First things first

And one of the very first is knowing what you don’t know. Foley & Lardner were aware that although they felt confident in who they are and the value they bring, they didn’t have a strong sense of how they were perceived in the market. But they were open to learning, and willing to change all brand signifiers, while building off the established brand equity of their logo.

Although we were an outside agency, this project was very much an inside job. We worked closely with Foley’s internal teams, who were highly involved in the rebranding process. From the outset it was clear that this assignment would be as much about setting and codifying standards to protect the brand moving forward, as it would be about creating a new look and feel.

Sweat the small stuff

It can lead you straight to the big stuff. We partnered with the strategy and research focused Clarity Group to dig deep into how Foley & Lardner was perceived both internally (partners and employees) and externally (clients and intermediaries). The research showed that Foley was perceived as driven, engaging, creative and confident: Smart in every sense of the word. Our design team unearthed 30 unnecessary colors and 5 unnecessary fonts on the Foley site. Like the decluttering evangelists we are, it felt so good to throw it all away and create space for the new (streamlined, simple, telegraphic) brand.

A smart new look

For Foley, smart looks like a highly focused, editorial approach with simple elements that underscore their clear thought leadership and the deep trust they build with clients. As it turns out, they already had more than enough to work with to bring their brand to the next level. What we did was a thoughtful updating and paring away, simplifying their visual assets, creating “frames”, and setting visual standards that brought harmony and order to what had been a mass of competing elements.