Private sector, Consultancy
Leadership, business development, people and talent
Discovery, brand strategy, messaging, website design and development, animation
EllisJames helped FSP reconnect with their brand DNA to articulate what makes them unique. Not only did we want to shine a light on the phenomenal attitude and culture of the FSP team, but highlight the clear and tangible difference FSP brings to their customers.
FSP is one of the UK’s leading independent experts in digital transformation. Continuing to grow at a rapid rate, the business was, however, represented online by a limited site that failed to make a connection to the FSP audience.
As FSP had diagnosed themselves, although their site looked good, it offered nothing by way of value proposition, brand depth or demonstrated alignment with their target audience. The site spoke well of their award-winning work environment and culture, but failed to connect this to the benefits delivered to customers.
We were able to convince FSP that in order to maximise the opportunity the new website offered, we first needed to help them understand themselves a lot better. FSP, like many super busy organisations, was simply too close to the mirror to see themselves objectively. What this typically results in is a lack of appreciation of what makes them unique, or of the benefits delivered to their customers.
We facilitated two workshops at FSPs headquarters in Reading. We always run a workshop with the senior leadership team separately from the staff teams as their presence alone can bias the insights or stymie honest reflection. The FSP sessions were a lot of fun and enormously revealing, bringing to light how the strength of their culture and supportive team led directly to amazing results for their customers. This is a process we call ‘building the bridge’.
The workshops helped us to deliver a comprehensive report back to FSP’s CEO, with numerous reflections and insights that had value well beyond the scope of the website. As part of our mandate, we propose articulations of a brand’s Purpose (inspiration), Vision (aspiration) and value proposition. We then enter a collaborative iterative process to refine these statements to a final version that is shared with staff and feeds into the messaging and design approach for the website (and other outputs).
Consequently, the FSP website positions them as a ‘Catalyst for change and innovation’. We helped them to define their six pillars of delivery or key areas of expertise, and we visualised their process. This is important for any consultative brand because it simplifies access points for prospective customers and underlines the intellectual property of their proprietary approach or processes.
The end result is a dynamic website with a fluid, futuristic feel and warm, very human, centre.
Difficult to choose, but I would say – and despite the amazing design work we did on the site – it has to be the discovery process.
With FSP you had a human-centred leadership, the likes of which I’d not really seen before. An authentic compassion, within a supportive and mentoring atmosphere. Consequently, everyone genuinely loves working there. All very well and good, but from a customer perspective, “So what?”
We were able to build that bridge for them, and the wider effects of our brand insights went far beyond the website scope. The FSP team were a wonder to work with – always positive, available, attentive, receptive, generous and open. If they are happy with the value they got from us, it’s really down to their commitment to the project.
The whole process, from start to finish, was excellent!
The workshops run with our employee base were engaging, collaborative and energising; and the design, and ultimate implementation, of our new site was superb. The team are a joy to work with, inspiringly creative and we’re always there to support and advise. I’d recommend their work without hesitation.
Heart-led, High-performance website
We helped FSP Leverage their compelling culture, powerful values and human-centred ethos to create a persuasive website proposition for new and existing customers. By reinvigorating the existing FSP brand, we harnessed what makes them unique, creating a brand-first website they can be proud of.
