Blacklist Enters a New Era with a Sleek Rebrand
There comes a time in many a company’s life when its original look and presence stops being representative of what the company stands for now. It’s a sign of evolution, maturity, and confidence too. For the team at Blacklist (formerly Blacklist Creative) - a full service creative agency, that time is now and it’s striding towards the new chapter of growth with a bold new rebrand.
“We as people thrive on storytelling. We are programmed to listen to stories, and we are programmed to tell stories,” says Dom Ho, co-founder and joint MD. “We thought it was time for Blacklist Creative to have a story that would best represent our essence to the world.”
“As with any growing business, there is both a need to celebrate your commercial evolution and communicate your strengths to the market. We have been fortunate to onboard some great new clients and expand our roster to consolidate our growth in emergent sectors, particularly location-based entertainment, live broadcast and gaming. We wanted to create a new ‘master-brand' that speaks to these disciplines and encompasses all that we love to do,” he adds.
The agency was first founded to help the needs of in-house teams but in three short years it evolved into the full service creative agency it is today, working across production, experiential, gaming, and creative services. The team sat down to hone in on all the elements that make them who they are, landing on what the team calls ‘The Blacklist Way’ - a value proposition that can be communicated in pitches, over cocktails, or to anyone interested in what the company does and how they do it.
Dom says that while “brand narratives evolve over time, changing to suit the market industries, culture and the audience, a brand’s story must remain true.” He continues: “I think that everyone agrees that we go the extra mile for our clients. We are not unique in that capacity, but for us it’s a product of a passion for the work, our thinking and the establishment of a genuine partnership with our clients and a fundamental understanding of their purpose. The ‘Blacklist Way’ is just a demonstration of that culture and way of working. And it’s something that we are very proud of.”
In the rebranding process, the team cemented all the things they were already succeeding at while also casting their ambitions boldly to the future. “We think that there is a lot of strength in our historical brand marque - and we want our new brand language to represent our core purpose to be a fantastic partner to our clients and to evolve and grow as they do. Therefore, evolution rather than revolution is our chosen brand communication strategy,” Dom explains.
For Blacklist, communicating how they do what they do was only part of the story. “As we enter this new chapter of future proofing and defining the business, we also want to communicate our values, our aesthetic, and our unique approach of excellence to our clients more effectively,” explains Dom.
The team left no stone unturned, paying close attention to language, tone of voice, and general messaging alongside a logo refresh to really capture the company’s essence and areas of expertise. The rebrand thoughtfully extends to the company’s social media channels too, with a look that engages their audience while establishing the agency's identity and showcasing their work and culture. Bold and sleek is the s new aesthetic, steeped in black - a nod to the name and the original design - with bright pops of colour and graphic details to underscore that this is an undeniably creative and ambitious space.
For Dom, the rebrand is a way to inspire current and potential staff, current and potential clients. “It means that we have a rallying call that we all subscribe to. A benchmark we set ourselves for our personal and collective performance and a further aspiration for growth. We are proud of our identity as it’s an authentic reflection of our company and an advertisement for all the great and good that we can do,” he concludes.
