Anna SamanthaSustainability certification Planet Mark is investing in a digital transformation programme and a new modern identity, with visuals inspired by a shared vision of a brighter horizon and fresh beginnings. The move will enable the company to amplify its international reputation and growth, and make the sustainability certification more globally appealing and accessible.
A new strategy will see Planet Mark reinforce the urgency of the climate crisis and the importance of sustainability during this crucial Decade of Action by communicating a clearer, simpler message to organisations globally that Planet Mark is ‘empowering change for a brighter future’. The company will also be expanding its programme offerings to embrace product certification during 2021 alongside the existing business and real estate certifications.
The digital transformation includes a new domain (www.planetmark.com) incorporating a new member page to make it easier for members to engage with their employees and communicate their sustainability journeys transparently, founded on third party verification of their certification.
The new branding has been designed by London-based strategic branding agency Design by Structure. The creative process involved an indepth analysis of Planet Mark’s culture and personality as well as a deep dive into what it means to be ‘more sustainable’. This exploration resulted in a revised brand system that draws inspiration from the planet and champions the idea of change throughout. The updated logo retains Planet Mark’s vivid blue colour but has moved to a cleaner and modern abstract form. The solid base line and segments represent a new horizon, new beginnings and starting afresh, as business and governments re-build a regenerative economy, modernising the brand and making it more mainstream.
In addition, a mixture of playful text and illustrations were commissioned to reinforce Planet Mark’s approachable personality, which is a major attraction in businesses wishing to become Planet Mark members.
Steve Malkin, CEO and founder of Planet Mark, says, “Our new strategy and modern identity is designed to communicate in simpler terms the critical message that the climate crisis requires urgent action and we share a common goal and vision of working together for a brighter future. We need to do more and collectively we can. We want Planet Mark to appeal to a wider market and empower businesses with a common goal. We want to communicate that each and everyone of us has a vital role to play in reversing this situation and, as our friend Sir Tim Smit of the Eden Project puts it, we can become the ‘regenerative heroes’ of our generation. Planet Mark can be the catalyst, the mark that signifies sustainability and that something good is happening here. We are calling on business communities globally to look for the mark and join our movement for change in this crucial Decade of Action.”
Planet Mark was founded in 2013 by Steve Malkin in conjunction with the Eden Project based on the positioning that a connection with nature can enable all people to contribute to a thriving planet. The resulting people-driven sustainability programme, based on its three-step process: Measure, Engage, Communicate, designed for any business of any size, in any sector, no matter where they are in the world, has continued to develop and grow, certifying over 800 organisations and doubling in size over the past year. It aims to increase its current active membership from around 200 to 1,000 and to grow its organisation by a further 50 per cent in the next year. The goal is to empower like-minded individuals to halt the climate crisis and improve society in everything they do.
Claire Walmsley-Moss, head of marketing for Planet Mark, comments, “The new branding aims to talk to businesses and all the individuals they employ to go on a sustainability journey together with Planet Mark, and to communicate to them in positive, encouraging language that we all have a responsibility to own and end the climate crisis.”
She adds, “The fresh modern identity communicates a positive, clear message that a brighter future is just on the horizon.
“Planet Mark will continue to strengthen its crucial partnerships with the Eden Project and award-winning charity Cool Earth, while also enabling members of Planet Mark community to have ownership of the new certification mark. Through our digital transformation programme we hope to support our members in sharing their sustainability journeys with greater pride and ease. We will be calling on our members to recreate the new logo in their own corporate colours, making it playful and fun. We will be asking them to take ownership of the challenges of halting the climate crisis, and we will be inspiring members to participate in exciting initiatives in the run up to COP26, as we believe we will go further faster together.”
