RISE UP
FOR HEROES
In the midst of the COVID crisis, UPBrand leaned into a desire to thank essential workers. Joining with members of sister companies within Nitrous Effect, we inspired The St. Louis Blues and Cardinals to publicly spearhead the initiative.
We facilitated the planning task force, including leaders of our sports teams and several civic decision makers.
UPBrand was privileged to develop the name, identity and all brand assets for Rise Up For Heroes, including content support of a televised fundraiser for the COVID fund.
Not only did we lift spirits, we raised significant relief donations.
Identity
We were inspired by the shared blue hues of our city’s flag and of our healthcare leaders’ identities. We also used the fleur-de-lis to highlight the “H” in heroes as well as the action of rising up for one another.
Website
As the initiative’s hub of information, the website had to be visually appealing and user-friendly. With much to communicate all on one page – from the care-avan to the nightly celebrations to the donations callout – we needed to make clear design choices and write in clear but engaging copy throughout.
Anthem Video
In partnership with our sister agency Vidzu Media, we created an anthemic video voiced by none other than Cardinals announcer Dan McLaughlin. For this piece, we wanted to go beyond the clichés of pandemic narratives – sentimental piano, talks of the “new normal” and overly obsequious language — to highlight the unique resilience of our region. The piece kicked off an hour-long, star-studded KSDK “Rise Up For Heroes” special, produced by sister agencies CPG and Evntiv, intended to raise spirits in our community.
Social
To encourage sharing, we leveraged the celebrity of our partners by developing content for them to share on their platforms. We also rallied around and monitored the #RiseUpForHeroes hashtag to pull user-generated content for the website and for continued sharing.
Advertising
We created giveaways for our local heroes – shirts, flags and rally towels – to build equity in the branding and foment pride. And to get the word out in the community, we created print ads in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
