PASSPORT
Members of the American Planning Association (APA) had used the association's continuing education portal — APA Learn — for years as an à la carte service. When the time came to transition the service to a subscription model, offering a complete set of courses for one price, stakeholders at APA knew it needed both a new name and a careful rollout.
The project began with an examination of the competitive landscape among subscription-based services, for both professional and leisure activities. The membership would certainly be familiar with the model but demonstrating the educational benefits of an annual subscription could be tricky.
Adjectives that describe what this service IS
Learning
Growing
Inspirational
Solutions/Answers
Broadening, expansive
Advancing
Knowledge transfer
Enriching
Go-to
Challenging
Risk-taking
Modular
All-encompassing
Relevant
Adjectives that describe what this service ISn’T
Stodgy
Compulsory
Nickel-and-dime
The next step included a thought exercise to begin teasing out the language that naturally suggested itself when describing the new service. Association stakeholders offered their best-case member reactions to the content within the education portal.
When brainstorming brand names, it can be helpful to create a continuum comprised of the four most important program keywords. The brand options are placed in proximity to the keyword that each speaks to most directly, illustrating the relative character of the proposed name.
Passport became the new brand and the team developed several logo designs. The winning design (shown here) was nicknamed ”Wings,” in that the Passport subscription program will allow members to earn their own “wings” through the coursework. The two wing-like shapes create a square from the negative space around the capital ’P,‘ echoing the square logo of the association.
When implementing the new brand, its visual style combined the following consistent elements:
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A monochromatic overlay
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One of the two ”wings” from the logo
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An image of a multicultural character
When the à la carte system was finally sunsetted, members were directed to this video as a fun introduction to Passport.
Since the initial roll-out, subscriptions have steadily increased, finally surpassing — in 2023 —the revenue collected through APA Learn.
Produced for a client of GLC