RAWsome Branding

For decades marketing types have talked about how some brands have a soul, a voice a personality. They rant long and hard about how Apple brand has a cult, Nike has a tribe, Coke has enthusiasts, and other beloved products and services have brand loyalists, advocates, zealots and vigilantes. Well we would like to hear from you as to what you think RAW has.

Last Thursday, we (Orange Inc.) held a creative workshop with 13 people including RAW staff, board members, parents and alum asking seven simple questions to discover where RAW has come from and where it's heading, what will the new RAW look like? Read the responses for yourself and get involved in the rebranding of RAW. We want to continue this dialogue thought the Blog so we invite you to add your answers to these seven questions that were asked through the comments feature. The responses are enlightening, revealing, moving and powerful.This Blog will document the whole rebranding process.

We know RAW likes to document the journey and what an exciting journey this is. Stay tuned.

What ONE word would you use to describe RAW?

Welcoming
Caring
Grow
Sanctuary
Creativity
Influential
Articulate
Art
Real
Love
Cultivation

What ONE image would you use to describe RAW?

Kids
Glass of water
A kid’s smiling face
Kids
Paintbrush
Child holding a paintbrush and his or her tongue hanging out
Painter’s overalls

What does RAW stand for?

Creativity
Kids and their futures
No Mistakes just Art
Love
Empathy and solidarity
As diverse as our city itself
An Awesome, Art and fun safe environment, encouraging “art out loud”
Art out loud
Express yourself
Changing kid’s lives
Raw raises kids
Drawing kids out

What has RAW stopped doing?

Being confused
Working with the elderly
RARE KID (a program that recognized a student a month)
Everybody used to share one computer
Inefficiency
Being overlooked
Stopped the limitations/EXPANDED
Stopped working with kids in lockup/less artwork up in the community
Stopped being apologetic because we are “only” art therapists
Serving kids in lockup

What is RAW doing today that it was not doing in the past?

Being more celebrated
Launch – it’s how I got to college
Breathing/Being calm
Expanding/Reaching out (you read about RAW in the papers, I hear announcements in school)
Holding kids longer (ensuring that the transition out of high school is successfulJ)
Showing movies on the huge projector that can be seen from the street
Hiring artist/thinking wider, bigger, broader EXPANDING
Diversified its program offerings
Project
More programs
Serving little kids/film school/owning a building/offering better working conditions for staff/employing alum
Launch/Impact/Tap
Quality of art
Rebranding

How visible is RAW in the community? (How deep are the roots?)

Still more visibility needed/I think the roots are deep
Visibility is increasing
Not super deep in the immediate community/could use more awareness
Raw is getting bigger
Unsure
Fairly visible in schools but should be more visible
Visible to Lynn and immediate surroundings but not so much elsewhere
Raw vans are seen
Visible in the community, third Thursday helps in the streets and open night
Very, everybody (newspapers, windows, news)
Many people from city hall to businesses down town, church people, state agencies
Not diverse enough, people still get RAW confused with Lynn Arts
Seen by new lynners but not understood