To leverage the efforts of the McMahon 2025-2028 all Village Community Survey, in March 2025 the Boards welcomed the Sussner team—a design company known for its success in brand- ing Clubs like the Villages. Since 2024 the McMahon Group has been working with the Boards and Management to guide strategic alignment that helps support the decisions and actions of The Villages leadership as it carefully and thoughtfully addresses member experience, fiduciary stewardship, safety and other sustainable initiatives. Sussner’s partnership with The Villages is to develop a brand strategy that authentically reflects who we are as a Club and community—a slightly different but complementary focus than McMahon’s objective.
Over the many months that leadership developed the Strategic Plan, we returned again and again to a fundamental question: What defines the Villages as a community? Are we an active, 55+ lifestyle community of choice, as described in our Vision Statement? Or are we evolving into something broader—more than just a traditional country club or retirement setting? Some residents choose The Villages for the lifestyle, amenities, and sense of connection. Others value the peace of mind and long-term comfort that comes with staying in a supportive, well-maintained environment as their needs change. This basic “identity” question needs to clearly and compre-hensively be addressed. Over the next several months, through June, the Sussner team will be gathering critical information from where we started as a community—capitalizing on our evergreen roots—why we live here and thrive and what we most appreciate about The Villages to who we see ourselves currently and in the future. It’s more than we might initially think.
What’s involved in creating a brand?
“What is a brand”? If you respond that a brand involves only a logo and color palette, there is so much more in store to explore! Our brand is not just logos, colors, typography or an elevator pitch or tagline. There is more to the way we want people to perceive us as a Community. Our brand identity should reflect our blend—capturing who we are today and where we are headed, while inspiring pride among members and appeal for future residents.
Considerable amount of effort goes into shaping how people—our future members—perceive us. Logos, colors, typesets, visual elements that make up our marketing material are a part of a bigger picture that involves building a solid reputation, creating a deeply felt emotional response when thinking about our community, understanding who we honestly believe we are, and leaving a lasting impression that draws future friends and neighbors to The Villages. The Villages Boards have engaged with Sussner to encompass Purpose, Phase I of our long-term strategy to identify who we are as a community.
A simple understanding of A Brand:
- Visual elements – includes logos, color palettes, typography, imagery and other visual assets
- Verbal elements – encompasses the brand’s voice, tone, tagline, and messaging
- Purpose – brand identity helps us communicate our core values, mission, and purpose to our future members.
- Personality – it is the personality that a brand wants to project, making it recognizable and memorable.
- Consistency – a strong brand identity is consistent across all touchpoints, including marketing materials and online presence, such as websites, portals, apps.
- Distinction – It helps a brand stand out from competitors and create a unique brand image.
For more on McMahon and our Strategic Plan, please read The Villager article here.
Questions? Please contact the General Manager’s office by emailing Theresa Ostrander at tostrander@the-villages.com or by calling the team at 408-223-4634.
