Overview
Problem
Approach
Monitronics International, a company offering home security systems, had acquired licensing to do business as Brinks Home and gain better market positioning. Positioning is the core essence behind branding and is the fundamental promise a company can make to their customers. It should motivate everything they say, do and create – it sets an expectation.
For the Brinks Home brand, the expectation our customers have come to expect was a high level of service for their home security. Other home security companies offer very competitive pricing but are not rated as highly for customer satisfaction. Although customers recognize the Brinks name, they would need to have a better understanding of what Brinks Home could offer that the more competitive priced home security companies could not.
The Brinks brand has been a well-known trusted brand for home security in the marketplace for years. Its high level of customer service is by far the best in the industry. However, it could not compete with other top home security companies when it came to pricing. Therefore, the brand needed to position itself appropriately in the marketplace and that required new branding and a new overall brand strategy. Internally, it was also unclear why we exist as a company and where we want to go. We weren’t really understanding how to use our value proposition in the best way. So we needed to embark on a massive rebranding effort. However, the shareholders wanted to accomplish this within 4 months! So we needed to rebrand quickly and seamlessly so that we do not lose market share.
Ensure that our value prop is clear.
Create foundational pillars for our brand that inform everything we do.
Work collaboratively across departments and with our partners.
Business Goals:
Accelerate brand growth
Complete the Rebrand within 4 months
RE-ENVISIONING THE BRINKS BRAND
Our Marketing/Brand team created and leveraged a new Brand Strategy based on business objectives, research, in-house expertise, external partnerships, and a little big of gut and grit. Our small but mighty Creative team worked side by side with HUGE to redesign the Brinks look and feel to ensure that the new branding best represented the Brinks promise of best-in-class service.
Landing a partnership with HUGE, a leading global marketing agency that has worked with such highly recognizable home brands as IKEA and Target, not to mention Nike, Google, Lego, and McDonalds, was a coup in itself. By partnering with HUGE, we were able to quickly and strategically define our brand.
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Positioning: Platinum Grade Protection
Foundational Brand Belief: Our obsession with service builds the trust and confidence to live life without worry.
Personality: Obssesive, Empathetic , Refined, Bold
Strategic Pillars: Next level protection; Committed expertise; Obsessively thoughtful; Rapid response; Ongoing value
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Calm Protector:
Confident and aware, poised to secure your life. They continuously say, “Don’t worry. I got you.”
Our Voice:
Show awareness; Display composure; Express understanding; Communicate certaintyVoice Principles:
We show conscientiousness by speaking with specifics.
We show professionalism by speaking with intention.
We show care by speaking with warmth.
We show trustworthiness by speaking with confidence. -
Logo:
Our logo represents the legacy and authoritative role of our brand. It is always surrounded with plenty of clearspace as it is our most prominent brand element.Color:
Our colors are a mix of where Brinks Home has come from and where we are going. Our primary palette is a set of dark and sophisticated colors that represent our expertise in home security and reinforce our elevated positioning.Typography:
Our brand typefaces convey different tones. Our headline typeface is a distinct and sophisticated style that helps Brinks Home create a more instantly recognizable brand across all touchpoints. Our body copy typeface is empathetic and approachable.Visual System:
Our graphic elements are a perfect mix of the sophistication and expertise of our heritage mixed with the empathy and ambitious vision of where we want to go.Iconography:
Our iconography reflects our obsessive and refined personality, paying attention to details in a simplified way.Photography:
Our photography is warm, sophisticated and inviting. It communicates how our obsession with service gives consumers the confidence to enjoy their homes with their families, as well as the peace of mind to go out in the world to create new memories. -
Grids: desktop, tablet, and mobile.
Typography: font styles, scale, spacing, color accessibility, navigation, buttons and forms
Accelerating the Rebrand: An Agile Approach
Once the initial new branding concepts and guidelines were approved and finalized by all stakeholders, my internal creative team launched into overdrive to roll out the new branding in 2-week design sprints. Because everything across all business channels, departments, and even recent business acquisitions needed to be rebranded, projects were bundled together to be tackled by pods of designers and writers running in parallel.
Additionally, we identified gaps in the initial version of the guidelines as we worked in an agile fashion through the backlog of brand assets, websites, emails, letters, voice messaging, store signage, van wraps, business card, etc. So we added and updated the guidelines for all digital, print, and communications. We also developed various Quick Guides for Sales Representatives, Partners, Dealers, and Employees.
Roles
My Role: Creative Director
I oversaw all creative for the rebrand. I managed an internal design team of creatives while providing creative direction to the HUGE design team. I worked with internal Brinks stakeholders as well as managed the expectations for the HUGE design team.
My Team:
Senior UX/UI Designer: Angela Harlan Swenson
Senior UX Writer: Erica Hoff
Creative Manager: Richard Lee
Senior Graphic Designer: Tino Izuora
Brand Operations Manager: Tom Gill
