Our work

• We make it personal for AON Insurance

  We make it personal for AON Insurance

  
  Aon is the world’s largest insurance brokers you’ve probably never heard of! So our task was to help build brand awareness in the UK.
  
  Their brand guidelines were created primarily for the US market and our challenge was to reconsider their proposition, brand strategy and brand expression appropriate for a UK b2b audience.
  
  Working with Aon we identified four primary audiences; Enterprise (tradespeople), Partner (medium size businesses), Corporate (multinational) and High Net Worth (individuals with assets of over one £million). We created branded content relevant to each of these audiences – determining type of images, appropriate colour palettes and tone of voice.
  
  For each of these audiences and based on market research, we have written and designed integrated campaigns including direct marketing, digital marketing, sales brochures, above the line press and online advertising from licensed trade insurance to Fleet Rental insurance to insurance for High Net Worth individuals.
  
  All assuringly on time and on brand.
  
  Keeping Aon front of mind.
  

  Aon B2B Marketing Communications

  Marketing communications, advertising & direct mail

• People don't trust organisations. They trust people.

  People don't trust organisations. They trust people.

  
  In 2011, BP asked us to help them engage employees around their corporate values.
  Getting all 80,000 people to feel proud of their organisation is never easy. On the back of one of the most public crises in recent years you would think it was a tough gig.
  
  But here’s the thing: the expertise and dedication of the vast majority of BP individuals hadn’t changed overnight. BP people on the ground were as committed as ever. Their expertise, professionalism and long service were things the whole company could still be hugely proud of.
  
  We created a framework for a new campaign that put BP's great people at the heart of all their employee communications. We celebrated their work, their faces and their stories. And for the first time we shot individuals looking straight at the camera, explaining why they – and everyone at BP – should be proud of what BP people do.
  
  The concept and photographic style behind 'We are BP' campaign has been adopted for other BP employee engagement campaigns around the world.
  

  Helping BP with their global employee engagement challenge

  Employee communications

• Smile and the world smiles with you

  Smile and the world smiles with you

  
  The people at British Gas do sterling work. After all, their engineers are trusted to look after our boilers; when the cold snap hits they’re looking out for our pipes; and it’s their job to keep the gas flowing into millions of homes.
  
  So, when we were asked to help British Gas increase the number of 'thank yous' happening inside the business we jumped at the chance.
  
  British Gas already had an informal recognition programme in place with managers awarding 100  'thank yous' each month. We got that up to 1000.
  
  The system we inherited allowed British Gas managers to give staff a thank you and a £50 reward. We felt that a thank you should be a powerful thing in its own right, so we were asked to deliver a campaign that didn’t require that £50 reward.
  
  We did that with a smile and in the words of our client, "We wanted a campaign that stood out from everything else we were doing, but we didn't want to create more noise. It needed a simple call to action that would put people on the front foot and get employees thanking one another for the things that matter. We decided that the Simply Thank you campaign would do that. Sure enough, it worked." Annette Ware
  

  British Gas Employee Engagement Programme

  Employee communications

• Convincing customers to switch from Windows or Mac OS X to Ubuntu

  Convincing customers to switch from Windows or Mac OS X to Ubuntu

  
  Canonical – curators of the Ubuntu project – is building an operating system in direct competition with Microsoft Windows and Apple Mac OS X, and the potential audience includes, conceivably, everyone on the planet. Figuring out how to appeal to new users was one thing; making sure existing users aren’t left behind is another. Part of our role was helping Canonical to identify the appropriate audience for each project, and defining the messaging that is most likely to drive adoption.
  
  At the heart of the challenge is a single question; how can we convince customers to switch from Windows or Mac OS X to Ubuntu? These user bases are deeply entrenched, and the vast majority of computer users have invested considerable time getting to know their existing platforms.
  
  We used language and visuals which at the same time not only reassured new users – by showing Ubuntu handling everyday tasks, such as handling spreadsheets and playing music – but also make existing users proud – by maintaining the highest possible standard of design principles. We’ve brought the Ubuntu brand to life through the creation of showreels, applications for photos and music, and most recently the Ubuntu startup animation, with more to come.
  
  The Ubuntu project is moving forward at a great pace, with our work being seen across the globe – particularly in emerging markets in China and India.
  

  Bringing the Ubuntu brand to life with Canonical

  Digital experience design, film and animation

• Design & user experience for John Lewis's augmented reality mirror

  Design & user experience for John Lewis's augmented reality mirror

  
  Retailers are always on the lookout for new ways to revitalise their in-store experience and to grab the attention of shoppers. Today, this is increasingly achieved using new and  exciting technologies.
  
  Introducing the StyleMe ™ virtual mirror; an interactive shopping experience that allows customers to browse a curated collection from John Lewis’ website and create a complete outfit. The virtual changing room means shoppers can see how they look in a new outfit without getting undressed, and to quickly experiment with different garments and accessories.
  
  Before StyleMe ™ was ready for the John Lewis shop floor, The Team overhauled the entire design and user experience. Shoppers interact with the StyleMe ™ mirror through a range of gestures, which are recognised by a motion-sensing camera. This new form of interaction meant the experience needed to be carefully engineered to help customers engage with the mirror with confidence and ease.
  
  This fun and intuitive digital shopping experience is available to try now in John Lewis’ flagship store in London before being rolled out across other nationwide stores.
  

  Cisco StyleMe™ Virtual Mirror for John Lewis

  Digital experience design

• A future store experience wherever you want it.

  A future store experience wherever you want it.

  
  Dixons Retail wanted to improve their high street reputation, by creating an innovative and original retail experience for a design-driven user demographic. They asked The Team to design and develop a tactile, interactive, in-store-commerce digital interface (Kiosk and iPad app) and website for a new Future Store concept.
  
  Our challenge was to create a user interface that worked optimally across multiple devices, without compromising the core sales journey, and in very tight timelines.
  
  Using a rapid process of lo-fidelity prototyping, and corridor usability testing, we were able to create a stunning visual language that works seamlessly across all required digital devices that both supports the sales journey and integrates with all Dixons Retail catalogue systems.
  
  We wanted to make the registration process as simple as possible, so leaning on the Facebook Connect authentication system, we gave Facebook users the option of registering with the website with a simple click – as well as utilising the commenting, and events features within the site.
  
  Results
  
  Our solution enhanced the future store experience and brought the Dixons future vision to a wider audience via the web.
  

  Dixons Future Store Digital Design

  Digital Experience Design

• Nowmusic.com website redesign

  Nowmusic.com website redesign

  
  We love NOW! Music & www.nowmusic.com. It’s a bit like the National Trust of pop – 27 years old, over 100 million albums sold and a fond place in all our teenage hearts.
  
  But with the end of Woolies could this pop institution compete against the likes of iTunes and Amazon?
  
  The truth is they had one key advantage: while iTunes is a program and Amazon a warehouse, NOW! Music is a brand. It’s also a brand with a fan base who, after religiously picking up their double CD once a quarter, aren’t all comfortable with the ins and outs of downloading music.
  
  Integrating multiple music sources and payment systems, digital rights management and a personal playlist tool was just one of the complicated parts to the nowmusic website.
  
  So instead of competing with Apple on scale and complexity, we redesigned the www.nowmusic.com website into somewhere playful and fun in keeping with the brand. A place where their less-technical followers could learn how to download music. And above all, a place where people could go for what NOW! Music has always been loved for – brash, loud sing-it-to-your-hairbrush compilations.
  

  NOW! Music website redesign

  Digital experience design

• "A heartfelt thank you, from all of us."

  "A heartfelt thank you, from all of us."

  
  Freedom from Torture is a charity which has been working for 25 years to assist, protect and promote the rights of torture survivors who arrive in the UK.
  
  The Team were asked to create a short video to be sent to supporters of Freedom from Torture, expressing thanks for their generous contributions. The brief was open, the cause great – we jumped at the chance.
  
  The central idea was for staff and clients to communicate their thanks through a simple and universally understood expression: applause. Filmed at several locations in London and Manchester, during breaks in music, art, clinical appointments and horticultural therapy sessions, we created a minute-long film of two-second clips featuring survivors, staff and supporters clapping. As the film progressed, the applause built to a crescendo. The closing titles stated simply:‘Thank you. From all of us.’ Throughout, no words were spoken.
  
  The video was launched on the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture by Freedom From Torture, in order to raise awareness of the charity’s work.
  

  Freedom From Torture charity 'Thank you' video message

  Film and animation

• An instant hit with the school's students. Badda-Bing!

  An instant hit with the school's students. Badda-Bing!

  
  Borough Music School is a local charity, established 15 years ago in the diverse and multicultural London borough of Southwark. The school provides children, aged 8 to 15 years, with comprehensive music education, developing many of the skills needed to participate in the creation of music.
  
  So, how do you engage and inspire local children and families to get involved in music?
  
  Well, involvement in music is a positive, socially uplifting activity. It is universal, across ethnic, economic and social divides. We created a brand to embody the joy, excitement and passion, which children could immediately believe in. Our family of musical characters, the ‘Badda-Bings’, resonated with the students of the school from the start. They represent everything the Borough Music School stands for: creativity, exploration, discovery and most of all, fun!
  

  Borough Music School

  Brand development

• Gas Safe brand development & launch in under six months

  Gas Safe brand development & launch in under six months

  
   - We developed and launched a brand in less than six months.
   - Eight million households were aware of the new Gas Safe brand within two weeks of launch.
  
  When you’re up against the clock you have to be pretty clear what you're trying to achieve.
  
  In 2008 the Health and Safety Executive gave Capita the contract to run the UK's new gas registration scheme to replace CORGI. Capita turned to us for a new national brand – a hallmark for gas safety to be launched to the public in less than six months.
  
  We knew we had to develop a brand with a single-minded focus on gas safety – a mark of authority and a trusted household name.
  
  So we needed a name that was credible to gas engineers and descriptive for the public. We also needed a no-nonsense visual identity for high visibility, with an iconic symbol for vans and ID cards alike. Finally we needed a punchy, unambiguous and campaignable brand message – one to build public awareness of the new register and the importance of why it exists. We set to it and built a brand for the nation.
  
  Three months on and a few late nights later, the Gas Safe Register® was born.
  
   

  Won a Design Business Association Award

  Design Business Association Design Effectiveness Award Winner
  

  Gas Safe brand development and launch in under six months

  Brand development and Marketing communications

• Big changes at the world’s busiest airport - Heathrow Terminal 5

  Big changes at the world’s busiest airport - Heathrow Terminal 5

  
  BAA’s Airline Moves was the most complex airline relocation programme ever undertaken. The opening of Heathrow Terminal 5 triggered a large-scale programme in which over 50 of Heathrow’s 90 airlines carrying millions of passengers moved terminals over a 21-month period.
  
  The Team were asked to develop an Airline Moves internal communications programme to support this process. The campaign consisted of a wide range of printed and online collateral which helped employees of Heathrow and the airlines understand the changes, and convey the correct information to passengers.
  
  The success of the campaign was measured by several factors, including:
  • BAA was not fined for any delays in flights being relocated
  • All moves were completed without disruption to other operations
  • No flights were affected following overnight airline relocations.
  
  Results
  
  100% of staff knew what to do on Day 1, delivering a seamless experience to passengers.

  Design Effectiveness Award Winner for Internal Communications

  DBA Design Effectiveness Award Winner
  

  Big changes at the world’s busiest airport.

  Employee communications

• 'Moments worth paying' for digital, print and cinema campaign

  'Moments worth paying' for digital, print and cinema campaign

  
  For a lot of young people, illegal downloading is pretty much standard fare, and it's pushing the TV and film industry right to the edge. It’s the job of the Industry Trust to try and stem this tide. But is there seriously anything they can do?
  
  Well yes, we said.
  
  Start talking positively.
  
  You see, while "illegality" isn’t really a concept young people appreciate, they do have a clear sense of things being right or wrong. If the Industry Trust could win young hearts and minds over to the idea that film and TV has a positive value, they could make paying for what you watch not just legal, but the right thing to do.
  
  To get that message across we turned the camera onto the viewers. We brought to life the brilliant, precious moments of emotion that film and TV can evoke. We asked a simple but evocative question to get people really thinking. Then pointed them to an easy way to download films. The right way.
  
  Results
  

  
  
  • After six months, research showed that 16 to 34-year-old men who had seen the campaign were 50% more likely to consider film and TV worth paying for than those who hadn’t.
  
  

  Won the Initiative of the Year Award from the British Video Association in 2012.

  British Video Association Initiative of the Year
  

  Industry Trust digital, print and cinema campaign

  Marketing communications and Digital experience design

• 41,000 employees, 36 countries, one award-winning intranet for Logica

  41,000 employees, 36 countries, one award-winning intranet for Logica

  
  In 2009 Logica asked The Team to help them design their new global intranet.
  
  The bottom line is an intranet has to provide people with easy access to the
  stuff they need in order to work effectively. No matter what other bells and
  whistles it has, that’s its number one job.
  
  So the first thing we did was ask Logica people around the world exactly
  what they’d like their intranet to provide. Working closely with Logica’s
  internal teams we turned these insights into customer journeys, and used
  these customer journeys to create new designs.
  
  The result is an intranet that brings together 41,000 employees from 36
  countries into one central place – a shared workspace where Logica’s global
  teams can work together, a great example of their new ‘One Logica’ strategy,
  and a great platform on which to grow.
  
  Results
  

  
  
  • Logica's new intranet was voted a ‘top ten intranet of 2012’ in
    Nielsen Norman Group’s annual intranet design awards.
  
  
  • The intranet was so successful we’re now developing a mobile version,
    adapted specially to the needs of Logica’s consultants on the move.
  
  

  Voted a ‘top ten intranet of 2012’ in Nielsen Norman Group’s annual intranet design awards

  DBA Design Effectiveness
  Award Winner
  

  We designed one of the world's top 10 intranets for Logica

  Employee communications and Digital experience design

• Superhuman employee engagement

  Superhuman employee engagement

  
  M&S are one of the best companies around when it comes to thinking about the environment. But even for them, engaging 75,000 employees in over 600 shops to think about energy saving was going to be a struggle. And getting people to change their everyday behaviour was going to be even harder.
  
  So how did we go about it?
  

  The first step was to get people’s attention by injecting a bit of fun and colour into the subject. Fun and colour – along with a mask, a cape and pants on the outside.

  
  The next step was to back up our new energy superhero with practical, personal information to inform and enable change. We created websites, stickers and easy-to-understand ‘routine maps’ to show people how they could save energy day to day.
  
  A serious issue, solved with a light-hearted touch.
  
  Results
  

  
  
  • Since the campaign was launch, store energy efficiency has improved by 19%.
  
  

  
  Read our Captain Energy blog post here
  

  Engaging 75,000 M&S employees to think about energy saving

  Employee communications

• “ Building a single, consistent, clear and confident brand.”

  “ Building a single, consistent, clear and confident brand.”

  
  Our work with the Metropolitan Police touches 50,000 officers and staff protecting 7.2 million people across the capital.
  
  And it has included many initiatives, events and campaigns both internally and externally for the force. From Stevens to Blair with a new leadership style and philosophy on ‘Working together for a safer London’ we took the opportunity to rationalise hundreds of logos, images and campaigns under one brand across all touch points.
  
  Internally and externally, we refined the brand architecture with a focus on One Met which included Safer Neighbourhoods, Operation Bumblebee, Trident, me+ and New Scotland Yard. This helped to build trust and change staff behaviour through the consolidated brand, both physically through the large estate of stations in addition to online and in print.
  
  But research told us that the Met brand lacked a sense of place and that the iconic New Scotland Yard logo sign, recognised for excellence in policing the world over, should be built into the Met’s identity.
  
  With this in mind, we evolved the brand look and feel. Based on the angle of the revolving sign outside New Scotland Yard, we refreshed the brand guidelines to create a more modern and dynamic visual identity.
  

  Metropolitan Police Service Communications

  Brand Communications

• 'I didn’t see myself as a carer.'

  'I didn’t see myself as a carer.'

  
  Looking after a loved one takes devotion and dedication. It’s demanding and carers often find themselves struggling, too. That’s why Carers Direct was set up – to help unpaid carers cope.
  
  Our job was to encourage people to use this online and telephone service.
  
  A straightforward informational campaign for carers, right?
  
  Not exactly. Our research found that many of the people this service was designed for didn’t see themselves as carers at all. They felt they were just looking after a loved one or friend.
  
  It meant our job was also to ensure these people realised that help was at hand. So we created an emotional trigger to encourage people to reach out for the first time. A simple, evocative question to show them they were entitled to ask for support, and that Carers Direct was there to give it.
  
  Results
  

  
  
  • In the immediate aftermath to the campaign, calls to Carers Direct increased by 210%.
  
  
  • Visits to the Carers Direct website increased by 142%.
  
  
  

  NHS Carers Direct

  Citizen engagement

• NHS Pregnancy Planner App Aggregating Pregnancy Advice

  NHS Pregnancy Planner App Aggregating Pregnancy Advice

  
  NHS Choices is the UK’s online health-information service. And as their strategic partner they asked us to help promote the pregnancy part of their site.
  
  In tandem with an integrated online campaign we created a desktop app that aggregated pregnancy advice from the whole of the NHS site into a week-by-week planner. It also included a ‘behind the headlines’ editorial section responding directly to pregnancy myths in the media. Something helpful, objective and trusted. And a far more effective marketing tool than any catchy headline.
  
  It didn’t take much digging to see that Mums-to-be are wary of information that feels advertised to them. They also don’t want rafts of information to sift through.
  
  Instead they want a trusted source to tell them what’s right and what’s rumour – and what they should be thinking about week by week.
  
  Who could do that best? The NHS.
  
  Results
  

  
  
  • After the campaign we saw a 38% increase in the number of pregnant women visiting the Pregnancy Care Planner section of NHS Choices.
  
  
  • 2,369 new mothers and mums-to-be are downloading the app every month.
  
  
  

  NHS Pregnancy Planner App

  Digital experience design

• In just three months the charity's rebrand paid for itself

  In just three months the charity's rebrand paid for itself

  
  What many people don't realise is that 1 out of every 20 people diagnosed with Parkinson's are actually under 40. When you hear their stories you realise a life with Parkinson's can be a very active and full one indeed. Which is why stereotypes can be frustrating. As one person living with Parkinson’s told us: ‘We don’t all shake, we’re not all old’.
  
  Inspired by this truth we turned the Parkinson’s Disease Society from a passive support charity into an active brand campaigning not just for a cure but also against the misconceptions surrounding Parkinson's.
  
  We gave it a modern, inclusive new name, a provocative visual identity and a powerful call-to-action.
  
  Most of all we involved people in the brand – giving individuals the means to communicate what it’s really like to live with Parkinson's, and turning Parkinson's UK into a movement that everyone could be part of.
  
  Results
  

  
  
  • In just three months the 12-month rebrand paid for itself through unsolicited donations.
  
  
  • Parkinson's UK went on to be named Charity Times Charity of the Year 2011.
  
  

  Won a Design Business Association Award in 2011.

  Design Business Association Design Effectiveness Award Winner
  

  Rebranding Parkinsons UK charity into an active brand

  Brand Development

• Entrepreneurs are not born they’re made.

  Entrepreneurs are not born they’re made.

  
  The Peter Jones Enterprise Academy website targets a wide range of audiences and stakeholders as well as future entrepreneurs. The design and tone of the site had to cater for partners, potential investors, parents and the current students.
  
  The Team was asked to design and develop a new site to replace the previously named National Enterprise Academy. The challenge was not only to gather as many sign-ups to the BTEC course as possible, while minimising the barrier to entry, but also to push the  ownership on to the colleges, minimising the potentially high levels of admin put on to Peter Jones’ team.
  
  We held a number of workshops with Peter Jones and his team to gain insight into the courses on offer and the colleges who ran them. We realised that the college was just as important as the course and so made it really easy to find your nearest college running the Peter Jones BTEC, using our interactive map functionality. We also designed a form requiring minimal details to encourage maximum sign-up levels.
  
  Results
  
  Launched in July 2011 the academy had an immediate peak with 53 potential entrepreneurs signing up on day one.
  

  Peter Jones Digital Experience Design

  Digital Experience Design

• Where the normal rules don’t apply.

  Where the normal rules don’t apply.

  
  Members-only brand websites are becoming all the more familiar. Shoppers are eagerly visiting these new places where they can get a bargain from their favourite fashion and  lifestyle brands. Customers of these sites are time-poor, looking to get that lunchtime fix. They must see what they want quickly, in order to make a purchase. Our challenge was to re-engage the trust of their existing members by providing a better experience to find the brands that they love.
  
  In conducting user research we discovered key insights and motivations for how and why people use members-only ecommerce websites. By listening closely to the users of these sites we were able to create an experience that is more engaging for their existing members and more attractive and informative for those looking to sign up.
  
  The new Secret Sales website now provides an improved information scent, offering a more streamlined and efficient service. It’s easier to search by product or brand, increasing the conversion of browser to buyer.
  
  “We received a excellent level of service and the detailed user experience discussions helped us achieve both a high degree of sophistication and functionality.” Chief Executive Officer Secretsales.com
  
  Results
  
  Following the success of the re-design, Secretsales.com have received a £6 million investment, which will allow them to further expand all areas of the business.
  

  Secret Sales website design

  Digital Experience Design

• “ When I hit rock bottom you were there for me...”

  “ When I hit rock bottom you were there for me...”

  
  1886 saw John Pemberton launch Coca-Cola and Josephine Cochran the dishwasher. It also saw the establishment of the Civil Service Benevolent Fund. Civil servants, the backbone of the British Empire, were almost exclusively men and the fund was to support their widows and orphans in event of their untimely demise.
  
  Times have changed, as have the services of the fund. Three-quarters of those working in England’s civil service earn under £25,000, a far cry from the perceptions of civil servants conjured up by the likes of Sir Humphrey Appleby of ‘Yes Minister’ notoriety.
  
  Our role was to make the charity relevant to a modern day civil service. Some 500,000 civil servants are employed from border control, to tax collection, to JobCentre Plus, to Whitehall, many of whom aren’t even aware they can both support and get support from this vital charity. The charity relies almost exclusively on civil servants’ donations, and offers lifelong support for civil servants and their families in the event of difficult times. A new brand, a more helpful name, The Charity for Civil Servants, a compelling strapline of ‘For you, by you’, and a bright new identity sum up the supportive proposition.
  
  Results
  
  “There has been a 41% increase in the number of people visiting our Apply for Help page in the month immediately following the launch of the rebrand.”
  

  The Charity for Civil Servants

  Brand Development

• “We’re into Nation Branding.”

  “We’re into Nation Branding.”

  
  So who do you turn to when you want to create a campaign to promote the UK overseas? Well…
  
  With our unrivalled experience and UKTI brand expertise we created ‘GO UK‘ – a campaign brand to effectively sell the UK as the ultimate partner and springboard for world trade and investment.
  
  The target? An increasingly discerning overseas business audience in the US, France,  Germany, China, India and the UAE.
  
  Our approach? To convey the energy, dynamism and diversity of the UK, focusing on what it
  offers today as a place to launch your business.
  
  ‘GO UK’ is a campaign brand message and call-to-action in one powerful package. Designed to be iconic, our approach provides a creative platform flexible enough for multiple executions, for example low carbon sustainability and biosciences, and iconic enough to avoid translation.
  
  Our guiding principle? To develop a straightforward approach that can extend into multiple markets and promote multiple messages whilst retaining a single campaignable approach that “sells” the UK abroad.
  
  GO UK was launched by the Prime Minister as a keynote presentation at a global trade conference hosted at the Saatchi Gallery, London.

  DBA Design Effectiveness Award
  

  UKTI Go UK Brand Communications

  Brand Communications