Brand Tool Kit

The "We are Racers." brand messaging is intended to be a unifier for both the campus and greater community while supporting the brand promise and mission of the University.

The "We are Racers." messaging can be used by following these guidelines:

• Choose words only from the approved word bank. Words should remain lowercase. You may list 1 or 2 "We are" statements before the "We are Racers." statement.

• The "We are Racers." statement is always used last.

• "Racers" is always capitalized while "are" is never capitalized. There is an exception to this rule when using hashtags; #WeAreRacers is the proper format.

• Never abbreviate the tagline (W.A.R.).

• Each statement always ends with a period.

Download FreightText Medium font in the downloads section.

3 statement format example

We are {insert word from word bank}.
We are {insert word from word bank}.
We are Racers.

2 statement format example

We are {insert word from word bank}.
We are Racers.

 The word bank is updated when new words are added. 

Examples of proper use

3 statement format

We are caregivers.
We are nurses.
We are Racers.

2 statement format 

We are nurses.
We are Racers.

Examples of improper use

1. Do not use more than three statements or reformat statements.
   We are caregivers.
   We are dedicated.
   Racers are nurses.
   We are Racers.
2. Do not use additional words. Each statement shoud be three words in length.
   We are caregivers.
   We are very dedicated. 
   We are Racers.
3. Do not use unauthorized words or punctuation.
   We are cool!
   We are hip!
   We are Racers!
4. Do not use other fonts or styles.
   We are caregivers. 
   We are dedicated.
   WE ARE RACERS. 

Tagline and lock-up

Tagline

Lock-up logo

If you are not using the messaging, you may choose to use the tagline or the lock-up logo.

The tagline and lock-up logo can be used by following these guidelines:

• When only using the tagline, an official logo should be present.
• To avoid redundancy, only use one "We are Racers." element (messaging, tagline or lock-up logo) should be used.
• Never abbreviate the tagline (W.A.R.).
• Use correct font and downloaded materials.

Improper use

Proper use

 

• Download logos for email, print and digital
• Download tagline tools for digital and print
• Download Freight fonts
• Download tagline quick reference guide

Any marketing materials representing the University, from brochures to web pages to press releases, should follow Associated Press style for grammar. We encourage you to save the following style guide and/or hang it up at your desk for easy reference. Not only will it make great office décor, it will also help ensure consistent grammar usage across the University.

Download the University's Editorial Style Guidelines

For more tips on AP style, Purdue OWL and Grammar Girl are great resources. If you have further questions, please contact Kaitlyn Black in the office of branding, marketing and communication at kbplack11@murraystate.edu.

Important note: Please use the official names of University colleges, buildings and scholarships, and check your spelling. Examples include the Arthur J. Bauernfeind College of Business, Susan E. Bauernfeind Wellness Center and Jesse D. Jones College of Science, Engineering and Technology.

Any promotional or marketing material that represents any aspect of the University is required to have an equal opportunity statement. The shortened version is easiest to include and can be placed in the footer of the publication in a small font. The font should be no smaller than 6 points with enough contrast to be legible.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Long version:
Murray State University endorses the intent of all federal and state laws created to prohibit discrimination. Murray State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, age, veteran status or disability in employment or application for employment, admissions or the provision of services and provides, upon request, reasonable  accommodation including auxiliary aids and services necessary to afford individuals with disabilities equal access to participate in all programs and activities. Murray State University supports a clean and  healthy campus. Please refrain from personal tobacco use.

Shortened version:
Equal education and employment opportunities M/F/D, AA employer. Murray State University supports a clean and healthy campus. Please refrain from personal tobacco use.

The University’s Typeface

Download font family

If you have questions about using these fonts on University computers, contact the Service Desk at 270-809-2346 or msu.servicedesk@murraystate.edu.

Primary

There are two primary colors, the tried and true Murray State blue and gold.

Accent

The accent colors are the University's secondary colors. These should be used sparingly.

Use of the department logo system is required for all academic and administrative units. To request your department logo, please contact Branding, Marketing and Communication. Modifications are not permitted, but this system provides variations for certain circumstances. To display a unit name, a single or double line of text is inserted. The font FreightText semibold is used with a cap-height of the unit name being equal to the x-height of UN I V E R S I T Y.

Contact Melissa Shown at mshown@murraystate.edu to request a logo for your department.

Video

:30 Commercial

The University’s Image

Photography is a key element of our brand. We’re capturing the essence of Murray State through a visual medium. Using a contemporary style, we’re capturing diversity, candid moments and the students and faculty in their academic settings.

Photo shoots and downloads

For copyright information or to schedule a photographer, please contact the digital media team within the Office of Branding, Marketing and Communication at msu.photography@murraystate.edu. View/download images on SmugMug.

Best practices

Print: CMYK color format, TIFF, PSD, or JPEG at 300 dpi

Web/Digital images: RGB Color format, JPEG or PNG ranging from 72 dpi to 300 dpi

• As a general rule, low resolution images lose quality if they are resized larger than their original size.
• Never use photos that are pulled from the internet without having proper permission or rights.
• Do not use colorizing or apply dramatic filters to photos.
• Do not crop an image so severely that the subject or emotion is compromised.
• Do not use outdated photographs of campus.

Alt text for web and pdf

Image alt text (alternative text) is used within HTML code to describe the appearance and function of an image on a web page. This should also be applied within the settings of a .pdf document if it will be available online. Alt text is a central principle of web accessibility. Visually impaired people using screen readers read alt text to better understand the image, and it also provides context to search engines, helping to index an image properly. When writing alt text, describe the image as specifically as possible, but keep it short.

• Freight Text fonts
• Video animations
• Download logos for email, print and digital
• Download all toolkit files
• Download Zoom backgrounds - If your Zoom background image appears reversed on screen, de-select the "Mirror my video" option.

• Download press release template (pdf).
• Download press release template (docx).

Letterhead and business card pricing and ordering information is available via Print Services. 

 Letterhead example

Powerpoint Templates

• Download PowerPoint Templates

Format Excel files

To create a Murray State theme using the official colors:

1. Open a new Excel document.
2. Go to the Page Layout tab. Next to Themes, click Colors, then select Create New Theme Colors at the bottom of the list.
3. For each of the desired fields, click the dropdown and then click More Colors.
4. Select the Custom tab, then enter the RGB values for the Murray State colors.
   For Light Blue (007eb2)
   R = 0
   G = 126
   B = 178
   For Navy (002144)
   R = 0
   G = 33
   B = 68
   For Gold (ecac00)
   R = 236
   G = 172
   B = 0
   Once you've entered a color once, it will appear in the Recent Colors box if you decide to repeat it.
5. Once all of the theme colors are selected, click Save.
6. Click Themes, then select Save Current Theme. Name the theme (I used MurrayStateTheme) and save it.
7. Open the document to which you wish to apply the theme. Go to Page Layout and select the theme from the list. This should update any document, or set up any new document with the correct colors. You can also add specific fonts and effects to the theme if you don't like the standard ones and they'll transition in the same way.

Report Cover Templates

• Download Report Cover A Word template.
• Download Report Cover A Google Document template.

• Download Report Cover B Word template.
• Download Report Cover B Google Document template.

• Download Report Cover C Word template.
• Download Report Cover C Google Document template.

Agenda Templates

• Download Agenda A Word template.
• Download Agenda A Google Document template.

• Download Agenda B Word template.
• Download Agenda B Google Document template.

• Download Agenda C Word template.
• Download Agenda C Google Document template.

Signoff Design

Ensure your emails feature Murray State branding by updating your signature to look like this:

 

Signatures should include

• Name
• Title/Position
• Office/Department
• Campus
• Phone/Fax
• Link to apply webpage
• Logo or lock-up logo

Instructions

1.  Download the Murray State logo or the lock-up logo.

2. Click on the gear icon in the upper right corner of your RacerMail inbox.

3. Choose the “Settings” link.

4. In the “Signature” section, click the “Insert Image” icon to upload the new Murray State logo.

5. Reference the design above to update your information as needed.

6. To link the Apply Today text, click the link icon and add a link to www.murraystate.edu/apply.

7. If the text is linked properly, it will automatically turn blue.

8. Make sure the signature box is selected and “no signature” is deselected.

9. Scroll to the bottom and click “Save Changes” before navigating back to your inbox.

   Please note, departmental email accounts may not upload images.

   Please note, departmental email accounts may not upload images. 

Digital Media Services handles all photo and video requests.

Your social media accounts should always represent the current brand.

All university websites are built using OU Campus. For more information, contact Web Management.