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Third-party Branding and Sponsorship Guidelines

The University of Alabama at Birmingham is a prominent university, academic medical center and health system, the largest single employer in Alabama, and a major economic driver in the state. At times, third-party vendors or community partners that work with UAB ask the institution for an endorsement, sponsorship, permission to co-brand, or utilize UAB branding. UAB has established the below guidelines to outline appropriate and inappropriate use.

All requests must be submitted to Marketing & Communications using the Request for Permission form below. Requests will be reviewed by Marketing & Communications and University Counsel, and Marketing & Communications will communicate the results of the review.

Endorsements

As a public institution that acquires products and services from third-party vendors or contractors under competitive bid laws, UAB is required to follow administrative processes that promote equity, fairness, and transparency. Avoiding an endorsement of specific third party vendors, or a product and/or services offered by them, or the perception of an endorsement, protects both the institution and its employees. As such, it is not appropriate for any UAB employee, school/college, or unit to endorse a product, service, or vendor, or to give the appearance of an endorsement for several reasons:

• UAB and its representatives must avoid favoritism, or the appearance of favoritism, to any vendor and must not undermine the public’s confidence in open bid laws.
• Tying a UAB endorsement, or the perception of an endorsement, to a third-party business in which UAB has no direct control involves risk to the institution’s reputation.
• Promoting vendors is rarely justified by strategic plan priorities and often has little or no benefit to UAB.
• The commitment of time and resources required by UAB and its employees to participate are rarely responsible, appropriate use of public/state resources.

Note: Due to the unique nature of college athletics, endorsements and sponsorships are common and may be permitted through individual contract terms, but must be negotiated between UAB Athletics, University Counsel, and third parties.

UAB faculty and staff should attempt to be brand/vendor agnostic as much as possible, with limited exceptions. This guidance does not discourage UAB faculty and staff from:

• Promoting an entity/vendor/affiliate/technology that directly benefits UAB (e.g. a UAB spin-off company, UAB research, technology related to intellectual property owned by UAB, an established affiliate organization of UAB, etc.), or an entity/vendor/affiliate/technology that has a tangible business connection that directly benefits UAB beyond a contractual vendor/client relationship.
• Mentioning a third-party entity/vendor/affiliate/technology in presenting research and work product in many settings (e.g. peer-reviewed, published work, poster presentations, clinical trial findings, etc.).

Use of UAB Logos + Trademarks

UAB has invested substantial resources to grow and protect its brand, including contracting a collegiate licensing partner, and registering numerous design and word marks through the United States Patent and Trademark Office. As such, any use of UAB brand assets on third-party vendor materials (e.g. print, digital, apparel, etc.) must first be reviewed and approved by University Relations.

UAB allows–under certain circumstances –vendors to display the UAB name and/or logo identifying UAB as a “customer” or “client”. When UAB has entered a contract with a third party, the vendor is permitted to display the university name and/or logo (shown below, available online) on said third party’s website, only as a listing of current customers or clients, and only throughout the duration of the contract. UAB should never be depicted as endorsing the third party (e.g. “preferred by,” “trusted by,” “partner(s)”, etc.).

Case Studies, Testimonials, and Sponsorships

UAB strongly recommends against participating in vendor testimonials. Participating in testimonials and promoting vendors is rarely justified by strategic plan priorities and often has little or no benefit to UAB. Before considering participation in a vendor testimonial, UAB faculty and staff –as public employees –should be familiar with the following policies:

• UAB Enterprise Conflict of Interest and Conflict of Commitment Policy
• UAB Medicine Policy on Relationships with Industry
• UAB Office of Compliance & Risk Assurance guidance on External Activity

Video Shoots

Vendors and contractors wishing to conduct a photo or video shoot on campus must first obtain University Relations approval. It is recommended that vendors work through their project point-of-contact (e.g. a school, department or service line communications director) to contact University Relations and obtain necessary approvals. Athletics Communications has the authority to approve and oversee shoots specific to athletics and works with University Relations when those shoots occur on campus outside of UAB Athletics venues (e.g. inside academic buildings).

Media Protocols

University Relations recognizes the importance of the news media to an informed public and works with reporters to communicate significant developments, as well as information about our people, operations, and outcomes. We regularly communicate about how our students, faculty, staff, alumni, and supporters are advancing all areas of our mission: education, health care, research, community service and economic development. In addition, Athletics Communications works with news media to communicate information specific to UAB Athletics. The following protocols and guidelines are intended to appropriate interactions with the news media by third-party vendors/contractors wishing to mention UAB or projects/work done with UAB:

Federal Privacy Laws

UAB is obligated by federal laws to protect the privacy of our students and UAB Medicine patients. Faculty and staff should be familiar with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Beyond the law, we ask that faculty and staff be respectful of the privacy of others in the UAB community. These expectations extend to UAB’s third-party vendors and contractors, research or community partners, and those organizations that work with UAB in emergency management/response.

Vendors, Contractors, and Partners

Organizations that do business with or partner with UAB should route any multi-media communications or media materials, and vet planned media outreach/communications plans that involve or mention UAB to University Relations for approval prior to use or contacting the media. UAB faculty and staff should not route a contract for signature by an authorized UAB signatory that requires public communication or publicity without University Relations approval. Vendors, contractors and partners wishing to conduct a photo or video shoot on campus must obtain University Relations approval. It is recommended for vendors to work through their project point-of-contact (e.g. a school, department, or service line communications director) to contact University Relations and obtain necessary approvals.