Proactive
Rebrand rollout, website, launch event and industry presence
In 2019 Proactive, whose clients included Transport for London, Arriva, Ticketmaster, Thames Clippers and the London Olympics, rebranded to position itself for growth and an eventual sale. Once design studio Polygon delivered the new logo and brand package, I was brought in to lead the rollout: applying the identity across every touchpoint, designing and building the new website, launching the brand to around 100 clients and press, and representing it at industry events through the year.
- Client
- Proactive, recruitment and staff management for the UK transport and events industries
- Role
- Brand Manager (in-house)
- Year
- 2019–2020
- Scope
- Brand rollout · Website · Launch event · Print and merch · Industry events · Press
Identity rollout
Polygon created the new mark, which I nicknamed “Lucky P”: a box-built P that works as logo, badge and mascot. I applied it across the website, print collateral, event merchandise, presentations and corporate materials.
Website
The old site was clunky, wordy and old-fashioned, and it still carried the old logo. The new one had two very different jobs.
Get people to the job board, fast. Reaching the job board was the main reason anyone visited, and it fed straight into Proactive’s custom Salesforce platform. On the old site it was buried in the menus, so I made it a clear button on the landing screen.
Sell the business. For clients and potential buyers, the landing page worked like a pitch deck, with a sales-funnel structure and light scroll animations. It walked visitors through what Proactive did best, including its proprietary technology.
Both jobs were shaped by UX workshops with staff, which set the design principles: friendly, open and true to the company’s humanist values. After launch I kept iterating on feedback from the office sales team and field staff, keeping the site fast and easy to use.
“Exactly what I had imagined.”
Launch event
House of St Barnabas, Soho · around 100 guests, including clients and industry media.
I owned it end to end: venue, guest list and invitations, agenda, catering, entertainment and goody bags. I hired and ran a three-person event team: a photographer, a technical assistant and a guest liaison.
Industry events and press
I ran Proactive’s presence at the British-Irish Airports Expo, the Annual Rail Awards and the Aviation Reception, writing briefing packs for staff beforehand and running debriefs after.
I also secured features in The Parliamentary Review and Recruiter magazine, writing the copy and directing photoshoots of Proactive’s staff across London.
What happened next
The business was later sold to the market leader in its sector.
