templates, and social media scheduling to improve digital presence.

Finally, she incorporated data analytics to accurately measure RISE’s impact, ensuring continual improvement and alignment with student needs.

Deliverables

Rebranding Strategy

Website Design

Creative Direction

Social Media

Project Management

Event Coordination

Inbound Marketing

Product Design

Key Outcomes:

Enhanced Brand Recognition: Post-rebranding, RISE saw a substantial improvement in overall brand sentiment and recognition. This transformation was reflected in our social media performance, with average reach skyrocketing from 94 in 2023 to 979 by 2024. Total impressions followed suit, increasing from 937 in 2023 to an astounding 595,649 by 2024, marking an impressive 197.95% increase.
Digital Presence Growth: We achieved remarkable growth in our online presence, starting with just 3,068 total webpage views and expanding to 58,598 by 2024. The RISE homepage became a central hub, attracting 4x as many views within a few months, while our newly launched blog garnered over 11,000 views, becoming a critical platform for audience engagement.
Operational Efficiency: The new structure and protocols I implemented led to enhanced communication, increased cross-functional collaboration, and greater efficiency across the organization. Our upgraded scheduling software streamlined operations, facilitating 1,023 appointments and 901 event requests within one year. Additionally, automated event reminders, feedback requests, and standard communications via email and SMS played a crucial role in improving event attendance, which surged by 33%, reaching 22,054 attendees by 2024.

Results at a Glance

197.95%

increase in social impressions.

180%

increase in web views.

33%

increase in event attendance.

625%

increase in digital engagement.

Kind Words

“Haley Wallace’s transformative leadership as the RISE Communication and Designs Program Director redefined the program's approach to health and well-being. Her rebrand not only revitalized the program’s image but also deepened its commitment to fostering holistic wellness, setting a new benchmark for how we communicate and design for better living.”

Amanda McConnell, Assistant Director at RISE

Brand evolution and differentiation

within the university sphere.

2017-2021

2022-Present

Brand Strategy Initiatives

Rebrand & Creative Direction

I successfully led the rebranding of RISE, aligning the organization’s identity more closely with the values and needs of the student body. By developing and implementing a comprehensive brand guideline, I ensured consistency and resonance across all touchpoints, including:

Logomarks and brand illustrations
Brand photography and visual style
Color palette and typefaces
Mission, vision, and values
Audience and customer personas
Social strategy
Blog guide and content matrix
Marketing workflow and templates
Goals and analysis

Using these guidelines, I revamped all RISE presentations, significantly enhancing the student experience and generating over 17,000 impressions during the 2022-2023 academic year.

Additionally, I streamlined and redesigned 12 resource pages into 4 cohesive educational brochures and consolidated 6 business cards into 4 comprehensive designs. These efforts not only simplified our materials but also strengthened our brand’s clarity and impact.

Brand Strategy Initiatives

Social Media

I achieved a 969% increase in social media reach and a 625% boost in engagement during Q3 and Q4, driven by strategic collaboration and targeted outreach efforts. Key to this success was initiating a partnership with the Texas Tech Office of Communication, which promoted student well-being initiatives and reached over 30,000 individuals.

Additionally, I collaborated with Shmoody to introduce a university-endorsed wellness app to over 8,000 incoming students. The collaborative posts I designed played a pivotal role in these efforts, significantly amplifying reach and engagement metrics. These results underscore the impact of integrated communication strategies in fostering student engagement and promoting wellness.

Brand Strategy Initiatives

Stickers & Posters

I elevated student well-being education and brand visibility with strategic out-of-home advertising. By designing and distributing trendy wellness stickers, I not only created a buzz but also established RISE as the go-to source for impactful, student-centered messaging.

I also developed a downloadable poster gallery, offering campus authorities easy access to a series of wellness promotion posters on various topics. This initiative broadened our reach, making it simple for students and residence halls to engage with our content. The result was a significant expansion in brand awareness and a stronger connection with the student body, who are now more engaged in meaningful wellness conversations than ever before.

Brand Strategy Initiatives

Website Redesign

I led the redesign of the RISE website, focusing on enhancing both UI and UX to create a more intuitive and engaging user experience. By improving navigation, integrating interactive assessment tools, and launching a wellness blog, I successfully connected with thousands of students. As a result, total page views surged from 3,068 in the 2022-23 academic year to 58,598 in 2023-24.

I established and managed a student-driven wellness blog, taking charge of protocol development, editorial oversight, and guideline implementation. This initiative not only empowered students to contribute meaningful content but also significantly boosted our SEO performance. As a result, RISE’s website views soared from 3,068 during the 2022-23 academic year to 58,598 by 2023-24.

Beyond the website, I developed an internal project management system that significantly improved internal workflows. By integrating software solutions, I streamlined the management of over 900 event requests and automated routine communication processes. This initiative not only optimized operations but also refined the UX design within the RISE website, enhancing its overall functionality and user satisfaction.