Ontario Tech Student Union
Ontario Tech Student Union, 2021–2023
The Ontario Tech Student Union (OTSU) is a not-for-profit organization that represents over 10,000 students at Ontario Tech University, located in the City of Oshawa. The OTSU provides students with services and amenities that support physical and mental wellbeing, provide collaborative spaces to pursue passions, nourish development, and improve student life through advocacy and leadership.
Founded as UOITSU in 2017, after splitting from the joint Student Association (SA) at UOIT (University of Ontario Institute of Technology) and Durham College, the student union rebranded to the OTSU in response to the university’s new rebrand.
I began working at the OTSU in their fourth year since inception in 2021, helping to develop and expand their branding in new applications and channels after the COVID-19 pandemic put a pause on the development and scale of the OTSU’s operations and marketing.
Print & Presentations
Service Branding
In order to help students identify which services were offered by the student union (as opposed to the university), a service branding scheme was created to help identify and differentiate them. Each service is associated with an icon and colour which is heavily featured in communications for that service.
Digital Channels
In 2021 the OTSU started the Rundown, a bi-weekly e-newsletter. In 2022, the OTSU opened the Warehouse, an online store that enabled OTSU clubs and societies to sell their merch and event tickets on a centralized platform using Square. In 2023, the OTSU launched the Latest, a custom-built blog platform on the OTSU’s website to amplify student voices, initiatives, and provide an easily-accessible format for our latest news and updates.
Due to the unique limitations encountered in each channel, alternative font options were explored.
Events & Initiatives
Over the years, the OTSU has put on many events and created many different initiatives under different leadership teams. While larger events and initiatives required a more tailored and multi-channel campaign, much of the OTSU’s marketing was on a smaller scale with a focus on social media, particularly Instagram.
To avoid being tuned out by students, there were few limitations put on social media marketing assets — the goal was to grab their attention and put out something new and fresh.
Small promotional goods, such as stickers, also followed this approach.
Photography
With authenticity being key to resonating with students, we pushed to have the capabilities to produce professional photography in-house. Previously, freelance photographers would be contracted for large events; but day-to-day, photos would be taken on mobile phones, leaving a large gap in what could be used in marketing materials. As a result, the OTSU relied heavily on stock photography which was evident.
After acquiring a camera, we were able to build a brand photography library that captured the vibrancy and diversity of the Ontario Tech campus.
