Brand Case Study — Commission for Behavioral Health
Helping an innovative state mental health agency rebrand and set the stage for the future.
How it started
A history of transformational change
California is a remarkable and innovative state (and it’s where Program 11 is headquartered!), but nearly one in five Californians are facing an unmet mental health need – a problem our state must solve in order to protect our future.
Multiple programs and organizations exist in California to tackle the solution, but one agency, The Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission is at the center. They work to drive transformational change across the entire state’s mental health system – the people, the organizations, and the legislators.
Moving forward with behavioral health
In 2024, the Governor called to evolve California’s approach from “mental health” to “behavioral health,” meaning that our longtime client could revisit their mouthful of a name, and explore a brand repositioning and identity evolution.
This was also an exciting opportunity for our client to better understand its relationships to its consumers, and deliver a better brand experience as a result.
What we did
Capturing optimism and innovation
Program 11 believed that the new brand needed to convey the innovation and forward-looking optimism of the agency while acknowledging the agency’s history, and set out to capture what truly mattered to those who interacted most often with its information and services.
We took a deep dive into existing materials, including past archetype work, brand guides, and internal messaging. We also conducted a series of interviews to gain insights into how the brand should evolve.
From our discovery, we fine-tuned audience segments. We clarified who the agency was truly speaking to, what those audiences needed, and how they experienced the brand’s communications.
Our a-ha moment?
That although the agency’s work ultimately reaches ALL Californians, the primary audience is policymakers, because they are the key drivers of legislative change and resource allocation.
We were able to then define secondary audiences –partners and providers whose work translated policies into real-world impacts, and the public, as they are both the recipients of the services and an essential voice in shaping how those services are designed and delivered.
A winning new name
We ideated multiple name options, conducted a naming impact study, then presented a bevy of new names and associated taglines that would best emotionally connect with the agency’s primary audiences. The winner: Commission for Behavioral Health. It’s simple, memorable, and offers a more purposeful combination of commission and behavioral health thanks to the “for.” It’s powerful to be for something, in this case, behavioral health for all Californians.
How it’s going
New year, new brand
We brought the brand evolution to life with a comprehensive brand guide, covering everything from visuals and messaging to audience engagement strategies, and now the brand is embraced and shared by the CBH to the audiences it serves.
Over the last five years, Program 11 had built a relationship with the CBH team and recognize the passion and meaning in their mission. We wanted policymakers and the public to also see and understand the CBH’s commitment to transformational change.
By prioritizing transparency and collaboration, we successfully reflected the ethos of CBH. We brought Commissioners along in the brand evolution process, ensuring alignment at every step. Those involved felt heard, and the final brand evolution reflected both CBH’s legacy and its future vision.
The launch, executed on time in January, marked a seamless transition, with internal teams equipped with the tools and messaging they needed to confidently represent the brand.
