Case Study
Fuller Higher Ed Solutions
Branding & Marketing
The Value of Practical Marketing
(That Doesn’t Get Lost in Philosophy)
about
Fuller Higher Ed Solutions
(FHES)
When Tim Fuller launched his business in 2020, he’d already gained a wealth of experience over the last 40 years in enrollment, strategic planning, and leadership. Now, he was ready to focus his talents on his passion for advancing Christian higher education.
I had what I can only describe as godly unrest. I didn’t want to hand off projects with Christ-centered evangelical higher education to someone else. I wanted to be more involved.
project
Fuller knew what he knew. He was ready to reach out to his myriad connections, position the value of his expertise, and build a team. (Dave Burke joined as Vice President in 2022).
He also knew what he didn’t know, and that was how to market his new business professionally and consistently—how to build his brand.
Thankfully, he knew someone who did.
“What I like about Bart (President of Caylor Solutions) is that he’s so practical. I’ve worked with marketing people who want to teach everybody Marketing 101. But I didn’t need to wander around in the philosophy of it all. I needed practical advice on what to do.” – Tim Fuller
Having worked with Caylor for years on projects for higher ed consulting firm Credo, Fuller reached out to see what the Caylor Solutions team could do to help.
approach
Discovery
In our initial conversations, we asked Fuller several questions:
- “Who” is Fuller Higher Ed Solutions as a brand?
- What are Fuller’s goals and priority objectives?
- How can marketing tactics support those objectives?
We learned that Fuller was confident in his pursuit of new business with existing contacts who were already aware of him. Instead, his top priority was branded collateral that would help interested prospects learn more and encourage their decision to hire FHES. Out of this discovery process came an emphasis on creating consistent content assets.
Our two priorities to create consistency prior to developing digital and print collateral were:
- Logo + design standards
- Messaging guidance
Our focus was on branding as it applied to the later stages of the buyer’s journey.
Development
Design
The design needed to look modern to appeal to the incoming generation of higher education leaders while still communicating the staid professionalism of academia. We favored the idea of a monogram for the logo to make the firm identifiable at a glance.
“Four letters is difficult. The more you add, the harder it is for the viewer to connect them. I looked at lots of higher ed logos to see how others were handling this, checked my Pinterest board for more inspiration, and came up with some options.” – Elyse Myers, Graphic Designer
The result was a color palette and typography set that comes across as bright, fresh, and innovative. This was applied to a subtle, stylized four-letter monogram “F-H-E-S” formed into the shape of a diamond somewhat evocative of an academic crest.
Messaging
Fuller is a capable writer and speaker with plenty of experience explaining the value of his services. What was new for FHES was the challenge of condensing all that extensive value down to a simple sales proposition. An elevator pitch. A tagline.
“I asked Tim Fuller many questions to get a very clear idea of his services. From there, it was simply a matter of crafting language to express what FHES does in a way that is clear, succinct, and connects with the pain points of his audience.” – John Milliken, Copywriter
The result was a messaging guide which, combined with an engaging design scheme, became the FHES brand guidelines. These were put to use immediately as they served as the foundation for a host of tactical deliverables to advance the new FHES brand.
Tactical
As anyone who’s launched a new business or initiative knows, you often have to build the plane while flying it. We began creating tactical assets from the beginning and refined the messaging for FHES as we went.
Website
Establishing a digital presence was critical, so a branded website with user-friendly blogging capability for Fuller to publish articles was tactical priority #1.
Brochure
Also critical was a new branded brochure outlining FHES’s Enrollment Growth Initiative in partnership with the Association of Biblical Higher Education (ABHE).
Focused Ads
We developed print ads specifically for use at ABHE conferences to facilitate inquiries among evangelical Christian attendees.
Miscellaneous
Other assets included branded signage for events, letterhead, envelopes, business cards, pitch cards, and other print collateral.
“Dave and I are pretty good writers. But as we produce content, we rely on Bart and the team to help us narrow down which ideas are most important, and for their expertise on what might look good or translate well. They help us make our audience the hero in our marketing.” – Tim Fuller
Website
Promotional Item - Survey Post Card
Brochures1
Brochures2
Brochures3
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results
Reputation Drives Numbers
Fuller attributes the bulk of his quantifiable results—building on impressive numbers like “154 campuses served”—to his years of experience rather than the new FHES brand. And rightly so.
As is often the case in higher education, this branding project wasn’t about establishing an identity. Its purpose was to build on the existing reputation of a leader in the field.
But with business growth comes the need to clearly tell the FHES story to new audiences. That’s when Fuller sees results from our collaboration. They’re just harder to quantify.
“I think without Caylor Solutions, our image might be kind of homey. It’s been a real boost to be seen as a real company with a real logo. The whole look and feel of presentations and reports, things like that, have added an air of professionalism to our reputation,” Fuller said.
As is often the case in higher education, this branding project wasn’t about establishing an identity. Its purpose was to build on the existing reputation of a leader in the field.
Brand Builds Reputation
As Fuller explains, it all comes down to confidence as a primer for connection. Or reconnection.
“I think when someone who’s never heard of me sees me speak at a conference, the brand consistency they see when they come to my table inspires confidence,” Fuller said.
“And when I go back to a campus after a presidential transition, I’m just about starting from scratch. A professional look gives me confidence in my presentation.”
It may not be something Fuller can attach a number to. But maybe the value of a brand you can be proud of is incalculable anyway.
conclusion
Like his clients in higher education (and ours), Tim Fuller had a lot going for him when he decided to launch his new endeavor: experience, reputation, and connections.
What he needed was marketing support to create a foundation for future growth. FHES now has brand standards from which Fuller can build professional, effective collateral and digital content.
And Caylor Solutions is always there to help put it all together.
Just like the campuses we work with, we need practical help. Caylor Solutions gives us a professional look that inspires confidence in others, and I’m confident that everything we’re sending out looks good. It’s just what we needed.
about us
About Us Caylor Solutions offers branding, marketing, and web services to K-12 schools, colleges, universities, and education partners. We’re here to help you build on your brand, tell authentic stories, and achieve results. Start a conversation with us today!