As for the branding, when I heard about it I was extrememly angry. UTC is its own school, the “Linked but Distinct” slogan does not work for me. We are the only school in the UT system that does not use orange as part of their colors. The new billboards with “UT” in the words such as “FUTURE” with the teeny-tiny Chattanooga underneath do not do an adequate job of distinguishing Chattanooga from Knoxville. The fact that we are considered The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga should be enough to link us in the UT system. There are several alums that are still upset about this and still want us to go back to the University of Chattanooga. Look at the University of Alabama in Birmingham and Huntsville. They are part of the University of Alabama system, but they are completely distinct from the school in Tuscaloosa.

We are unique and surrounded by so much history of the city and the changes that the University has gone through in the past. We should try to market our distinctive qualities and spread our name around the Chattanooga area more, revive spirit throughout the community, and try to spread our name into the cities all around Tennessee. We have downtown that is right there, great apartment style dorms (those are a big pull for us), many outdoor recreation opportunities, fabulous engineering and physical therapy schools, and a beautiful campus. And we have so much more to offer!

Let’s take the thought and apply it to business. You would NEVER see Old Navy stores call themselves “Old Navy of The Gap”. No, Old Navy, although tied in with Gap and Banana Republic, has a unique niche and purpose and market. And they advertise ONLY on their own distinctiveness, not the strengths of Gap or Banana Republic. Yet, most people still know that they are a part of the same parent company. It’s no secret. And the individualized marketing and brand and colors work for the betterment of each individual company. And when Old Navy does its job for its customers, it builds loyalty to the store, and that loyalty carries its customers to the other company stores. When they get good quality service at Old Navy, they are more likely to also visit Gap and the Banana Republic. But again, Old Navy is it’s own vital and unique store with its own image and marketing campaign and brand.

The same should apply to UTC. Personally, I think, like the Old Navy example above, that to promote UTC’s uniqueness, we should actually change the university name back to University of Chattanooga or Chattanooga University. Maybe still call it “Chattanooga University of the University of Tennessee System” in it’s official title. But fall back on Chattanooga University (and “CU”) as its main marketing title. And develop a unique marketing angle that calculates and showcases it’s unique strengths…which in turn would promote the strength of the system.

Your finger may not function as a heart. No, the heart is the main pump, but the finger has a unique purpose. And although it’s not the main organ that keeps life going, it sure is important. The UT system (and even Knoxville) is the “mother ship” of the UT system, but it’s only one of many unique campuses. Let them have the orange and the UT title. But give Chattanooga its own image and brand upon which to strengthen itself. Strengthen each individual institute and focus on each institute’s strength, and it would be a sure bet that the system (and the mother ship) would benefit from it.

Go Chattanooga University!! And GO blue and gold MOCS!

I regret that I do not know enough about our uniqueness other than our Computational Engineering program, which has been hijacked by UTK’s fUTure campaign, anyway. As long as Chattanooga relies on the system to promote the campus and do the fundraising, this will continue to be viewed as a “branch campus.”