Survitec - Upp B2B
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Survitec

Creating and building a contemporary brand that can weather the global market

Survitec is a global leader in survival and safety solutions to the marine, defence, aviation and offshore markets, with over 3,000 employees worldwide and a turnover of £97m.

The group had undertaken numerous acquisitions of complementary businesses around the globe, with the strategic aim of better serving clients globally whilst being better positioned to win larger contracts through a more integrated approach.

With a very diverse range of brands, there was little consistency in brand messaging. Additionally, they had engaged in an internal programme to be more customer-centric. Driven by the CEO, CFO and the Marketing Director, the business was seeking to align the Group around a single-minded customer proposition. When Survitec approached Upp they had already been through a brand project with another agency, however this had not been strategic, and they found themselves with new logo designs with no substance to unite the Group around.

Discover

Customers: An in-depth piece of market research had recently been completed which provided sector-specific insights around customer challenges, priorities and their view of service excellence. The sales and marketing teams also shared both sector knowledge and a view of the portfolio of products and services they deliver and their opinion on growth opportunities.

We collaboratively developed a matrix of customer types across the UK, USA, Asia and Europe, including distributors. We then conducted quantitative research with those customers with a particular focus on service, and a better understanding of their view of the competitive landscape. Within this research we identified a unifying insight across the customer base which provided an opportunity for the brand.

Employees: We interviewed key personnel across multiple businesses and visited the factory, innovation, customer care and design teams to gain a deeper understanding
of motivations, frustrations, beliefs and how Survitec do things.

Competitors: We undertook desk research to review key competitor propositions, marketing messages, character and brand story and we mapped out any gaps for opportunity.

Define

Strategic: We ran a senior-level workshop with 12 stakeholders using our brand planning tool, the Brand PyramidTM to get to the heart of the business, the aspirations and the challenges. The workshop was an opportunity for much debate about operating as a Group versus remaining independent businesses. It was a great opportunity for the Senior team to align on values, vision and mission.
Following the workshop we began to develop what we believed was the vision, mission and values as well as a promise to customers, and a single-minded offer to the market.

This work was tested with the Senior team and adapted to develop the correct tone of voice and language for the business.

Develop

Inspiration: We identified brands who were further along the brand journey as examples to help the Senior team see where their brand could go and to encourage discussion around the type of brand they want Survitec to be.

Following the definition of the core brand DNA, we set out what we believed the strategic proposition to be. This was a single proposition for the Survitec Group
and from this we adapted the message to suit customer types. We recommended dropping the word Group and the design team developed the logo to modernise and strengthen it.

We advised on the brand structure, recommending a transition for some brands to sit within Survitec and others to remain niche, sector-specific brands within the
Group portfolio.

Deliver

To launch the strategic work, we created a video for use at their annual conference as well as a customer-facing version.

Once the strategic work had been approved we worked with their internal design team to create a suite of assets. We continue to deliver numerous projects and act as ‘Brand Guardians’ to ensure the new brand rollout is consistent, that the proposition is being developed and communicated in a powerful way and to help the business be more customer-centric in their external marketing. We have delivered workshops on writing in the new tone of voice, understanding how to adapt the messaging for a variety of customers and sectors, brand-led behaviours, customer insights and what these mean for the day-to-day business, as well as de-briefing the PR agency on investor messaging.

Kind words and warm applause

“We had already engaged with an agency and been through a brand process but found ourselves looking at new logos with no real understanding of what Survitec Group stood for. I’m so glad we went on to find Upp. From the get go they immediately gave us confidence in the process. Everything they do is grounded in an understanding of the business, our culture and our customers.

Even some of the sceptics on the Senior team later commented how it had re-energised them and given them a very clear pitch to customers. Brian, our CEO now uses the brand essence with investors, the media, staff and customers alike to tell our brand story. Upp also helped us engage with the wider teams to ensure we share with them the journey we’ve been on to understand our proposition and what this means to their every day. We’re excited now to start rolling out the new look and tone of voice.”

Group marketing director

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Ready to start your journey Uppwards?

If you need an outside perspective to understand how great b2b marketing thinking can help your business get to the next level, then let’s talk.

hello@uppb2b.co.uk

Ready to start your journey Uppwards?

If you need an outside perspective to understand how great b2b marketing thinking can help your business get to the next level, then let’s talk.

Call   0161 786 8040 hello@uppb2b.co.uk
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