Creating an authentic identity for a leading European IP law firm
27 February 2020
Potter Clarkson has long been recognised as a top tier European intellectual property law firm.
Following a rapid period of growth – expanding its service offering, opening four new offices in two years and growing to a 200-strong practice – the firm found itself at an exciting juncture. However, there was a distinct mismatch between the firm’s progressive approach to delivering intellectual property legal services and the way it articulated its offer to the outside world.
Our initial conversations with Potter Clarkson centred around where the firm wanted to head as a brand, and how we could help to effectively articulate its difference in a specialist legal sector. We embarked on an in-depth discovery phase to unearth the authentic evidence both internally and externally that would give Potter Clarkson a solid foundation on which we could build a robust brand messaging platform and a more dynamic brand identity that would reflect who they are today.
Based on our research we briefed our copywriters to define a differentiating territory for Potter Clarkson through an authentic set of brand values that more accurately reflect the firm’s ambition. From there, we developed a compelling firm wide elevator pitch and proposition statement that expresses who they are, what they do and why clients should work with them. This was underpinned by a succinct tone of voice guideline to help Potter Clarkson communications moving forward.
With the foundations firmly established, we briefed our designers to explore the possibilities of how the new Potter Clarkson brand image could reflect a firm that is highly specialist and obsessively inquisitive. Our solution was a brand marque that expressed Potter Clarkson’s ability to see the bigger picture of how IP can support their clients’ business goals, while simultaneously honing in on the detail. The marque is a stylised minimalist expression of Potter Clarkson’s drive to create value from innovation.
The broader visual language was influenced by the foundation of the logo, manifested as a complementary icon set and a flexible brand graphics system that performed well in different formats across printed and digital collateral. Effective colour coding provides a distinct identity for each of the firm’s services, while firmwide collateral retained a more reserved slate grey and silver. In the digital environment conceptual imagery blends with the brand graphics to create a more intriguing aesthetic across the user interface and on social media.
Simultaneously, we worked on a totally new user experience for the Potter Clarkson website that leverages greater focus on the difference their work makes to clients, a more intuitive persona based search and improved content strategy.
The journey with Potter Clarkson was one of great agency and client collaboration and we’re elated at the result and the enthusiasm of the team at Potter Clarkson.
To see the new Potter Clarkson brand in action visit potterclarkson.com
If you would like to know more about how we can bring your brand to life, please contact Greg Hobden in London, Kevin Windorf in New York or Gigi Yung in Hong Kong.
