Direct Line Group needed to challenge perceptions that insurance is boring. The group is made up of well-known brands such as Churchill and Green Flag, but talent did not have a sense of the group as an overall employer. The company needed an overarching brand that could be adapted for every stage of the employee lifecycle. Working with TMPW, the first phase of the strategy was desk research, interviewing senior stakeholders and holding focus groups alongside competitor analysis and developing some brand pillars. These insights were then validated through internal focus groups and testing with target audiences.

They devised a strapline: ‘Together we’re one of a kind’, encapsulating the idea that every member of the team can bring a unique perspective. Three pillars form part of the brand: Deliver change you can put your name to; Perform at your best; Be comfortable being you, and sit alongside headlines such as “Let’s bring on your best” that emphasise a collective goal. The campaign featured more than 100 images of people in the business, with a distinctive and colourful visual style. Every employee image has its own unique background.

The new brand was communicated across every channel, including a revamped careers site, animated social posts and stories from ambassadors. A new brand hero film showed a whistle stop tour of DLG, immersing the audience in the brands and celebrating the people who work there. This alone helped drive up website traffic by 94%. DLG then focused on auto services, where it was struggling to fill roles, evolving the new brand with audience persona research and a specific talent value proposition for this group. In-situ photography rather than the main DLG branding and straight-talking headlines were more effective here. The overall brand revamp has driven a 114% increase in applications and saved around £2 million in costs.