XYPN
Exploring Brand Identity
We helped XYPN align on its vision for the future along with creating a compelling visual identity to match
Background
XYPN makes it possible for fee-only financial advisors to build and grow their business by enabling them to advise who they want, how they want. Their integrated support system offers everything needed to succeed profitably: curated technology, customized educational resources, a vibrant support network of like-minded people, and business, operational, and client support services.
Challenges
- Help stakeholders resolve conflict and make important strategic decisions about company’s business models and showcase what XYPN is at its core.
- Identify a brand architecture that best represents XYPN’s goals and values, and create a visual brand guide including a new logo and messaging framework.
Creating a Brand Vision
Fresh initially conducted 1 : 1 interviews and a series of workshops with the XYPN team to help them resolve business and consumer conflicts, align on company values, as well as make a decision on expansion in depth vs. breadth.
The team gathered insights and feedback from workshop participants to ensure alignment and success, by asking questions and recording findings to inform decision-making and foster collaboration. We discussed over-arching strategic choices and clarified preferences of the participants through anonymous voting.
Brand Sprint Workshop
The Fresh team held sessions with cross-functional personnel at XYPN which were aimed at rapidly defining, refining, or evolving the brand’s identity, strategy, and positioning. The team also populated lists of potential new values and unreached audiences.
The output from the Brand Sprint workshop becomes a key part of the “Creative Brief”, which informed subsequent work on logo, visual identity, and messaging frameworks.
Brand Voice Workshop
The Fresh team facilitated a workshop to allow XYPN to identify and establish a consistent tone of voice for their company messaging – which will help differentiate their brand, build trust, and create personal relationships. One of the activities focused on brand tone, which breaks down elements of the brand voice into tonal words that can be adjusted to pertain to each message.
The team also held activities on exploring brand archetypes. XYPN would imagine tapping into universal stories and emotions, and see how they compare and fit in among other global brands.
Sketching & Logo Design
With the diligence of the team aligning on a solid brand framework during initial phases of the project, iterations of logo sketches quickly converged into a direction that resonated with XYPN. The final logo is comprised of a single wordmark of the company’s acronym, with segmented letterforms. We defined alternates and acceptable treatments/placements of the logo.
Brand Architecture
To accommodate the various tools and services XYPN offers, Fresh recommended a Branded House architecture for more consistency and streamlining across the portfolio. For various XYPN brands, the new logo is used as a base; colors and unique names get added that are specific to each sub-brand. This helps provide a consistent look and feel across the full brand spectrum, as well as provide quick recognition for new sub-brands that may be built.
Brand Guidelines
Final deliverables of the project included Brand Guidelines and example website component mockups. The Brand Guidelines communicate the brand identity of XYPN - clearly articulating the mission, values and persona for the design of all subsequent brand artifacts. Brand Guidelines would be key for XYPN to continue to grow and scale their services platform with consistency and unity.
The new brand identity uses 5 unique colors in the core color palette. The Azure blue sits alongside four additional core colors in our palette. Pistachio works best as an accent color. Indigo helps to change the pace and create contrast, while Pebble and Eggshell offer balance.
