New Year, New Brand: Uplifting the Voices of Men of Color

As organizations expand and evolve, a new brand and website can help reflect the evolution of their mission and the critical work they do. Amplifying our clients’ missions through strong branding is a specialty of The Hatcher Group. And we were grateful to put our design expertise in action for SAAB, formerly known as the Student African American Brotherhood.

For 30 years, SAAB has been a national leader in addressing the academic and social challenges facing Black men on college campuses. Through mentorship, resources, and other support, SAAB has guided thousands of men of color through higher education and tackled racial inequity in institutions of higher learning. However, as membership grew to include all men of color, they realized their branding and website did not reflect the rich diversity of their participants.

In the summer of 2020, SAAB partnered with Hatcher to refresh their visual brand and redesign their website to ensure that both reflected their dedication to uplifting all men of color. Hatcher began the engagement with extensive research that dug into the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities of SAAB’s current brand and website. This research included a brand and website audit, stakeholder interviews, and a website user survey.

After gathering inputs and insights, Hatcher developed a new visual identity for SAAB that reflected its commitment to inclusion and brotherhood. Their new logomark highlights several visuals such as a bow tie, linked arms, arrows, and an infinity symbol. These visuals emphasize SAAB’s present commitment to professionalism and brotherhood, as well as the organization’s aspirations for growth and expansion. Hatcher also developed refreshed collateral for SAAB to phase in the new branding, such as a new PowerPoint and report template and email signature.Armed with a refreshed visual identity, SAAB needed a website to announce their new brand and amplify their important work. Using the discovery research, Hatcher deployed our tried and tested UX/UI process to develop a user-friendly interface and visually appealing website.In addition to a new website, Hatcher developed six SAAB audience personas, which provide a detailed look into the organization’s core audiences’ motivations, challenges, and goals for engaging with SAAB. These personas will help SAAB as they continue to strategize and create outreach materials geared toward their specific audiences.SAAB’s new brand and website launched in January 2021, kicking off the new year with their refreshed vision for the organization. The client unveiled their new branding and website at a virtual event and was met with enthusiasm from their participants, alumni, donors, and other stakeholders.

A strong visual brand can push an organization to new heights. We’re proud to be a partner in SAAB’s efforts to change the lives of the next generation of men of color and dismantle systems of inequities that hold them back.

By Devin Simpson, Senior Associate