From the offset it was clear that Creative Spark shared our morals, energy and enthusiasm for Humankind, they took their time and got to know us from the inside out, understanding our goals and aspirations, becoming engrained in our business as well as learning about us on a personal level.
This enabled Creative Spark to tap into the make-up of us as people and created what was initially only a feeling of an authentic concept and transferred that into something tangible. It’s clear that Creative Spark shares our ambitions and are as passionate about our brand as we are.
And we are just as passionate about the work that Creative Spark does. This process has built what we believe to be a partnership for the long term, we understand each other and will continue to share expertise and help each other progress at every opportunity well into the future.
Humankind
A human approach
When we were approached to position and create the visual and verbal identity for a new global recruitment consultancy - we jumped at the chance.
This was an opportunity to work with a highly driven and ambitious team of experts, who really wanted to stand out and do things differently. The team knew exactly what they wanted to say to the world, and our first task was to help them articulate this.
So how could we tell the story of their expansive, global client list, spanning countries and continents but still reflect their Manchester heritage. And how could we successfully portray that their core passion was in forging genuine partnerships and unbreakable bonds with people?
Following a robust strategic process, everyone was united behind one core proposition: Global outlook. Personal impact.
- Brand
- Strategy
- Tone of Voice
This positioning was about being the world’s most personal recruitment consultants. It subtly referenced their impressive international database and global mindset, whilst enhancing their emotionally intelligent, human side. Insightful, connected, curious, dependable and relatable people, working together to make the recruitment process successful and enjoyable.
With the positioning in place, we needed to define the business with a name. An enormous list of possibilities was created, with one standing out from the start - HUMANKIND.
A stand out name needed a stand out brand, however the recruitment marketplace is vast, standing out isn’t easy. Our creative approach for the visual identity honed in on Humankind’s unique perspective.
Their knowledge across cultural contexts and industries was represented with impactful place and location shots. This was juxtaposed with stylish imagery of people - the people and relationships that sit at the heart of Humankind. We also tailored the letter K to represent kindness and empathy.We utilised the initial H to carve out a graphic system that would enable intriguing compositions of image, text and colour.
This agile H could slide and change shape with ease, adapting to various formats and content. It provided a strong unity across comms that was true to the Humankind brand, whilst not being remotely static or restrictive.
Tone of voice is a crucial part of a cohesive and effective brand. The tone of voice for Humankind was anchored firmly in the core proposition and informed by the brand’s characteristics - Insightful. Connected. Curious. Dependable. Relatable.
We created guidance and structure, building on these characteristics to create principles that would inform how the brand should sound when communicating - both internally and externally. These principles were strengthened with a manifesto and a suite of impactful headlines - ready for use.
The Humankind brand launched in January 2024 and the business is already expanding into new regions, engaging with new teams.
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