Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce
CHALLENGE
To reposition, rebrand and effectively market the organisation.
Background
With a strong partnership firmly established, Ayrshire Chamber commissioned Ocean to undertake its most extensive marketing project to date as it sought to research and reposition its brand, increase uptake of its key products and services, and attract new members to the organisation.
We Delivered
Market research
Brand development
Strategic marketing
Campaign planning
Advertising
Folders & inserts
Postcards
Copywriting
Web design & restructure
Exhibition stands
HOW WE DID IT
Market research & brand development
We began by undertaking research via telephone interviews with Chamber members to determine current perception of the organisation and awareness of its key products and events.
From here, based on the core values of Trust, Passion, Integrity and Impartial, we repositioned the Chamber’s brand to reflect a personality which was:
Approachable – friendly, helpful, accommodating
Positive – lively, talkative, happy, energetic
Connected – knowledgeable
Determined – enterprising
Professional
Design & print
Having produced a detailed marketing strategy to deliver on the agreed business objectives, the creative process now began in earnest. Using shapes from the existing Chamber logo as a basis, we created a dynamic, approachable and more youthful look, multiplying and linking circles to represent membership and project a vibrant, exciting organisation.
We then created micro advertising campaigns, themed to the new chamber brand, to raise awareness and increase uptake of key Chamber products: HR Services, Legal Services, Merchant Services, Employee Health Plans, Private Medical Insurance and Refer A Friend Scheme.
The campaign for each included magazine advertising, postcard direct mail and a website page. Written in a new friendlier, energetic and upbeat tone of voice, the campaigns also aimed to raise the profile of the Chamber as a whole and increase awareness of its dynamic new image.
Inserts for each of the products were also designed, together with a corporate folder. Based on the new colourful brand, the folder was designed to reflect an injection of energy into local businesses, together with the diversity of the business sectors. The bright and vibrant folders were printed on a hi gloss board and gloss laminated to achieve the optimum colour from the print process. Similarly the inserts were printed on a hi gloss art paper to match.
Advertising
The next challenge was to create a series of corporate advertisements aimed at attracting new members, while also playing on the idea of ‘It’s in to be in the Chamber’. Reflecting the repositioning of the Chamber and its new brand personality, the ads had to be exciting, appealing and engaging.
Featuring fun, sexy and stimulating images, together with the strapline ‘Make it your business’, the ads aimed to Stimulate, Challenge, Provoke and Tantalise, representing how the Chamber works with its membership, local authorities and enterprise companies.
Website
Our key task was to redesign the Chamber site to incorporate the new brand, but we also wanted to create a striking looking website that was easy to navigate and complete calls to action. Used regularly by members, the site acts as a sign post for a whole range of information, from events and news, to new services and business information, while also selling Chamber membership, events and services.
Using HTML5 and jQuery technology, we completely redesigned the structure and navigation, including:
incorporating a user friendly interface
creating effects such as a Slider menu on the home page
setting the most important information clearly at the top of each page, with the rest laid out in easy to absorb sections
employing clear and easy to read navigation
making good use of social media with areas for Twitter and Flickr
laying out branded email templates in a logical, easy to read way with a clear call to action
seamlessly integrating our CSS & HTML5 template into the Chamber’s existing Content Management System.
Outcome
“The rebranding and new, youthful look which Ocean created for us has been hugely successful. We now truly reflect an energetic and dynamic organisation at the heart of a lively business community. Far removed from a typical ‘Chamber image’, our materials and resources are vibrant and bright, yet clean and uncluttered. They have been extremely well received by existing and new members, as well as much admired by other Chambers throughout the UK.”
Val Russell, Chief Executive