PENN COMPOSE
Expanding a musical community through rebranding
Role
Graphic Designer
Timeline
2023
Skills
Graphic Design
Marketing
Context
Penn Compose is a student music composition club with a vision to foster a community of composers, songwriters, producers, and anyone interested in music-making—regardless of genre.
We held concerts each semester to showcase student compositions. However, we faced challenges in receiving enough submissions for the concerts and recruiting new members.
Identifying the problem
As Vice President and Designer, I reached out and surveyed Penn students to identify the issue. I discovered that many students considered to join but were hesitant to because it seemed exclusive to those with music theory knowledge or an interest in classical music.
The branding, featuring musical notations and the word "compose," was not effectively representing the club's inclusive vision.
Solution
To address this, I redesigned the logo and the banner to reflect a more modern aesthetic and broader appeal, in order to include producers and songwriters who don't work with traditional musical scores. We decided to keep the name as it might confuse original members.
Additionally, I designed posters emphasizing that the club welcomes music makers of all genres.
We also hosted beat-making workshops, which successfully attracted around 20 participants.
Outcome
These marketing and rebranding efforts led to a recruiting about 10 new members and successful increase submissions for our concert, including contributions from songwriters and electronic music producers. The club's new image resonated with a wider audience, aligning better with our inclusive vision.