Corporate Branding Case Study
In 30 years of serving the craft beverage industry, we’ve done a lot of work for (and made a lot of friends in) the beer world. But we’ve made friends in lots of other industries, too. Friends we have beers with. Though the corporate world may not be as glamorous as craft beer, many realize that corporate branding can (and should) be approachable, polished, credible, and cool – much like their favorite breweries. And that’s why brands like D&L Transport come to us for creative design and strategy.
About D&L
Rated one of Kansas City’s fastest growing companies 5 years in a row, D&L Transport is a leading transportation brokerage company offering exceptional freight brokerage service for truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), specialized and rail intermodal shipments throughout the United States and Canada.
Discovery Process
We want to know your dreams and worries, your hopes and fears. Kind of like we’re dating, and we’re really, really into you.
As a rapidly growing organization, we found that D&L Transport’s branding needed to:
- Evolve to reflect stability and dependability
- Evoke confidence and professionalism
- Represent their commitment to technological innovation
But as an independent, mom-and-pop founded company, it also needed to communicate their commitment to personalized attention, integrity and service.
Developing an Identity
Like a superhero choosing a costume.
EVOLVING A LOGO FOR AN EVOLVING COMPANY
LOGO + BRAND IDENTITY
ORIGINAL
REBRANDED
New colors evoke a sense of stability and trust, and modernity and innovation. The use of italics creates a sense of forward motion, both in the nature of the business (transportation) and its cutting edge methods (technology). The clean, sans serif font looks polished and professional, yet approachable. The ampersand incorporates the D and the L portions of the logo and creates a sense of connectivity and security.
TANGIBLE APPLICATION
BUSINESS SYSTEM
Clear, consistent communication is key here. In tracking and evaluating D&L Transport’s business system, we developed new and updated supporting materials that better serve their business processes and recruiting strategy, and that fit their needs in terms of quality, timeliness and cost-effectiveness. The updated system provides a solution to the unique challenge of creating a brand that appeals to potential agents and to carriers.
Create Awareness
Everything but a soapbox and a megaphone.
WEBSITE
- Improved user experience
- Cleaner, more modern visual appeal
- Stronger content organization
- User-friendly URL
- Responsive
- Addition of blog
- Addition of interactive components
- Improved SEO
SOCIAL
- Addition of @username for search optimization
- Merged duplicate Facebook pages to consolidate likes
- Stronger visual appeal
- Fully populated profiles, refined copy and business info
- Brand consistency throughout website and all social channels
- Creation of Facebook pixel for improved Facebook ad targeting
- Helped develop a consistent online voice and content strategy
- Social strategy to coincide with multi-faceted recruitment campaign
BLOG
- Creation of additional content for prospective customers, current customers, and carriers to interact and engage with
- Hosted internally on the D&L website, boosting traffic and increasing SEO performance
- Inspires confidence and trust in the D&L brand
- Established authority in the freight broker industry
- Supplemented active recruiting campaign
INTERNAL CUSTOMER
By recommending ways to serve their internal customer, we helped D&L turn their employees into brand advocates. In turn, this aided their recruiting efforts and inspired internal enthusiasm that translates to a positive attitude toward external customers.
Supporting components: Holiday gifts, giveaway items at company outings, sports team apparel, sales achievement prizes.
Scale the Brand
An essential exercise to keep everything in perfect harmony.
STRATEGY IN ACTION
CAMPAIGN DEVELOPMENT – BUSINESS IN A BOX
From copywriting and communication strategy, to product selection, design and implementation, we helped D&L build an entire, cohesive campaign. The “Business in A Box” recruiting package was designed to spark interest, communicate potential and inspire action.
Supporting Media: Radio, video and social content, blog, landing page.
SECONDARY APPLICATION
EVENT COLLATERAL – THE PRESIDENT’S CLUB
The President’s Club is an all-expenses paid weekend event for agents, honoring annual sales achievements. We translated the D&L brand into an event identity that parallels D&L’s brand but has its own unique twist.
Supporting Components: Invitation, digital and print itinerary, event swag, event video.
Give Me the Highlights
All good re-brands energize your team as well as your external customers. It reflects new goals, demonstrates the ability to adapt and evolve, and simply shows that you’re paying attention. It automatically leads to more interaction with your brand, internal and externally, helping to drive brand awareness, encourage brand loyalty and, as a result, increase profits.