Humane World for Animals

....spearheading efforts that influence policy, corporations, and behaviors to change the treatment of animals across the globe.

From working with communities in Korea to stop the dog meat trade, to being on the ground to rescue animals from cruelty and natural disasters, to changing laws and supply chains so farm animals don't suffer, their work saves the lives of millions of animals.

But despite over 70 years of these significant contributions to the movement, the brand’s growth was hampered by muddled awareness and misperceptions. Simply put, the organization had outgrown its name. While donors understood the organizations’ broad impact, for some. The Humane Society of the United States has often been thought of as a local shelter or parent group, confused with the thousands of independent humane societies across the nation, while Humane Society International struggled with the misperception that it was a humanitarian organization. These factors, exasperated by a complicated brand architecture and slowing donation growth meant it was time to evolve.

The task? Create a brand that would match their unparalleled global impact, setting the foundation to help animals for the next 70 years and beyond.

We conducted comprehensive research with audiences across eight global markets, revealing a core truth: the brand needed to stand for what a leader can solve that others can’t — effective and permanent impact. The big brand idea, tackling the root causes of animal cruelty, does just that, evoking the idea of what the Humane Society actually does: More than treat the symptoms of the problem, it brings the global resources, expertise and clout needed to create enduring change. 

From there, we set out to streamline the complex brand architecture; from our research, 73 percent of audiences were confused about the relationship between the two main brands. Our solve was to bring Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International together as a unified global brand, which could be flexed for local markets, and create overall cohesion with its domestic political affiliate, Humane Society Legislative Fund as well. 

Next, the brand needed a more intuitive name that told a resonant story, preserving existing equity while gaining new ground​. Humane World for Animals links to the legacy name while clearly communicating a global, animal mandate.

In developing the new symbol, we designed a more active mark that celebrates the brand’s impact across the sky, land and sea. The new globe icon, with interlocking animals in motion, speaks to the dynamic animal ecosystem and our interconnected relationships across the animal kingdom. The streamlined logo helps the brand be more visible, flexible, and better connect emotionally with audiences—especially as the focal point of the brand’s launch hero spot (developed by creative agency Nexus).

The iconic globe is supported by an eye-catching new design system that features a visual and verbal voice that helps the brand break through in a crowded media landscape. Communications feature powerful animal photography paired with a bold typographic language, Sharp Grotesk, to make a compelling emotional statement of action. A color palette and system of organic shapes inspired by animals and their natural environments round out the design toolkit.

Lippincott helped address an issue that held the Humane Society back for decades.  Working closely with the internal team, we navigated employees’ concerns about change, love of the existing logos, cultural and linguistic differences spanning the continents. Using data as the north star and tapping into the passion and purpose that drives every person who joins the movement, the new brand sets Humane World for Animals up to own its story, generate greater impact, more reach, and increased support over time.  The brand is now poised for the next 70 years of positive impact for animals.