What's in a Brand?

Or rather, what’s in our brand? That’s exactly what the Marketing/Communications team at PlattForm asked ourselves about eight months ago, when we discussed how to meet our goal of creating a big picture focused, “brand experience,” whether it be on the phone, in the building or online. So we set out to get answers, quickly discovering one thing: this company is full of passionate people that love what they do and the impact they get to make on people’s lives. Our focus on the outcomes (helping people attain an education and improve their lives) every day is evident throughout the building and throughout every conversation had with any PlattForm employee. AND we have fun doing it. Wow. What a truly amazing accomplishment. Another common thread - people are actually surprised to find that out when they get here…hmmm, a brand failure? Only if we don’t learn from it.

So now what? How do we make sure the outward “face” of PlattForm matches the passion, excitement, expertise and experience felt on the inside? We started from the drawing board, literally - evaluating our Mission, Vision and Values. THEN we moved on to the fun part. The logo. The personification of the brand.

The Process

As the brand manager (and a 4 year veteran at PlattForm), I was so excited to get a team of designers in a room, tell them what our brand should convey and come back the following week with designs to choose from. HA! It was in this very first meeting of creative minds that I was slapped in the face, once again, with the reminder of the level of passion somehow contained within these individuals. They actually WANTED to be a part of the discovery process and were genuinely honored to be involved in something that really meant something to them. Wow. I have to admit, it was completely unexpected…and then it dawned on me, what if every project could work this way? From then on out, we opened it up for more exploration. What exactly sets us apart? Aside from the passion, what is it about us that people should know and care about? So we took several weeks to conceptualize a few different “buckets” of interpretation - and then the sketching began. All while I sat in the room not giving direction, but answering questions!

The End Result

What we came up with speaks to our roots. It’s our founder, Michael Platt, that has instilled the culture that makes us who we are. The Jerry Garcia doll, the big platform shoe in the lobby, the candy cart – he created an environment where working hard didn’t feel like hard work. He never settles for status quo and always pushes us to do more. Even though he’s no longer physically in the building, he’s EVERYWHERE. I swear the man has a few clones. So, our new logo pays homage to him. The 2 T’s truly are and have always been our PlattForm. They stand for stability and elevation – they are the foundation, both literally and figuratively, of this company.
All in all, the process of developing the new logo took just as long as it has to get everything ready to roll out. And I couldn’t be happier about that. Every single element has been examined, tweaked and fine tuned to perfection. Everything from the letterhead to the website has been executed with precision by a team of people that have been involved from day one. They get it – and they WANT to be a part of it.

So what’s in a brand? For me, it truly is an experience. One I’m proud to continue to be a part of every single day.

I give you the new face of PlattForm.