Brand evolution

The challenge

Nearing 20 years old, The Conservation Alliance struggled to stay relevant in the conservation space. Celebrated for their model of harnessing the power of the business sector to protect North America’s cherished outdoor spaces, some members of the alliance worried the organization’s brand had become stale and potentially politically polarizing, which undermined their ability to impact pressing climate and conservation challenges. Furthermore, as the organization evolved, it aimed to better demonstrate their commitment to broad inclusion and diversity, and meaningfully move those who had historically been left out of the conservation movement to the forefront of the brand and vision.

The idea

We knew The Conservation Alliance could truly stand apart and affect positive change by positioning itself toward the political center and shining a light on the diverse coalition of business voices working to protect natural places. The breadth and depth of the climate crisis demands a paradigm shift around climate solutions, and presents an opportunity for the organization to fuel a conversation about how businesses offer climate solutions. By creating structure for and modeling the ways businesses can invest in land and water protection, create jobs, help communities, and provide for future generations, The Conservation Alliance would, in turn, be more effective.

The work

To bring the rebrand to life, True Blue Strategies needed to shift the whole brand through the way it looks and talks. We conducted multiple workshops with stakeholders, members, and grantees to help the team better define the organization’s mission and vision statements, update key communications pillars, and better articulate narratives around what the organization stands for and what it has been able to accomplish. We rebuilt every piece of The Conservation Alliance’s verbal and visual brand to appeal to the political center and a broader business base. 

This led the brand toward a more human centered approach. Verbally, we recalibrated to focus on the business partners, grantees, and the diverse range of communities that The Conservation Alliance works with on a daily basis. Visually, instead of showing landscapes the organization worked to protect or general outdoor recreation shots, we highlighted portraits of people in the surrounding communities and the employees of the members who are deeply impacted by cherished outdoor spaces. The Conservation Alliance holds humans at the center of everything it does. The rebranding effort brought that to life. 

As the website is essentially the front door of an organization and therefore its brand, we also parlayed the revitalized brand to a full website overhaul and redesign.