Company picked to design UND's logo has detailed, inclusive plan

Ed O'Hara said he is keenly aware of the passion supporters feel for UND, its athletic teams and its nickname. It's what made him excited at the possibility of his design firm, SME Inc., creating the school's new logo. "We've heard you guys bleed green," he said, referencing the school's primary color. The university's Graphic Identity RFP Evaluation and Recommendation Team recommended SME to design the symbol for the school's Fighting Hawks nickname. The New York-based firm was selected from a group of three finalists at a meeting Tuesday, but UND spokesman Peter Johnson said he doesn't know when or if interim President Ed Schafer will approve the recommendation, which O'Hara has acknowledged. "We haven't popped the champagne, but we hope to be able to do that in the future," O'Hara said. The NCAA banned its members from using Native American imagery in 2005, and after decades of playing as the Fighting Sioux, the nickname and logo was retired in 2012 amid controversy and debate. Thousands of potential nickname ideas were submitted in 2015 for consideration, and after a committee narrowed the list and several public votes were held, Fighting Hawks was selected in November. "We've had a lot of experience in helping brands that needed to change for social political reasons make successful changes," O'Hara said. According to documents obtained by the Herald, SME's cost proposal was in the middle of the other two finalist companies. Phoenix Design Works of Maplewood, N.J., had an original offer of $38,500, which did not change when asked for a best and final offer. Summit Athletics Media of Charlotte, N.C., submitted an initial cost proposal of $98,750, $12,300 of which could have changed depending on the rollout of the new logo, but the firm did not respond when asked for a best and final offer. SME made an initial offer of $57,000, which was lowered to $49,500 when asked for best and final offer. SME's detailed RFP laid out five comprehensive steps to creating a Fighting Hawks logo that included getting to know the university, gathering qualitative feedback through interviews and meetings, monitoring social media and making sure stakeholders feel they have a say in the process. O'Hara commended UND for how inclusive the process of selecting a nickname has been, "whether the fanbase recognizes it or not." "The public awareness has been like no other project I've ever worked on," he said. "It's a democratic process and I think it's the right way to go." 'They'll get it right' SME is no stranger to working with big name brands.
 The 26-year-old New York-based company has developed branding plans and logos for the New York Yankees, the PAC-12 athletic conference, the Big Sky athletic conference and the Minnesota Wild, among many others. The company also has a lengthy list of "legacy clients," which includes Wells Fargo, Adidas, FIFA, NASCAR, the NCAA and Time Warner, along with more than 25 universities. In recent months, the company announced via its social media accounts it planned to partner with the athletic Northeast-10 Conference, the University of Connecticut and revealed a new logo and brand identity for the Louisville Bats Minor League Baseball team. O'Hara is the company's president and chief creative officer and is also a member of the New York City Chapter Board of the National Sports Marketing Network. "We are a strategic brand development identity and engagement firm that is trusted across America," O'Hara said. "I mean, it's 'if you have any doubts, you go to SME and they'll get it right.'" SME worked on the logo for the Wild in the late 1990s, and the team's Chief Operating Officer Matt Majka said he "couldn't endorse them enough." Majka said SME asked for a lot of fan input, something that contributed to the success of the logo. "I think the fan input and direction was really helpful in terms of what they prefered and liked, but SME is extremely skilled, has an extremely skilled executive and design team," he said. "They just nailed it." [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"2304625","attributes":{"alt":"Big Sky Logo","class":"media-image","height":"317","title":"","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"480"}}]] Assistant Commissioner Tanner Gooch of the Big Sky Conference was the project manager of the league's 2011-12 rebranding effort, and he said he was drawn to SME because of its success with rebranding the PAC-12, another athletic conference. "It's more than just a logo, it was a rebranding, a changing of how we tell our story," he said. Gooch said SME's willingness to work on a budget was also appealing, alongside not having any preconceived notions about what they ultimately would create. "I think they did a great job getting a lot of different perspective, which is hard working with three different time zones," he said. Associate Vice President for Communication and Marketing John Drees at the University of Louisville sang high praises for SME's work on a 2008 marketing campaign that resulted in a catch phrase still used at the school today: "It's happening here." "SME did a lot of research, and they found something that resonated with our audiences at the time," Drees said. "They touched a nerve and kind of hit a sweet spot people could get behind." The plan O'Hara said what set SME's proposal for UND apart from the company's other projects is an emphasis on qualitative research and data-gathering. "Thus far, most of the processes leading to the name have been quantitative, and we now want to do qualitative research that's informative of the emotions behind it," he said. The company's proposal outlines a 15-week logo development process beginning Feb. 16 and ending May 31, should they be offered a contract. The endeavor would begin with a project assessment with a UND brand committee made up of students, student athletes, administration, faculty, staff, alumni and Champions Club Members. After that, the SME team would spend a week interviewing administrators and report back to the brand committee for feedback before creating a custom font, logos and icon options to test on focus groups with a similar wide-ranging makeup as the brand committee. "This identity will reflect the pride, strength, fierceness and passion of UND," the document states. SME would then work with UND on brand development, logo implementation and a style guide for logo use. "I love the fact that the nation is watching and it's a big initiative," O'Hara said. Former President Robert Kelley oversaw UND through much of the nickname transition, and O'Hara said the two met on occasion when SME was working on the Big Sky logo in 2012, when UND had just joined the conference. "I want to be clear though," O'Hara said. "He never ever promised us anything other than 'let's just stay in touch.' No nod, no wink, no nothing." The school anticipates the logo will be designed for use in the fall.Ed O'Hara said he is keenly aware of the passion supporters feel for UND, its athletic teams and its nickname. It's what made him excited at the possibility of his design firm, SME Inc., creating the school's new logo. "We've heard you guys bleed green," he said, referencing the school's primary color. The university's Graphic Identity RFP Evaluation and Recommendation Team recommended SME to design the symbol for the school's Fighting Hawks nickname. The New York-based firm was selected from a group of three finalists at a meeting Tuesday, but UND spokesman Peter Johnson said he doesn't know when or if interim President Ed Schafer will approve the recommendation, which O'Hara has acknowledged. "We haven't popped the champagne, but we hope to be able to do that in the future," O'Hara said. The NCAA banned its members from using Native American imagery in 2005, and after decades of playing as the Fighting Sioux, the nickname and logo was retired in 2012 amid controversy and debate. Thousands of potential nickname ideas were submitted in 2015 for consideration, and after a committee narrowed the list and several public votes were held, Fighting Hawks was selected in November. "We've had a lot of experience in helping brands that needed to change for social political reasons make successful changes," O'Hara said. According to documents obtained by the Herald, SME's cost proposal was in the middle of the other two finalist companies. Phoenix Design Works of Maplewood, N.J., had an original offer of $38,500, which did not change when asked for a best and final offer. Summit Athletics Media of Charlotte, N.C., submitted an initial cost proposal of $98,750, $12,300 of which could have changed depending on the rollout of the new logo, but the firm did not respond when asked for a best and final offer. SME made an initial offer of $57,000, which was lowered to $49,500 when asked for best and final offer. SME's detailed RFP laid out five comprehensive steps to creating a Fighting Hawks logo that included getting to know the university, gathering qualitative feedback through interviews and meetings, monitoring social media and making sure stakeholders feel they have a say in the process. O'Hara commended UND for how inclusive the process of selecting a nickname has been, "whether the fanbase recognizes it or not." "The public awareness has been like no other project I've ever worked on," he said. "It's a democratic process and I think it's the right way to go." 'They'll get it right' SME is no stranger to working with big name brands. [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"2304623","attributes":{"alt":"Minnesota Wild Logo","class":"media-image","height":"360","title":"","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"480"}}]] The 26-year-old New York-based company has developed branding plans and logos for the New York Yankees, the PAC-12 athletic conference, the Big Sky athletic conference and the Minnesota Wild, among many others. The company also has a lengthy list of "legacy clients," which includes Wells Fargo, Adidas, FIFA, NASCAR, the NCAA and Time Warner, along with more than 25 universities. In recent months, the company announced via its social media accounts it planned to partner with the athletic Northeast-10 Conference, the University of Connecticut and revealed a new logo and brand identity for the Louisville Bats Minor League Baseball team. O'Hara is the company's president and chief creative officer and is also a member of the New York City Chapter Board of the National Sports Marketing Network. "We are a strategic brand development identity and engagement firm that is trusted across America," O'Hara said. "I mean, it's 'if you have any doubts, you go to SME and they'll get it right.'" SME worked on the logo for the Wild in the late 1990s, and the team's Chief Operating Officer Matt Majka said he "couldn't endorse them enough." Majka said SME asked for a lot of fan input, something that contributed to the success of the logo. "I think the fan input and direction was really helpful in terms of what they prefered and liked, but SME is extremely skilled, has an extremely skilled executive and design team," he said. "They just nailed it."
 Assistant Commissioner Tanner Gooch of the Big Sky Conference was the project manager of the league's 2011-12 rebranding effort, and he said he was drawn to SME because of its success with rebranding the PAC-12, another athletic conference. "It's more than just a logo, it was a rebranding, a changing of how we tell our story," he said. Gooch said SME's willingness to work on a budget was also appealing, alongside not having any preconceived notions about what they ultimately would create. "I think they did a great job getting a lot of different perspective, which is hard working with three different time zones," he said. Associate Vice President for Communication and Marketing John Drees at the University of Louisville sang high praises for SME's work on a 2008 marketing campaign that resulted in a catch phrase still used at the school today: "It's happening here." "SME did a lot of research, and they found something that resonated with our audiences at the time," Drees said. "They touched a nerve and kind of hit a sweet spot people could get behind." The plan O'Hara said what set SME's proposal for UND apart from the company's other projects is an emphasis on qualitative research and data-gathering. "Thus far, most of the processes leading to the name have been quantitative, and we now want to do qualitative research that's informative of the emotions behind it," he said. The company's proposal outlines a 15-week logo development process beginning Feb. 16 and ending May 31, should they be offered a contract. The endeavor would begin with a project assessment with a UND brand committee made up of students, student athletes, administration, faculty, staff, alumni and Champions Club Members. After that, the SME team would spend a week interviewing administrators and report back to the brand committee for feedback before creating a custom font, logos and icon options to test on focus groups with a similar wide-ranging makeup as the brand committee. "This identity will reflect the pride, strength, fierceness and passion of UND," the document states. SME would then work with UND on brand development, logo implementation and a style guide for logo use. "I love the fact that the nation is watching and it's a big initiative," O'Hara said. Former President Robert Kelley oversaw UND through much of the nickname transition, and O'Hara said the two met on occasion when SME was working on the Big Sky logo in 2012, when UND had just joined the conference. "I want to be clear though," O'Hara said. "He never ever promised us anything other than 'let's just stay in touch.' No nod, no wink, no nothing." The school anticipates the logo will be designed for use in the fall.Ed O'Hara said he is keenly aware of the passion supporters feel for UND, its athletic teams and its nickname.It's what made him excited at the possibility of his design firm, SME Inc., creating the school's new logo."We've heard you guys bleed green," he said, referencing the school's primary color.The university's Graphic Identity RFP Evaluation and Recommendation Team recommended SME to design the symbol for the school's Fighting Hawks nickname. The New York-based firm was selected from a group of three finalists at a meeting Tuesday, but UND spokesman Peter Johnson said he doesn't know when or if interim President Ed Schafer will approve the recommendation, which O'Hara has acknowledged."We haven't popped the champagne, but we hope to be able to do that in the future," O'Hara said.The NCAA banned its members from using Native American imagery in 2005, and after decades of playing as the Fighting Sioux, the nickname and logo was retired in 2012 amid controversy and debate.Thousands of potential nickname ideas were submitted in 2015 for consideration, and after a committee narrowed the list and several public votes were held, Fighting Hawks was selected in November. "We've had a lot of experience in helping brands that needed to change for social political reasons make successful changes," O'Hara said.According to documents obtained by the Herald, SME's cost proposal was in the middle of the other two finalist companies.Phoenix Design Works of Maplewood, N.J., had an original offer of $38,500, which did not change when asked for a best and final offer. Summit Athletics Media of Charlotte, N.C., submitted an initial cost proposal of $98,750, $12,300 of which could have changed depending on the rollout of the new logo, but the firm did not respond when asked for a best and final offer.SME made an initial offer of $57,000, which was lowered to $49,500 when asked for best and final offer.SME's detailed RFP laid out five comprehensive steps to creating a Fighting Hawks logo that included getting to know the university, gathering qualitative feedback through interviews and meetings, monitoring social media and making sure stakeholders feel they have a say in the process.O'Hara commended UND for how inclusive the process of selecting a nickname has been, "whether the fanbase recognizes it or not.""The public awareness has been like no other project I've ever worked on," he said. "It's a democratic process and I think it's the right way to go."'They'll get it right'SME is no stranger to working with big name brands.
 The 26-year-old New York-based company has developed branding plans and logos for the New York Yankees, the PAC-12 athletic conference, the Big Sky athletic conference and the Minnesota Wild, among many others.The company also has a lengthy list of "legacy clients," which includes Wells Fargo, Adidas, FIFA, NASCAR, the NCAA and Time Warner, along with more than 25 universities.In recent months, the company announced via its social media accounts it planned to partner with the athletic Northeast-10 Conference, the University of Connecticut and revealed a new logo and brand identity for the Louisville Bats Minor League Baseball team.O'Hara is the company's president and chief creative officer and is also a member of the New York City Chapter Board of the National Sports Marketing Network."We are a strategic brand development identity and engagement firm that is trusted across America," O'Hara said. "I mean, it's 'if you have any doubts, you go to SME and they'll get it right.'"SME worked on the logo for the Wild in the late 1990s, and the team's Chief Operating Officer Matt Majka said he "couldn't endorse them enough."Majka said SME asked for a lot of fan input, something that contributed to the success of the logo."I think the fan input and direction was really helpful in terms of what they prefered and liked, but SME is extremely skilled, has an extremely skilled executive and design team," he said. "They just nailed it."[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"2304625","attributes":{"alt":"Big Sky Logo","class":"media-image","height":"317","title":"","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"480"}}]] Assistant Commissioner Tanner Gooch of the Big Sky Conference was the project manager of the league's 2011-12 rebranding effort, and he said he was drawn to SME because of its success with rebranding the PAC-12, another athletic conference."It's more than just a logo, it was a rebranding, a changing of how we tell our story," he said.Gooch said SME's willingness to work on a budget was also appealing, alongside not having any preconceived notions about what they ultimately would create."I think they did a great job getting a lot of different perspective, which is hard working with three different time zones," he said.Associate Vice President for Communication and Marketing John Drees at the University of Louisville sang high praises for SME's work on a 2008 marketing campaign that resulted in a catch phrase still used at the school today: "It's happening here.""SME did a lot of research, and they found something that resonated with our audiences at the time," Drees said. "They touched a nerve and kind of hit a sweet spot people could get behind."The planO'Hara said what set SME's proposal for UND apart from the company's other projects is an emphasis on qualitative research and data-gathering."Thus far, most of the processes leading to the name have been quantitative, and we now want to do qualitative research that's informative of the emotions behind it," he said.The company's proposal outlines a 15-week logo development process beginning Feb. 16 and ending May 31, should they be offered a contract.The endeavor would begin with a project assessment with a UND brand committee made up of students, student athletes, administration, faculty, staff, alumni and Champions Club Members. After that, the SME team would spend a week interviewing administrators and report back to the brand committee for feedback before creating a custom font, logos and icon options to test on focus groups with a similar wide-ranging makeup as the brand committee."This identity will reflect the pride, strength, fierceness and passion of UND," the document states.SME would then work with UND on brand development, logo implementation and a style guide for logo use."I love the fact that the nation is watching and it's a big initiative," O'Hara said.Former President Robert Kelley oversaw UND through much of the nickname transition, and O'Hara said the two met on occasion when SME was working on the Big Sky logo in 2012, when UND had just joined the conference."I want to be clear though," O'Hara said. "He never ever promised us anything other than 'let's just stay in touch.' No nod, no wink, no nothing."The school anticipates the logo will be designed for use in the fall.Ed O'Hara said he is keenly aware of the passion supporters feel for UND, its athletic teams and its nickname.It's what made him excited at the possibility of his design firm, SME Inc., creating the school's new logo."We've heard you guys bleed green," he said, referencing the school's primary color.The university's Graphic Identity RFP Evaluation and Recommendation Team recommended SME to design the symbol for the school's Fighting Hawks nickname. The New York-based firm was selected from a group of three finalists at a meeting Tuesday, but UND spokesman Peter Johnson said he doesn't know when or if interim President Ed Schafer will approve the recommendation, which O'Hara has acknowledged."We haven't popped the champagne, but we hope to be able to do that in the future," O'Hara said.The NCAA banned its members from using Native American imagery in 2005, and after decades of playing as the Fighting Sioux, the nickname and logo was retired in 2012 amid controversy and debate.Thousands of potential nickname ideas were submitted in 2015 for consideration, and after a committee narrowed the list and several public votes were held, Fighting Hawks was selected in November. "We've had a lot of experience in helping brands that needed to change for social political reasons make successful changes," O'Hara said.According to documents obtained by the Herald, SME's cost proposal was in the middle of the other two finalist companies.Phoenix Design Works of Maplewood, N.J., had an original offer of $38,500, which did not change when asked for a best and final offer. Summit Athletics Media of Charlotte, N.C., submitted an initial cost proposal of $98,750, $12,300 of which could have changed depending on the rollout of the new logo, but the firm did not respond when asked for a best and final offer.SME made an initial offer of $57,000, which was lowered to $49,500 when asked for best and final offer.SME's detailed RFP laid out five comprehensive steps to creating a Fighting Hawks logo that included getting to know the university, gathering qualitative feedback through interviews and meetings, monitoring social media and making sure stakeholders feel they have a say in the process.O'Hara commended UND for how inclusive the process of selecting a nickname has been, "whether the fanbase recognizes it or not.""The public awareness has been like no other project I've ever worked on," he said. "It's a democratic process and I think it's the right way to go."'They'll get it right'SME is no stranger to working with big name brands.[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"2304623","attributes":{"alt":"Minnesota Wild Logo","class":"media-image","height":"360","title":"","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"480"}}]] The 26-year-old New York-based company has developed branding plans and logos for the New York Yankees, the PAC-12 athletic conference, the Big Sky athletic conference and the Minnesota Wild, among many others.The company also has a lengthy list of "legacy clients," which includes Wells Fargo, Adidas, FIFA, NASCAR, the NCAA and Time Warner, along with more than 25 universities.In recent months, the company announced via its social media accounts it planned to partner with the athletic Northeast-10 Conference, the University of Connecticut and revealed a new logo and brand identity for the Louisville Bats Minor League Baseball team.O'Hara is the company's president and chief creative officer and is also a member of the New York City Chapter Board of the National Sports Marketing Network."We are a strategic brand development identity and engagement firm that is trusted across America," O'Hara said. "I mean, it's 'if you have any doubts, you go to SME and they'll get it right.'"SME worked on the logo for the Wild in the late 1990s, and the team's Chief Operating Officer Matt Majka said he "couldn't endorse them enough."Majka said SME asked for a lot of fan input, something that contributed to the success of the logo."I think the fan input and direction was really helpful in terms of what they prefered and liked, but SME is extremely skilled, has an extremely skilled executive and design team," he said. "They just nailed it."
 Assistant Commissioner Tanner Gooch of the Big Sky Conference was the project manager of the league's 2011-12 rebranding effort, and he said he was drawn to SME because of its success with rebranding the PAC-12, another athletic conference."It's more than just a logo, it was a rebranding, a changing of how we tell our story," he said.Gooch said SME's willingness to work on a budget was also appealing, alongside not having any preconceived notions about what they ultimately would create."I think they did a great job getting a lot of different perspective, which is hard working with three different time zones," he said.Associate Vice President for Communication and Marketing John Drees at the University of Louisville sang high praises for SME's work on a 2008 marketing campaign that resulted in a catch phrase still used at the school today: "It's happening here.""SME did a lot of research, and they found something that resonated with our audiences at the time," Drees said. "They touched a nerve and kind of hit a sweet spot people could get behind."The planO'Hara said what set SME's proposal for UND apart from the company's other projects is an emphasis on qualitative research and data-gathering."Thus far, most of the processes leading to the name have been quantitative, and we now want to do qualitative research that's informative of the emotions behind it," he said.The company's proposal outlines a 15-week logo development process beginning Feb. 16 and ending May 31, should they be offered a contract.The endeavor would begin with a project assessment with a UND brand committee made up of students, student athletes, administration, faculty, staff, alumni and Champions Club Members. After that, the SME team would spend a week interviewing administrators and report back to the brand committee for feedback before creating a custom font, logos and icon options to test on focus groups with a similar wide-ranging makeup as the brand committee."This identity will reflect the pride, strength, fierceness and passion of UND," the document states.SME would then work with UND on brand development, logo implementation and a style guide for logo use."I love the fact that the nation is watching and it's a big initiative," O'Hara said.Former President Robert Kelley oversaw UND through much of the nickname transition, and O'Hara said the two met on occasion when SME was working on the Big Sky logo in 2012, when UND had just joined the conference."I want to be clear though," O'Hara said. "He never ever promised us anything other than 'let's just stay in touch.' No nod, no wink, no nothing."The school anticipates the logo will be designed for use in the fall.