Oho

By bringing a multi-disciplinary approach of social impact, communications and design, Ellis Jones unpacked research findings and guided Oho through a series of creative workshops to ensure purpose and strategy was embedded within the Oho rebranding process.

Throughout the project, Ellis Jones:

* Conducted company research, perception research, a market review and a digital review (keywords, SEO, platforms) to understand the perceptions of child safety and Oho’s market presence.
* Completed customer empathy mapping, user journey mapping and user persona development to better understand key customer groups/target audiences.
* Undertook a brand identity and naming project integral to Oho’s strategic thinking which would be relevant, distinct and meaningful to all target audiences.
* Completed UX research, and gave direction for implementing the consumer-facing brand into the existing product platform.
* Developed a unique visual identity system, to position the business beyond a simple tech platform, highlighting the purpose and human connection.

This project represents the value of design to elevate and make tangible the transformative power of the Oho product to organisations around Victoria, Australia and the world who have a duty of care to vulnerable people. The creation of a highly relevant and highly visible brand identity and visual language, that clearly disrupts the market norm offers a platform to the business to vocally advocate change, and present a technology led solution to an analogue, outdated, and risk laden sector.

The decision of anthropomorphise abstracted technical elements into the 'owl eye' logotype, and extrapolated 3D world provides a metaphor and narrative to explain complicated technology and keep the focus on ultimate impact - a validated, always-on system 'keeping watch' over vulnerable people.

Clarity and accessibility was also key to the design of the identity system, catering for the diversity of audience, in age, ability, culture and language.

The status and acumen of the brand (and importantly for an emergent product), clearly positions Oho as a market leader from the outset, with a consistent and polished brand presence and customer experience throughout the customer acquisition and on-boarding journey.

The decision to shift the Oho brand from the market norm of functionality led, concrete visuals, to metaphoric, purpose based visual language and assets is new to the market, as is the use of colour and typography with an organic, human-centred nature.

The differentiation, clarity and quality of the brand have created opportunity for Oho to sign customers from the top echelons of professional sport, caregiving and community organisations, meaningfully impacting the lives of thousands of vulnerable Australians, and preventing long lasting negative impacts from abuse.

Since starting the journey with Oho in November 2020, Ellis Jones has delivered a range of outputs to better position Oho in building a safer community for all vulnerable people. These outputs have been listed below.

* Design and led a creative process with the executive leadership to ideate and select the new name; Oho, and then build a toolkit of elements with which to activate the brand across all channels, from trade shows to phone screens and everything in between.
* Built a revamped website to hero the user and align the digital experience with Oho’s strategic direction.
* Developed a marketing strategy that included corporate comms, media relations, industry engagement, advertising and content marketing to help attract ~500 online enquiries/leads from priority sectors such as disability services.
* Defined a cycle of content for their channels (including their website and social media channels) such as blogs and videos to achieve their business and marketing goals over a 12-month period.

The new brand, website and content/marketing strategy have been instrumental in Oho's recent successes, including

* a nationwide media feature with News Corp Limited, highlighting the importance of Working with Children checks and sharing the positive impact of Oho's work with ≈12 million sets of eyes
* the onboarding of several national bodies and institutions (including Gymnastics Australia), contributing to a safer community for all vulnerable Australians.

Sustainability and impact is at the heart of Oho's organisational intent. The design process has been geared toward generating the minimum volume of ephemera or physical artefacts, focusing on using digital tools and channels wherever possible.