Working with Happy Cog — and why our rebrand is more than a logo

Today we’re happy to announce a number of updates, including a rebrand. For us, our rebrand didn’t start with a logo or visual identity, but by understanding how we work with clients, partners, and each other — and then amplifying our core values. As part of this undertaking, we’ve started to re-frame how our process is structured to move us away from specific services (design, development, and digital marketing) and shift towards a model that is focused on client success.

Team First

To start, we’ve made a number of promotions and role transitions so that every project has a series of team “leads”. These leads will focus on driving internal and external collaboration so that we’re tackling problems from a variety of angles and viewpoints.

As a recent example, we’re incredibly proud of our recent work with our client Lonza, where we pushed the envelope to create a masterclass in what’s possible with lead generation. This wouldn’t have been achievable with a single person or service; it was a joint effort across a variety of functions (through specification, technology, authoring, and SEO best practices) to accomplish a successful result. Our solution included the creation of a ground-up lead generation platform based on real data analysis of the marketplace, with outputs fed through a variety of innovative User Experience scenarios on the front-end of the website. Our work led to leads increasing by over 90% overall and by 140% on mobile. This whole project required a constant back and forth and close collaboration between our team and the client, which was successfully led by our project management team. We worked hard to keep project goals and metrics as a focus throughout. This is a perfect example of the value we’re bringing to our clients and what we want to make sure to express through our brand.

We’re excited to share this evolution of both our brand and visual identity today. Our logotype conveys motion even as a static mark. It represents how we adapt to our clients’ and their users’ needs and to the fast-paced nature of our industry. Our typography and color system represents our People First approach (more on that below), with colors that feel warm and bright to invite collaboration and thought. Our typography is bold but approachable, which we see as a key brand attribute for how we make recommendations.

People First^TM

As part of our rebrand, we’re also going to be taking a meaningful and deliberate effort at defining our “People First” trademark — not just as a tagline, but as a definition for how we work with clients and users, and continue to build culture internally.

Our process begins by placing the highest priority on our user. By identifying key users and understanding their needs, we create a foundation for the entire process. In parallel we take a deep dive into understanding our clients’ business goals, technology needs, and any KPIs that could ultimately be used as results metrics for our solutions.

User needs and organizational goals should not be seen in conflict. Ultimately, to be successful our solutions need to be business tools as well as brand and marketing tools.

People First is also a way of life at Happy Cog. As we’ve grown the team over the past few years, we’ve also tried to grow empathy across all the functions and talents of the teams. This helps us think more deeply about solving problems: developers should always think about end users, and designers should use analytics and keyword research as a primary input into the design process.

Clients First

Some things never change. As we’ve looked inward to define a new visual identity, we’ve also focused on what makes our client and partnership relationships so special: beautifully crafted, meticulously executed, results-based solutions.

We’re excited to share these updates. As we continue to evolve our visual brand you’ll see more updates to our website, presentations, and communications.