How brave are you?
Let's face it, most of us like to play it safe with the big decisions. We may be a little more adventurous when choosing where to eat or deciding on a new pair of trainers, but we will often go with what we know when it comes to work-related decisions. Or at least what we think is expected. There’s less risk that way, right?
But when clients do take a leap of faith with their creative agency and brief them to zag – and not zig as the saying goes – they get noticed. And what business doesn’t need to be noticed?
From a brand design perspective, standing out from the crowd can take many forms, but will often involve adopting colours, typography, imagery and a tone of voice that is not typical of a particular sector.
We've picked out 3 brands that do just that, and highlight what makes them different, and in all cases, successful as a result.
Otta
Recruitment companies tend to follow several rules when it comes to their visual appearance. There will almost certainly be a palette of blues, plenty of stock images, and some pretty dry language. Overall, a pretty functional experience. Oh, and the 'we're passionate about people' statement that will no doubt appear somewhere too. All much of a muchness.
So when a brand like Otta announces itself on the jobs market stage, it's no wonder people sit up and take notice. Their unique approach to recruitment – tailoring recommendations according to what candidates are actually looking for, positioning themselves as a "career champion" in a sector dominated by "jobs-by-numbers" – is matched by a unique approach to their branding. Bold colour, expressive typography, and striking graphic shapes all come together to create a visual identity that's not going unnoticed.
Ragged Edge, the agency responsible for creating their brand, focussed on the idea of amplifying the candidate. This idea of amplification visually manifests itself in the logo, with the wordmark being stretched out like the funnel of a loudspeaker. From the identity and launch campaign to the product experience, Otta invites candidates to amplify themselves.
The identity also features a set of 3D symbols (the shapes that appear across their advertising) that reflect a warm and lovely experience while feeling expressive and exaggerated. Pretty much the antithesis of their corporate competition. As is their tone of voice - headlines like ‘Your calling is calling' and 'The only job search that does you justice' deliver a sense of confidence coupled with a little warmth and wit.
Overall, the identity succeeds in reflecting the offering of a clear alternative to their more corporate competition and communicating the sense of happiness and fulfilment that can be achieved by finding the right job. And there’s not a stock image in sight.
Ace & Tate
By and large, the eyewear industry can fall into one of two categories - staid and old-fashioned, or polished and high-fashion. Ace & Tate and their creative director Ruud de Bruin saw an opportunity to do something that stood out. Something bold, exciting and optimistic.
They have created a distinct, confident look and feel that runs through everything they do. Sure, Ace & Tate have a younger audience, and many of the more traditional opticians look to appeal to a broader demographic. However, they could have still followed the usual visual cues that are all too often familiar in this sector. The brand, de Bruin says, has never been dictated by what is expected of the eyewear market. "We just do the things that we like, and it fits within a younger demographic that's very different than your traditional high street retailers."
There are a number of different facets to this 'different brand'. The photography feels more like something from ID magazine than the high street, with carefully cast models and simple yet striking art direction. Even the still-life product shots have a freshness to them.
Then there's their approach to their bricks and mortar retail offering. Every store is unique. Opening around 30 stores a year, this is no mean feat. So they achieve this by collaborating with other creatives. As a result, each of their stores feels interesting, exciting and different. And the really remarkable thing is that with their pop-up aesthetic, they're able to fit out their stores in a responsible way while still giving them the flexibility to evolve and modify it as they require.
Their stores also feature bespoke art installations, such as the one below by Eike Konig, for their Frankfurt store. This not only enables them to create unique environments, but it also helps the brand to create a greater connection within their local community.
Finally theirs the playful tone of voice that pervades every touchpoint, from in-store displays to promotional activity. The line' Try this on for size' sits above a series of frames in-store, while their website is peppered with catchy sub-headers such as 'Let your eyes do the talking' and 'Still waiting to be filled with the good stuff' in the empty shopping cart.
Farewill
Farewell, a technology-led Will writing service, introduced their refreshed brand identity in 2020. The primary objective of this repositioning was to help people feel 'less anxious around death' and create a more distinct and ownable identity that really stood out.
Take a cursory look online, and you'll notice immediately that this particular sector is awash with blues and pastel tones, stock images featuring overly smiley families and retired couples outdoors, and plenty of functional copy with little emotion.
On the other hand, Farewell has managed to create a friendly, approachable brand that avoids all of these obvious visual tropes. Instead, they introduced a distinct illustrative style (no more contrived happy hiker images), a paired back soft yellow and white colour palette, and a warm and friendly tone of voice.
The introduction of illustration not only provides a refreshing change from the rest of the category but helps to introduce a world that is warm, friendly and non-threatening. 'Blob', the main Farewell mascot, is supported by a tortoise and a cat. The animals were carefully chosen to act as metaphors for time (the prehistoric aesthetic of a tortoise and the nine lives of a cat) to make us feel that life is precious.
The tone of voice also helps to create a more engaging and memorable brand. The language used works hard to achieve the right balance between breaking down taboos and taking people seriously. And between 'friendly warmth' and 'legal professionalism.'
Ultimately, as the above case studies illustrate, if you have a business that you want to get noticed, you're far more likely to do this by not following the competition when it comes to your brand identity.
If you're looking to create an identity for your new business or organisation and don't want to end up with another 'Me-too' brand, get in touch today. Together we can do something that will get your product or service noticed.
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