Overview

University Marketing & Communications delivers content that projects the University of Mississippi brand to emphasize the distinctive elements of our culture, sense of community, quality of life, engagement and affinity among our students, employees, alumni, and the broader university community. To support that objective, the Brand Services team is charged with ensuring a cohesive and consistently applied brand expression across all campus units and all forms of media. As per the university’s brand policy, all marketing, communication, display, and advertising materials must adhere to the university’s Brand Guidelines by submitting those materials through formal brand review and approval processes.

Goals of Brand Review

• To protect and enhance the university’s brand
• To identify opportunities of potential savings through economies of scale

Criteria for Brand Approval

• Application of our brand in a manner that is consistent with the university Brand Guidelines
• Ensure a high quality of created materials

Who Should Follow This Process

All University of Mississippi divisions, departments, centers, institutes, schools, colleges or any other programs representing themselves to be a part of or belonging to the University should follow the process.

Exemptions include:

• Ole Miss Alumni Association
• Ole Miss Athletics
• Registered student organizations*
• University of Mississippi Medical Center and its divisions
• Scholarly work of university faculty, including publications (such as academic articles, books, or other writings) or presentations, whether aimed at professional or academic audiences.

*Registered student organizations that wish to create apparel, merchandise or promotional material that include official University trademarks are NOT exempt from the Licensing review and approval processes (LINK) and should submit those items via the brand review process outlined below.

Brand Review Process

You have the flexibility to choose how your work is created: create it yourself, submit a request to University Marketing & Communications for our team to create the piece, or reach out to an Approved Marketing & Communications Vendor to complete the piece. Choose your path below to see the brand review process:

• I’d like to create my own work
• Work with University Marketing & Communications to create your project
• Work with an Approved Marketing & Communications Vendor to create your project
• Work created by a Registered Student Organization

What should be submitted for review

• All print collateral (ex: viewbooks, postcards, invitations, posters, programs)
• Advertising and media assets for print, radio, television, billboard and out-of-home, and digital/social channels
• All video marketing assets
• Physical building signage (ex: banners, advertisements)
• Event signage (ex: yard signs, banners placed at the entrances of campus)
• Vehicular signage (ex: vehicle wraps)
• All agency or freelance-sourced marketing and communication assets
• Other display forms of media and advertising (other than official websites deployed within the university’s CMS)
• Apparel, merchandise and promotional items, including but not limited to all types of clothing, drinkware, equipment, toys, games, collectibles, personal accessories, etc.

What Brand Services is not responsible for

The Brand Services team will not check, nor be held responsible, for the following items, so please be sure your submission is clear of these errors and you are knowledgeable of these processes prior to submission:

• Factual errors, typos and punctuation errors. While our team will do their best to identify and notify you of errors of this nature, you should ensure that your submission is proofread prior.
• Proper permission for photos, artwork, images, external logos or intellectual property of a third party or that does not belong to the University of Mississippi
• Accessibility. You are responsible for ensuring that your submission is accessible to users who require content readers and other adaptive forms of media. This requirement includes ensuring that digital documents are remediated and videos include closed captioning. Read about accessibility solutions available to our community.
• Ensuring materials are preflighted for production. Please consult with your vendor to ensure your documents are production-ready.

Considerations to ensure quick brand review

The Brand Services team will review and provide a response on all submissions within two business days. To best ensure your submissions are approved within that timeframe, please consider the following actions:

1. Learn how to create content within the university brand. Review all appropriate brand guidelines, the logo architecture, and watch the brand training videos available on our Resources and Downloads page.
2. Ensure your submission’s content is inclusive. It should be equitable and an authentic representation of our campus and all its communities.
3. Plan ahead. Submit your materials to be reviewed sooner rather than later. While the team will review all submissions within two business days, you’ll need additional time to work through any pre-production needs with approved vendors. Note that if your submission needs to be altered, it will need to re-enter the brand review process. It is your responsibility to ensure your production or delivery deadlines are met.
4. Be patient. Upon submission of your materials, you’ll receive an automatic reply that we’ve received your form. You’ll receive formal notice of approval or if your submission needs attention within 48 business hours.

Submit your materials

Complete this form to submit your materials for brand review.

Questions?

See a list of frequently asked questions. For more information or should you have more questions about the brand review process, please contact brand@olemiss.edu.