Source
Being the experts for experts
Source
Being the experts for experts
Source, a consultancy for the world’s leading professional services firms, came to us needing a brand that could capture the standing they already had in the boardroom and reflect it to the rest of the world.
Their organisation offers expertise to teams that are already experts. But their objective view and cross-sector experience is highly valuable to their clients. And crucially, that can’t be found in-house. It’s this viewpoint, coupled with a culture built on equality, respect and creativity that’s quite a-typical in the sector, that we identified as Source’s point of difference.
Most professional services companies keep their intellectual property securely locked away behind a paywall. Which means they’re left to lead with big claims full of hyperbole, such as “Global leader in market research”, “We’re the world’s leading consulting firm.”. This provided a clear opportunity for Source to do the opposite; to show the world how they’re different, instead of telling them.
We developed a brand positioning and visual and verbal identity that’s generous and creative with its expertise. Viewpoints, insights and opinions from across the organisation are front and centre across all communications – abundant and full of personality.
In the boardrooms of large consulting firms, many voices shout over each other, trying to be the loudest. The internal culture at Source couldn’t be further from this. Considerate, curious, creative and quietly confident, their people prove that a single, softly spoken voice has the power to diffuse the fight and make people listen. It’s this approach that we needed to capture through the identity.
People-focused photography and creative illustrations are the antidotes to the sea of generic, corporate stock imagery. We developed a portrait style that captures the personality of each person, showing them as experts while being proud of their individuality. And we introduced an illustration style that expertly distils complex ideas and make sense of the intangible – an approach that reflects the benefits their work brings.
Together, the visual styles of this brand make sure it stands out in an industry of sameness.
The collaboration continued past proof-of-concept and guideline development through to web design, writing and implementation. We worked closely with our web partners to plan, create and execute an entirely new site, exactly to our brand vision.
We continue to introduce new employees to the brand, by delivering inductions and supporting them to feel confident using it in their day-to-day work. The aim is that everyone at Source will become an expert in how to present their expert brand to the experts. Did we mention that they’re experts? But of course, you don’t need to be told, you can see it for yourself…
