Our logo is a highly distinctive element in our brand. It has been developed as a balanced whole. The correct proportions are shown here. Consistent use of the logo helps maintain the integrity of the brand and ensures greater brand recognition in various environments.
Primary: Tab Logo
Place on the top right corner
Secondary: Circular Logo
Place on the top right corner
Use the white version when on a dark background
We have carefully selected the Adelle Sans typeface family as our corporate typeface. Adelle Sans is friendly, clean and legible. All EC’s communication should use Adelle Sans for headlines, charts, tables and long passages of text. The Adelle family includes small capitals as well as text numerals for use in body text. Please use these where appropriate.
WEB Font-family: adelle-sans,arial,sans-serif;
When the Adelle Sans family is not available we recommend Calibri, a system font included with the Windows operating system.
Our voice should be
- Straightforward
- Engaging and aspirational
- Friendly and approachable
- Experienced and insightful, but also considerate and empathetic
Before starting
Be very clear in your mind about what you are looking to communicate, and the outcome you want to achieve. This helps you to focus and will simplify the message. Simplicity and straightforwardness are important, especially in our industry as most of our audience have limited English.
The words we use
- Refer to EC in the first person rather than the third (‘we are’ not ‘EC is’)
- Address readers in the second person (‘you are’ rather than ‘students are’)
- Use ‘schools’ rather than ‘centres’. This is more direct, accurate, friendly and less Contrary to some beliefs that ‘school’ sounds childish, in North America, the word can refer to any educational institution at any level. It is also far more commonly used in web searches by people looking to study a language. We use ‘schools’ on the website for this reason, and we want to be consistent across all our materials.
- Use ‘young learners’ not ‘juniors’
- Use as little jargon as Where you use it, spell the meaning out clearly
- Avoid clichés and unnecessary superlatives – this will inspire trust
- Keep verbs active, not passive (‘he made rapid progress’, rather than ‘significant advances were made’)
Our tone
- Be as straightforward and direct as possible
- Be upbeat and positive, yet realistic and rational
- Write as you would speak: conversational and well-mannered, as if you were face to face with an equal
- Avoid sounding arrogant or as if you are talking down to your reader
- Show empathy with your audience – see things from their point of view and anticipate their questions and concerns (rhetorical questions are useful here)
- Do not just claim things to be true – show reasoning and offer proof points to back up your statements
Our structure
- Use simple sentence structures
- Use short, sharp intros so that even skim readers can take away the key message
- Use headlines to emphasise key They also provide strong signposting so that your structure is clear
- Favour short sentences (but do mix it up to vary the pace and keep it interesting If your sentences are all short, your text will be dull and robotic)
- Keep paragraphs Try to stick to no more than three sentences per paragraph.
- Use bullet lists but keep them short and simple
Tone of voice
Before finalising
- Review and shorten your Challenge words, phrases and sentences – are they really necessary?
- Simplify any bullet lists
- Make sure you are communicating as efficiently as possible – ensure there is no duplication in your message
British, American and Canadian spelling
- Our standard is British English spelling
- For communications that will only be seen in the USA, use American English The differences can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ American_and_British_English_spelling_differences
- For communications that will only be seen in Canada, use Canadian English This combines some British and some American conventions, which you can find here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_English#Spelling_and_ dictionaries
Date and time format
- Opt for 2 November 2012 (for British English) or November 2 2012 (for American or Canadian English)
- To avoid confusion between British and American conventions, avoid numerical date formats, g. 02/11/12, which could be read as either 2 November or 11 February
Numbers
- Use words for numbers from one to nine and then use figures, except when referring to courses and weeks, g. ‘an 8-week course’ (not eight-week) and ‘the course runs for 8 weeks’
Punctuations
- Do not use commas and full stops in addresses
- Use Mr A N Other and not A. N. Other
- Hyphenate the terms ‘8-week course’ and ‘double-banking’
Capitalisations
- Avoid over-use of caps as it seems pompous and old-fashioned (e.g. it should be ‘20 lessons per week’ and ‘our timetable’, rather than ‘20 Lessons per week’ and ‘our Timetable’)
- However, do use initial caps when referring to our courses, levels and job titles (e.g. Academic Year, Upper-Intermediate, Centre Director)
- Write ‘university’ and ‘college’ in lower case, unless referring to the name of a particular institution (e.g. Santa Clara University)
Text alignment and style
- Left align all text – do not justify
- Use bold for emphasis
- Do not use UPPERCASE for emphasis
- Underline should never be used unless indicating a hyperlink
General rules
- Put dedicated time aside because good photos take time, care and attention to detail to get right. As our photos form the only visual impression prospective students have of EC and our individual schools, their value is immense.
- Always use natural light; never use the camera flash.
- Choose the subject of your picture and the focal point should be on that. Try not to cram too much into your shot!
- Shoot creatively. Think about depth of field, use interesting angles and make good use of negative space.
- Including orange in photography will strengthen our branding and make our photographs more recognisable.
When hiring a photographer
- Personality is very important. Make sure you hire a photographer with the ability to put people at ease as this makes all the difference in their photos.
- Ensure you brief school staff that a photographer will be on site. This will enable them to point the photographer in the direction of classes, teachers and students that they think will make for good shots. They will also know which classrooms are most attractive with the best light etc.
Things we need photos of:
1. Schools, classrooms and facilities
- Our beautiful schools are perhaps our biggest selling point. We have invested a lot of time and money in creating these great spaces to learn and have fun in – we need to show them off!
- Even the outside of a building can make for a lively and interesting shot. Use creative angles, focus on a detail, or include human activity in the picture.
- Ensure there are people in the classrooms when you photograph – even just one person is better than an empty, lifeless room.
- Take classroom shots at eye level, from the students’ perspective.
- Avoid having people sitting with their backs to the camera if blurry in the background this can be ok, but rows of backs in the foreground make for a terrible picture.
- Ensure any mess is ‘good mess’. Piles of books, papers, even water bottles and coffee cups all bring authenticity to a picture of a working classroom, but make sure you don’t have unsightly boxes, overflowing bins etc in your shot.
- Equally, posters on the wall and writing on the whiteboard etc are things that make a room look vibrant and alive, but make sure things like noticeboards are not too messy.
- Make sure desks are in line with each other.
- Show students using facilities in a natural and authentic manner.
- Any screens like TVs or PCs should be switched on.
2. People
- Capture people in their real environment doing what they would normally do, eg students in a discussion and teachers giving a lesson.
- Spend some time (even just a few minutes) to get to know your subject(s) beforehand. This will make them feel more comfortable and give you a more natural shot.
- Take a selection of photos – some with subjects looking into the lens and some where they appear unaware of the camera.
Students
- Ensure students are not revealing too much flesh! Ideally they are also ‘clean cut’ and generally wholesome-looking. Remember some of our markets have very conservative values!
- Show attractive, happy individuals and groups, and an interesting nationality mix.
- Take shots of students in a variety of locations in and around the school and accommodation, and during social activities.
Teachers
- Capture them while they are teaching, looking lively, animated and interesting.
- Ensure they look presentable but not necessarily ‘formal’.
Staff
- Don’t forget to photograph other members of staff who make the EC experience so friendly and welcoming, eg receptionists, social leaders and so on.
3. Accommodation
- Accommodation should look lived-in but tidy. If you can only take shots of unused rooms, make sure there is at least a bedspread, that the curtains are open and neat etc. Ensure there is no dirty washing up or rubbish lying around etc.
- Ideally accommodation shots will have students in them.
- Try to get shots of all rooms, including the reception area and façade.
4. Destinations
- Use natural daylight. The best light is in the early morning or late afternoon.
- Take some photos of overall scenes, landscapes etc, and some shots of the little details that show off your destination’s unique character.
- Take some shots of students having a good time in the destination.
5. Social activities
- Capture genuinely happy, lively people having fun – both individuals and groups.
- Take some photos that clearly show what the activity is, eg if snorkelling, make sure a snorkel is in the picture.
- Keep an eye out around the school and on Facebook etc for sociable students who are also great photographers!
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