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I was engaged in what I believe to be the most thrilling industry in the world—aviation. My heart still leaps when I see a tiny two-seater plane soaring gracefully through the sky. Our great airlines awe me. Yet I know they were not produced in a day or a decade.

— William A. “Pat” Patterson, CEO United Airlines

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For more than 80 years, United Airlines has stood as a leader in commercial flight. From its extending flight to international destinations to providing class leading amenities, United Airlines has brought the world a series of firsts that others could only attempt to copy.

Though United has faltered in recent years, we believe that by refocusing on its core demographic—men and women age 35-40 with a household income of $94–140,000 per year, are home owners with a spouse and/or family, and travel for both business and leisure—while highlighting that which the company is best at—service and amenities—the company can once again claim the title of best of U.S. air service.

Purpose

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• Flat• Reserved• Single color

• Modern• Motion (backward slant)• American (U.S.) colors

Competitor IdentitiesUnited Airline’s primary competitors are Southwest Airlines, JetBlue, American Airlines, US Airways, and Delta, and each present their own strengths and weaknesses when compared to United. Two of these competitors feature some variation of the red, white, and blue seen in the American flag—an attempt to link the company with the United States, patriotism, and familiarity—and four use a blue in their logo and brand collateral.

The trend with the most recently updated competitor logo is toward the three-dimensional, with shaded accents and layered components.

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• Modern• Sense of depth• American (U.S.) colors

• Flat• Conveys caring• Uninteresting

• Clean• Single color• Text-only logo

Found from PDF

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Current LogoUnited’s current logo is mostly the result of the combinations of each United’s and Continental’s logos following the merger of the two company’s. This, however, is far from an ideal brand solution, having lost the brand equity held by each company.

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New LogoThis new logo concept draws from United’s previous and longest held logo design. Though it does not differentiate with color, the logo stands strongest amongst its competitors with unabashed use of the American red, white, and blue coloring. Most importantly, this logo concept chooses to retain the brand equity built over more than 80 years. It is a logo that brand loyalists will recognize while updated to link the United and Continental brands under a new umbrella. The strong lettering speaks to the company’s strength and reliability, and the curvature of the logo mark softens the brand mark such as to make it approachable to the target demographic.

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FLIGHT: AW116 GATE: 12

StyleTo accompany the updated logo, the brand guidelines call for a containing background textured with single-point lines set at the same degree angle as that seem in the logo mark. This element gives United branding a sense of tactility, inviting customers to touch the materials. Additionally, this tactility is softened with the use of light gradations in color, where it is darker at the bottom and lighter toward the top. When used with the United blue, it is especially useful to convey a sense of upward motion. Finally, and as is seen throughout this document, angled, upward sloping shapes and containers help to give the brand a sense of motion and elevation.

Each of these elements is geared to convey a sense of stability, mobility, reliability, comfort, and friendliness in the target demographic.

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FLIGHT: AW116 GATE: 12

24 JUN 2015

Mr Ryan McClung

FROM: OMC

OrlandoTO: LHR

London 27℃ +5hrs

BOARDING AT

09:15am

TERMINAL GATE SEAT

A 12 23B

24 JUN 2015

Mr Ryan McClung

OMC LHRFLIGHT: AW116GATE: 12SEAT: 23B (Window)

Fold and fit into your passport

FLIGHT: AW116 GATE: 12

FLIGHT: AW116 GATE: 12

24 JUN 2015

Mr Ryan McClung

FROM: OMC

OrlandoTO: LHR

London 27℃ +5hrs

BOARDING AT

09:15am

TERMINAL GATE SEAT

A 12 23B

24 JUN 2015

Mr Ryan McClung

OMC LHRFLIGHT: AW116GATE: 12SEAT: 23B (Window)

Fold and fit into your passport

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MY UNITEDAccess your account and preferences

BOOK YOUR FLIGHTReserve your flight, rental, and hotel

Life doesn’t slow down. Why should you?

CHECK FLIGHT STATUSArrivals & Departures

CHECK FLIGHT STATUSArrivals & Departures

CHECK IN Retrieve your boarding pass

Search

united.com

Website and TypeThe new United.com website concept is perhaps the best example of the new branding direction that we propose. Here you can see each the angles, gradation, and texture put into use. Applied appropriately, these elements should give a sense of uniformity and approachability while remaining strong and dependable.

The font chosen for this rebranding effort is Helvetica Neue and it’s associated styles (Light, Regular, Medium). Helvetica Neue conveys no emotion on its own, so emotional emphasis is instead relegated to the decorative elements previously outlines. The font does, though, aid the brand by presenting a clean and approachable face while remaining highly legible from a distance; important for in-flight signage.

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MY UNITEDAccess your account and preferences

BOOK YOUR FLIGHTReserve your flight, rental, and hotel

Life doesn’t slow down. Why should you?

CHECK FLIGHT STATUSArrivals & Departures

CHECK FLIGHT STATUSArrivals & Departures

CHECK IN Retrieve your boarding pass

Search

SloganThe new slogan that we propose United adopt is “Life doesn’t slow down. Why should you?”

This slogan poses a question to the audience with the expectation of an answer, if only mentally. United’s target demographic appreciates expediency and needs to know that their business and personal matters will not be hampered by the unexpected. This slogan embeds the idea that United is more concerned with its customer’s time and needs than is its competitors. By placing the audience in a question-and-response mindset, it is more likely to remember the United brand and associate it with expediency. Coupled with a marketing campaign focused on the benefits of flying United—Productivity, Comfort, and Communications—United is in a position to win mindshare of competitors.

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ImplementationTo implement this new branding initiative, it is imperative that current and new employees first be targeted. Retraining and education of employs must be completed before any new marketing initiatives can be put into place. This will ensure that our customer service based and the service they deliver is polished, professional, and meets our new standards.

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