Council on Foreign Relations

• See also
• U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• United States Treasury
• Marine Corp Recruiting

• Download case history

•  email this page

Overview

Founded in 1921, the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is a prestigious, independent, nonpartisan membership organization, think tank, and publisher, serving as a resource and forum for its members, government officials, business executives, journalists, educators, and other interested citizens. Its mission: to help people better understand the world and the complex foreign policy choices facing the United States and the global community. By 2007, however, CFR’s visibility and relevance was expanding rapidly across an increasingly diverse spectrum of media and public venues, including TV and the Internet. In this dynamic public arena, it was important for CFR to more strongly present and differentiate itself from other think tanks, NGOs, and media organizations.

Challenge

A brand audit underscored CFR’s need to create an ownable signature and cohesive house style to distinguish itself from the largely blue “sea of sameness” identities of competing organizations. Recognizing the need to embrace CFR’s rich heritage while making it relevant and accessible across all media, Landor proposed creating two signatures to achieve this goal: one a straightforward wordmark for external communications; the other a more stylized “CFR” monogram to for use primarily in membership communications. A sophisticated brand hierarchy and grid system was then applied to CFR’s numerous product offerings (e.g., CFR.org, Task Force Reports, books, and working papers) to differentiate them while reinforcing the core organizational brand.

Solution

A classic yet contemporary brown signature and monogram are the main features of the new brand, complemented by a color palette of rich earth tones unique to the category. Member response has been highly enthusiastic, as the branding system has been quickly and proudly incorporated across all of CFR’s many platforms and channels of communication. Michael N. Pocalyko, CEO, Monticello Capital, commented, “I am very impressed with the new form and content of the Chronicle (a CFR publication) and the integration of the new graphics identity. Well done, and greatly appreciated. High utility, quite fitting for our continuing national advance. You have much to be proud of.”