Show your organisation’s diversity and inclusivity through branding

Establishing a positive brand culture

Being aware of your brand’s diverse makeup within the team, those that you serve, and the public at large is the first step towards ensuring everyone’s needs are heard and met. It establishes a positive culture. But how do you get this messaging out to everyone, these various audiences? Use content, graphics, strategic design layouts, specific font types, colours, illustrations, and infographics. These various visual communications confirm your charity culture in the minds of those that work, support, and need you. It exhibits what you stand for.

The images and content coincide with your pledge for equality and diversity, which, in return, resonates and repeats when posted on digital platforms, social media, print, website content, company intranet, and more. The messages of doing better, being better becomes inseparable from your purpose led organisation’s name.

It also sends a clear message about your organisation or charity. It says that you are a safe place for all to prosper, work, serve, and help. It shows your commitment to shaping a better and brighter future for all.

British Heart Foundation (BHF) takes tangible steps towards creating an inclusive and diverse charity.

The British Heart Foundation is a charity that has taken the above lessons to heart (pun intended). They took a long hard look at themselves and realised they need to do better. They need to change.

In a post by the British Heart Foundation discussing these exact issues and changes, the Chief Executive, Dr Charmaine Griffiths stated, “But we know we cannot tackle inequality without also improving ourselves. We need diversity and inclusion to be more than abstract concepts. We need it embedded in the experience of every person in our BHF team.”

So the British Heart Foundation started making changes. They launched the process by listening to their teams, volunteers, and benefactors. They asked them about their own experiences, feedback, and suggestions. After that, the organisation collected these answers and data to implement ways to improve itself, including hiring outside advisers, supporting professional development for staff, and answering issues regarding racial equity.

Along with this beautiful transition, the British Heart Foundation will now need to unveil these changes through design to their various audiences.

Not every brand knows how to do this but one brand that does, and I have designed a rebrand for, is Chris Lubbe.

Chris Lubbe’s logo, branding, and messaging represents positive change

‘Inspiring hope and courage’

Chris Lubbe’s purpose began in the Eastern Cape of South Africa during high school. Chris was fed up with the prejudice, discrimination, and unjustice present in the apartheid system. So he led his fellow students to protest against it. At that very moment, he realised the power of his voice to make a positive social change, while showing others their purpose too.

From there, Chris continued on an amazing life journey (if you haven’t heard Chris talk then you must go to his next event or book him for your team!). It is filled with courageous and empowering moments and within his life journey, along the way, Chris was Nelson Mandela’s former bodyguard. When Mandela retired, he told Chris to continue to speak out, motivate, inspire and bring change by using his own voice. So that is exactly what Chris does today.

To show these positive, powerful experiences, attributes and moments while remaining true to his story, I created a logo design that is synonymous with his brand ethos.

branding-redesign-chris-lubbe-social-change-diversity-by-Becks-Neale

The above logo was conceived out of the concept of the tiger. It formed a key visual metaphor to connect many of the ideas and heritage into a unified solution, whilst giving a subtle reference to ‘Mandela a tiger of our time’. Simplifying the icon concept into four design elements:

  • the eye; a passion burning bright, the Zulu greeting ‘Sawubona’ meaning ‘I see you’, focus on the individual
  • the three individual stripes; denoting change from the division of apartheid now flowing and growing in the same direction with one focus
  • the blue eye and centre stripe together, form an image of a person with an outstretched arm; highlighting the focus on the individuals talents and inner potential
  • the orange stripe; flame like glow of passion held within each individual, inspiring hope, courage and change

This was then further accented by the graphic styling of the name, echoing the core strength, stripes and Zulu greeting.

Together with his new brand guidelines and logo design assets Chris has been able to consistently update his brand identity across his social media platforms and implement the changes with his web developer to refresh his website.

That is how a branding design helps the world identify your voice as an inclusive, inspiring, powerful, and purpose-led brand. That is how you too can also be remembered and supported by your team, benefactors, volunteers, and the public. Let’s talk about how I can work with you to create an identifiable, unique, symbolic, representative design for your purpose led organisation. Feel free to reach out anytime.

Design to tell your story

 

Image:  Julian Gentilezza | Unsplash

Design: Becks Neale



Becks Neale is a Dorset Designer & Brand Consultant, working alongside charities, community initiatives and purpose-led organisations to achieve a brand they love and live, by distilling their brand story.

Design to tell your story.
becksneale.co.uk

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