Articulating a vision of UK innovation
Workshop
Innovate UK Business Connect (IUKBC) helps businesses find new partners and opportunities to accelerate the development of their ideas and bring innovative solutions to market.
Rationale was approached by the team at IUKBC to develop new brand messaging for the Place Programme, an initiative that helps to connect businesses across each part of the UK to the partnerships and support they need to thrive.
The Place Programme sits within a complex web of organisations, so the new messaging would have to create a clear distinction between what the programme does compared to other bodies within IUKBC and Innovate UK more broadly.
The programme also has multiple stakeholder groups with different needs and expectations around what it should deliver, including:
- Businesses looking for innovation opportunities that want to feel confidence that IUKBC understands their business needs
- Support providers and local government groups that want to see the Place Programme as a collaborative partner, not a competitor
- UK Government and private funders that need to see tangible evidence of the impact created by the Place Programme
Through this project, we worked closely with the Place team to articulate an inspiring proposition, tone of voice and messaging framework to clearly define the role of the programme and show how it serves the needs of its different audience groups.
Workshop
Messaging playbook
Our work began with a series of workshops where we gathered insights, anecdotes, and learnings from the Place Programme’s target audiences. These helped us understand how different stakeholders viewed the programme and what they valued most about it.
We then clarified our findings and translated the specific qualities and advantages of the programme into messaging that would:
- Capture the scale of the programme’s reach, while acknowledging the equal importance of all areas across the UK
- Communicate the importance and extent of the programme’s impact, without misrepresenting its influence
- Articulate the programme’s connective role within the wider innovation ecosystem, without overstating its position
The new positioning had to accurately reflect the programme’s activities today, while setting out an inspiring statement of intent that captures what it aims to achieve in the long-term.
A key challenge was navigating the large volume of input and feedback from different stakeholders.
Each audience group was passionate about what the programme provided and wanted the positioning to reflect and prioritise different aspects.
We were able to consolidate our Discovery insights with stakeholder input to create a messaging framework that aligned with Innovate UK’s new organisation-wide vision for 2025 and beyond.
Messaging playbook
From here, we produced an updated, foundational messaging framework for the Place Programme. This was built around a core proposition that captures the specific role the programme plays and the impact it creates within the UK innovation space.
The framework contained specific messaging tailored to the programme’s core audiences, as well as tone of voice guidance that reflected the need to show inclusivity for all areas of the UK.
This was well received by the Place and IUKBC teams, and is testament to the depth of our Discovery process and how our team of strategists were able to draw out and articulate stakeholder insights.
We’re now working with the Place team to bring this new positioning and messaging to life across events, key marketing collateral and content campaigns.
Messaging guide
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