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The NAU brand
What we do, who we are, and what we promise
Northern Arizona University’s brand is the consistent promise we make to our most important audiences. It is a message that conveys NAU’s unique strengths and benefits to the public with the intent to raise awareness and build a strong and consistent reputation.
Our brand promise
The NAU brand is a compilation of our accomplishments, our goals, and our identity, which evolves with our brand promise: to welcome and support students who bring diverse experiences, perspectives, and ambitions, empowering them with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to improve their lives and the lives of those around them.
Our brand pillars
NAU’s brand pillars are characteristics of the brand promise, and by articulating them, they add substance and depth to its claims. Together, the following pillars comprise the foundation for all NAU brand marketing and communication efforts:
Valuable opportunity
Choose an affordable and accessible education that opens doors to a lifetime of value, opportunities, and meaningful connections.
No matter where you’re from or what you hope to achieve in life, NAU provides you with a path to academic excellence that is accessible and affordable. Whether it’s providing our students with financial assistance, or offering degree pathways across the state and online, we’re removing barriers to the exceptional student-centered education and alumni network that NAU has cultivated since our founding.
Inclusive community
Immerse yourself in an inclusive community that supports and empowers students who bring diverse experiences, perspectives, and ambitions.
The NAU community fosters a culture of inclusion, openness to diversity, and individuality that results in an empowering and transformative university experience. Here, we want you to be you, because we believe that when individuals with different lived experiences come together, accept one another, and celebrate their differences, it creates a learning environment where anything is possible.
Supportive faculty
Discover a wide range of high-quality academic programs guided by dedicated faculty mentors who will invest themselves in your experience and success.
At NAU, you’ll discover a diverse breadth of respected academic programs that will spark your curiosity, fuel your ambition, and propel you towards a fulfilling and rewarding career. Along the way you will be guided, challenged, supported, and mentored by dedicated staff and renowned faculty who are leaders in their fields, accomplished teachers and researchers, and provide abundant opportunities for hands-on learning.
Bold impact
Transform ambition into action while building the knowledge, skills, and confidence it takes to improve your life and the lives of those around you.
NAU will provide you with an unparalleled setting to define your path and transform your ambition into meaningful action capable of creating the real solutions our world needs now. You’ll build the skills and confidence to realize your potential and join the Lumberjack family who works together to build the knowledge needed to create healthier communities, foster more sustainable environments, and contribute to social and economic opportunities for individuals, families, and communities.
Brand personality
NAU’s brand personality is a set of characteristics that help connect the brand with key audiences on an emotional level. They capture NAU’s unique and authentic voice as expressed by our campus community.
As the brand’s personality, they don’t have to be seen or heard to be understood, they should be felt.
- Welcoming
- Supportive
- Collaborative
- Determined
- Respectful
Brand voice and tone
- We offer an intimate, tailored experience based on one-on-one contact and interaction. Therefore, our language should be personal, rather than institutional. For example, “We’re here to help you adjust to college life,” rather than “The university has a wealth of resources available to help a student get adjusted to college life.”
- Active, rather than passive tense. For example, use “You’ll have a wealth of opportunities for outside recreation,” not “A wealth of opportunities for outside recreation will be available to you.” Active tense demonstrates a direct relationship between us and the students we are communicating with.
- Concrete language. Metaphors and similes are great for creative writing, but for talking to prospective students, it’s best to be concrete rather than abstract. For example, “The President’s Excellence Award covers $11,000 in tuition annually,” not “The President’s Excellence Award makes paying for college a breeze!”
- Short sentences, spare words. Omit needless words and phrases. Avoid complex sentences. Avoid run-on sentences or excess commas. Long sentences with lots of comments or added-on clauses are more likely to lose the readers’ attention.