The VPRI communications team can support your cluster to identify and develop the right channels to reach your audiences, and provide guidance to set up a range of communications tools.
Websites
Many clusters are interested in developing a website to support their work. The VPRI team is available to guide clusters through this process, from planning to initial setup and training. This can include:
- Helping you to identify which website platform best fits your needs, and outlining any associated costs
- One popular option is the UBC CMS platform. This UBC-hosted and supported service is secure, accessible and available at no cost; many departments, units and clusters have used it to build UBC brand-compliant websites
- Accessing templates and layouts specifically designed to meet the most common cluster website needs
- Providing guidance and feedback on website structure and content considerations
- Guiding you through how to register your preferred website address
- Providing support with setup and training
Newsletters and cluster email accounts
Newsletters are often important tools for clusters to communicate with their networks and share announcements, events and other updates.
Our team can provide guidance on:
- Setting up a UBC email inbox (e.g. cluster.name@ubc.ca)
- Best practices for sending newsletters and maintaining subscriber lists
- Using third-party newsletter services, such as Envoke (see below)
Access to Envoke
Envoke is a Canadian newsletter distribution platform that numerous clusters and the VPRI communications team uses for newsletters, including the Research Digest. Through our group account, clusters have access to:
- Discounted group rates on a full-featured newsletter distribution and mail-list management platform
- UBC branded templates that can be further customized
- Training and ongoing support from our team
If you are interested in using Envoke, please reach out to our team for more information.
Logo, branding and visual identity
Our team will provide guidance to create a distinctive look and feel for your cluster while still being compliant with brand guidelines and UBC policies.
Wordmarks (Logos)
We will provide clusters with the their official logo to identify the cluster on a wide range of materials. The wordmark integrates the cluster name in a variety of different configurations and formats to meet different digital and print needs at all scales. While clusters cannot create custom logos as outlined in UBC's visual identity rules, there are many options to develop a distinctive visual identity that can work alongside the official UBC cluster logo.
Developing a distinctive visual identity
We can introduce clusters to the UBC Brand and Marketing team who work extensively with units across the university to advise them on how to develop design ideas into distinctive, brand-compliant identities across material ranging from websites and reports, to pull-up banners and merchandise. Examples of distinct identities are highlighted below that use motifs, graphics and backgrounds consistently across a range of materials:
Social media avatars
You can quickly and efficiently create avatars for your social media accounts through UBC Brand & Marketing by using their online form.
We also recommend exploring their social media guide for best practices and considerations when creating new channels.
Other questions?
If you have any other questions and are not sure where to go, you can reach out to our team. If we can't directly answer your question, we can connect you with other people who can.