PAIRS 2010: Curriculum, Training, Branding and Strategies for Increased Impact & Contribution

Seth Eisenberg
President & CEO
PAIRS Foundation

I’m delighted to write with important information about PAIRS Foundation‘s research, curriculum, logo and branding strategies being implemented at the beginning of the new year.

For much of the past quarter century, PAIRS programs for the public, trainings for professionals, and teaching materials were represented by a logo that included the word PAIRS illustrated with two “i”s in the center, appearing to look at one another. Historic documents filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office show the original application from PAIRS Foundation for the longstanding PAIRS logo published on March 17, 1987 with the assigned Serial Number 73/626,810. Beginning next month, PAIRS Foundation and PAIRS programs for the public and professionals will be represented by a new logo.

Much has changed in the field of relationship skills education since Virginia Satir first launched PAIRS Foundation in the early 1980’s. Over this period, PAIRS evolved from a semester-long therapeutic model facilitated primarily by licensed marriage and family therapists to a psycho-educational program led by counselors, health care professionals and clergy, to its present form as one of the world’s leading, intensive educational technologies for promoting healthy interpersonal relationships. Over the course of this evolution, PAIRS impact has also grown exponentially. Today, PAIRS brief programs such as PAIRS Essentials and PAIRS for LIFE regularly touch the lives of thousands of diverse participants worldwide.

In October 2006, PAIRS Foundation launched an exhaustive, multi-year evaluation to study the impact of brief, intensive programs on couples and singles in all stages of relationship. Our ongoing research includes a pool of nearly 5,000 participants representing diverse ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic backgrounds. Among other things, the evaluation process has involved carefully studying the components and sequences in PAIRS that produce sustainable relationship breakthroughs, especially for participants who begin the program at the lowest levels of relationship cohesion, satisfaction and pleasure. As a result of invaluable lessons learned through these activities, PAIRS Foundation has refined and updated teaching and training materials, alumni programs, marketing approaches, recruitment and retention activities, and quality management processes to assure we consistently deliver the world’s premier relationship skills training programs to participants in every PAIRS workshop.

Our efforts continue to result in the highest levels of client satisfaction and retention in multi-lingual classes delivered to increasingly large audiences — including retreats and intensives for as many as 200 – 300 participants at a time — with research validated results showing a significant lasting impact. Quite simply, PAIRS works!

Throughout this period, we’ve developed effective models for dramatically expanding the contribution of relationship skills education. We’ve also thoughtfully examined and tackled barriers to participation that must be overcome to achieve meaningful breakthroughs in our collective impact.

As we begin the second decade of the new millennium, we’re excited about the enormous opportunities to continue expanding our contributions to couples, families, communities and organizations across the globe. Our efforts include relaunching PAIRS brief programs (9 – 30 hours) and PAIRS Foundation itself under a unique, new logo and branding strategy influenced by our direct interactions with thousands of participants and extensive feedback provided by instructors, team members, key contributors and stakeholders.

PAIRS new logos feature the concept of the infinity loop that is central to each of our brief programs — the commitment to empowering participants with knowledge and practical skills to create positive cycles of vulnerability, empathy, understanding and love.

Each of our updated  brief programs — significantly influenced in design, presentation and sequencing by lessons learned in our ongoing research — will be individually represented by a program specific logo that incorporates the infinity loop.

We will actively promote these new logos through our website and marketing materials to communicate to the public and professionals the value of these symbols in representing PAIRS research-validated relationship skills education programs.

Beginning January 1, 2010, we will also begin communicating publicly that earlier materials — including participant handbooks, leader guides, and PowerPoint presentations that have not been updated to include the new logos — do not incorporate the lessons learned from our research, training, and quality management processes and should be considered obsolete.

Currently licensed PAIRS instructors will have access to updated promotional materials, handbooks, leader guides, and PowerPoint presentations via our online shopping cart as of January 1, 2010. Licensees who have incorporated the PAIRS logo into their websites, business cards, letterhead or other promotional materials should contact the PAIRS office promptly for guidance and guidelines to update materials to include the new trademarked logo from the beginning of the new year.

Along with the new logos, our marketing materials will also prominently feature the tagline: Redefining Relationships. Licensed instructors will be invited to join us for a complimentary webinar in early January to learn more about marketing activities designed to build upon this message.

2010 will undoubtedly be a year of remarkable growth and impact for the field of relationship skills education. PAIRS Foundation’s team remains inspired by the lessons learned, meaningful validation of our collective efforts, and enormous opportunities for contribution to the lives of couples, families, children and communities.

To each of you who give so much of your own passion, talents, and resources to advance our vision for a safer, saner, more loving world, we are deeply grateful.

Seth Eisenberg is President & CEO of PAIRS Foundation. He can be reached by e-mail to seth.eisenberg@pairs.com.