Womply

Womply, a SaSS focused on market tools for small business, found themselves in a common scenario: while they had great market share in the small business tool segment for nearly a decade, their sector was quickly getting crowded with competitors, including a few household names like Mailchimp.

A lot of these platforms, including Womply, use enterprise-level tech to bring industry-wide insights into customer behavior. Within this scenario, we identified challenges and opportunities.

The key challenge identified was one inherent to SaSS - the product was software. Software is notoriously elusive to brand since it’s constantly evolving and expanding. Womply itself offered an increasing number of small business tools that were interrelated but didn’t make complete sense on their own as a product.

REACTION TO COVID-19

The pandemic threw a wrench into many industries, but some of the hardest hit were the smallest. Since Womply's client base was primarily small shopfronts, they saw panic within their customer base. Businesses that relied on brick and mortar walkins effectively saw their main revenue streams dissapear. This left Womply in a unique position. While their customer base became increasingly nervous of new expenses (like SaSS subsciptions), the Womply product provided tools to keep small businesses connected with their customers during this social distanced time.

The opportunity was found when we took a look at why Womply existed: it was there to serve small businesses and local communities, leveraging the tools that some big companies use in a post-ecommerce world.

We presented three concepts, all gravitating around the relationship that small business owners have with their customers and communities.

The client ultimately selected the concept that was the most tactile and most celebratory of the small shops that make up communities across the country. It’s inspired by mid century sign painters, street posters, deadstock small business marketing products, and the very bricks of brick and mortar.

Badges

To that inspiration, we built a library of badges that felt like they were peeled off a shop door that could be used in many different ways.

In addition we created guidelines to extend the badge family for long-term brand growth.

PHOTOGRAPHY

The photography explored the symbiotic nature of a store owner and the street they reside on. By studying the very storefront material (the glass itself) we were able to effectively merge these environments in an approachable, low-tech way.

Direction included shots that were candid, and ones that reflected the everyday moments in a small shop that lot of business owners cherished - like catching up with a long time customer, or hearing the ding of the door bell when someone new entered.

THE AWNING

The mark itself took an almost stereotypical symbol of "small business" leveraged it into a badge of honor and strength: the awning. It’s the interface between the shop and the street, the owner and the customer. It creates a safe haven between the two places, and feels inviting, protective, and familiar.

To keep software into the mix, we rendered the mark (and badges) using simple, geometric shapes so it felt stable, and didn’t feel too handmade.

The layered method in which we combined the brand elements was inspired by the way business owners create something out of nothing: combining the resources around them to create something with great community value.