ACEVO launches new branding to move away from ‘elitist’ persona 

02 Sep 2019 News

ACEVO has today unveiled new branding and launched a new website which aims to give the representative body for charity chief executives a “brighter, cleaner, more confident look”.

The logo is now a mint green instead of red and the new strapline reads “imagine, inspire, improve”. It aims to articulate the difference that leaders can create.

Vicky Browning, chief executive of ACEVO, explained the process in a blog.  

She said: “It was the strapline that stumped us.

“Our existing line, 'Charity Leaders Network' described what ACEVO was, but not the breadth of our reach across the social sector, nor the ‘magic ingredient’ of how we achieve our vision. (And the missing apostrophe drove me mad).

“We set to work, and after two hours of the finest ACEVO team brainstorming, we’d come up with an alternative: 'The leaders’ network'. That was when we knew we needed help.”

The new website is fully integrated with ACEVO’s member database, in order to make it easier to use and more visually appealing.

Browning said: “Rethinking our strapline was one part of a whole rebranding process we’ve been working on over the past two years to move ACEVO from its old brand persona (think Jeremy Paxman: expert, confrontational, elitist) to the new (Michelle Obama: authentic, self-confident, personable). As well as refreshing our vision, we rearticulated our values: to be member-driven, connected, ambitious and honest.

“While the vision and values felt more Michelle, the visuals were still definitely Jeremy. So we’ve developed a brighter, cleaner, more confident look for ACEVO.”

Data for the financial year ending 31 March 2019 puts its income at £1m and spending at £885,300.

Browning said: “We know that being a social sector CEO can be the most brilliant job in the world, but it can also be difficult and draining. At ACEVO we want to energise and inspire leaders to be the best they can be. 

“To celebrate a culture of imagining better. And to champion leaders who can create a successful, impactful sector with the difference they make. Our brand re-fresh and new website are a reflection of this vision of leadership and of ACEVO’s values.” 

The new website and branding visuals were created by Mark Bowley at Bowley Design and Ben Knowles at Digital Garden. The brand story was created with help from Stronger Stories Studios. The brand refresh cost the charity £8,500 and took about eight months from the first meeting to the board sign off. The creation and development of the new website cost £25,000.

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