About the Y's Brand Strategy

Recently, we unveiled a brand revitalization strategy to reinforce that the Y is a cause-driven organization, which focuses on three main areas: youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. The Y is worthy of support, however, many do not realize that the Y is a charity that supports and strengthens communities. Many see the Y in terms of the facilities and programs that they use, or in terms of “gym and swim.” But, the Y is much more than that. The brand revitalization, which includes a bold new logo and reference to “the Y,” will help us tell our story in a fresh, new way and “change public and stakeholder understanding of the power of the Y’s work in order to serve more people.”

For the first time in 43 years, the Y is unveiling a new brand strategy to increase understanding of the impact our organization makes in the community, so that more people take advantage of the YMCA’s unique capacity to foster lasting personal and social change.

The Y is about changing lives for the better. We view participation in our programs and services as a means to a greater end. Through our rebranding effort we want to help our communities learn more about our work so we can help our communities learn and grow.

By simplifying how we describe our programs, we hope it will be apparent that everything we do is designed to nurture the potential of children and teens (Youth Development), improve health and well-being (Healthy Living) and motivate people to support their neighbors and the larger community (Social Responsibility).

The new brand strategy—the result of more than two years of analysis and input from Y leaders across the country—is designed to help us tell the Y’s story and reach more people. There are several components to our strategy, among them an updated logo, a refreshed framework and new nomenclature. What remains unchanged is our mission: to put Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all.

· Updated logo – Our updated, forward-looking logo reflects the vibrancy, diversity and heritage of our organization. The updated logo retains the triangle (symbolizing spirit, mind and body—foundational elements of the Y), and for the first time in 43 years, our logo requires “YMCA” to be present in all treatments, creating a stronger connection between our name and visual identity. This was not the case with the previous logo.

· Refreshed framework – With a focus on the three specific areas of youth development, healthy living and social responsibility, the Y is changing how we talk about ourselves so that people better understand the benefits of engaging with us.

· New nomenclature – When speaking about the Movement in the United States, we will refer to ourselves as “the Y” to align with how people most commonly refer to our organization. Individual Ys are required to use YMCA as a part of their formal association or branch name. We will continue to use Young Men’s Christian Association in legal and constitutional materials.

More next time on the Y's impact!