Retiring the indian chief LOGO: When it rebranded, United Bank & Trust, Michigan, wanted more than a mere redesigned logo. It opted for a cultural shift in which employees personified the new brand.

AuthorAlbro, Walt

WHEN THE BANK EXPANDED INTO A NEW MARKET AREA, employees noticed that customers were perplexed when they saw the image of a Native American on the logo. "Who's the Indian?" they would ask. "What does he stand for?"

This type of confusion was one of the reasons that United Bank & Trust (assets: $862 million), Ann Arbor, Mich., was propelled into a rebrand. The institution had expanded into a more competitive, higher-growth market and realized that it needed a clearer, stronger brand in order to succeed in the new environment.

The distinctive element of the rebrand was the bank's focus on significant employee involvement in the effort. "We knew that this attempt was not going to work unless we created a high level of excitement among our people," observes Jamie W. Guise, executive vice president and chief client delivery officer. The bank's aim was to have employees personify the new brand.

Bank founded in 1893 The history of United Bank dates back 120 years. It was founded in Tecumseh, a town in southeast Michigan with a population today of about 8,500. Since the town was named in honor of Tecumseh, a Native American chief of the Shawnee tribe--noted for his resistance to the western expansion of the United States--the financial institution adopted the name of Tecumseh Bank.

Over the years, the institution went through several acquisitions and name changes but always retained a stylized portrait of Tecumseh on its logo.

In the early 2000s, when the institution was known as United Savings Bank, it embarked on a growth strategy Since the economic expansion rate in the Tecumseh area was low, the bank focused its attention about 35 miles northeast to Ann Arbor, where the economy was more dynamic. There, United created a de novo bank with the name United Bank & Trust--Washtenaw (the name of the local county).

By 2010, the institution determined that this structure was awkward and inefficient. The two banks merged under the United Bank & Trust name, and the headquarters was moved to Ann Arbor. Through these changes, a portrait of Tecumseh had remained as part of the logo even though it had lost much of its relevance.

After the merger, the board of directors and top managers supported a rebrand for two reasons: First, the move of the bank's headquarters from Tecumseh to Ann Arbor had reduced the significance of the iconic Indian on the logo. Second, the bank did not have a clear brand identity in Ann Arbor, and it was going to need one in order to...

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