Appical’s new brand identity explained

At Appical, with the mindset to innovate and digitalize the employee journey, we’re constantly improving our cutting-edge platform to empower HR departments worldwide to create tailored experiences. Having only our product just wasn’t enough. As a brand, we wanted to convey our mission and vision to the world. We decided to refine what makes us Appical, and have an identity that accurately reflects our brand, our people, our platform and what we stand for. Want to have more insights on our rebranding story? Read on!

From zero to hero

Ever since Appical was founded in 2012, we have been continuously growing and questioning our purpose. Initially, Appical was on a mission to shape a new hire’s first day and make it more engaging and interactive. Consequently, we expanded our scope and covered phases before and after the first working day. Next to our main focus of pre- & onboarding, Appical also aims to guide your employees throughout their entire journey with reboarding and offboarding. As our scope changed, so did our identity. Through internal brainstorming sessions, sketches and inspiration-seeking, we’ve slowly drawn up an exciting picture that is our brand today. More inclusive, focused and ambitious, we believe Appical’s new branding embodies everything we do, and everything we believe in. 

We’re rebranding to ensure we continue to empower HR managers and employees worldwide and redesign the future of the employee journey. Whether it’s a new hire starting their new job, a boomerang employee returning to the company or an offboardee waiting to say goodbye, Appical empowers everyone with the best employee experience. 

After going through all these exciting (and necessary) changes, what remains is that we kept the new hire, or the employee at the heart of everything we do. 

We empower talent

We empower managers and employees with the best employee experiences, making sure every talent receives the necessary boost to succeed in their role. 

Our new mission and vision

Defining our mission and vision statements is a crucial step to help shape our identity, our objectives and our goals for the future of onboarding.

Our mission is to digitize and boost the employee experience through innovative technology, so your employees are successful in their everyday job!

Our vision is a world where every employee has an unforgettable employee journey and Human Resources is empowered through innovative technology.

People

People play a key role in our imagery, whether it is a new hire starting out on an exciting journey at their new job, or a thoughtful manager making sure their employees feel at home. 

Our imagery is honest, optimistic, inspiring and joyful. We used our own employees to tell our story, and act as our brand ambassadors. We even made some videos of our support team on colorful backgrounds, explaining how we help clients create their digital onboarding journey!

Our branding team had a blast with photoshoots every now and then in our own studio, delivering you all the smiles you see through our visual communication. 

A vibrant color palette

Appical’s color palette is bold, fresh and lively. Our two primary colors are Dodger blue and Living coral. The secondary colors help give a more playful side to our branding. We like playing with different combinations to create ‘rasters’ of people, shapes and colors. 

Appical’s main color is and always will be blue, as blue represents trustworthiness, stability and consistency.

The use of shapes

Another key element of our visual identity is shapes. We implement the use of shapes as secondary to our people-focused imagery. Shapes represent the diversity of Appical - as we empower every shape and size, and every industry and job. Shapes serve as the building blocks of an effective employee journey, and the fundamentals we provide for new hires to succeed in their roles. 

• The full circle represents the ongoing journey of onboarding.
• The sliced circle represents growth and development on our way to make it whole.
• The block is a representation of a solid foundation to a successful career.
• The tulip represents our Dutch roots.
• The speech balloon represents conversation and communication.
• The bow represents the smiles we create with our product.
• The triangle represents stability, which we strive to bring to every company that works with Appical.

Our tone of voice

We empower and inspire people, so using an appropriate tone of voice is important for us. Appical makes use of a conversational tone in combination with vibrant designs to make communication feel fun and simple. We use straightforward everyday language to educate people without patronizing our audience. We keep our communication transparent, effortless and short, but still characterful, fun and distinctive.  

We use affirmative, uplifting words, and encourage action, and we avoid being passive.  As a thought leader in the HR tech industry, we aim to give our audience the tools and insights they need via our empowering communication. Our voice is an external representation of who we are and what we stand for as a brand.  

We stick to this guideline for our communications, at the same time defining what we are, and aren't:  

• Conversational (but not unprofessional)
• Witty (but never silly)
• Trustworthy (but not stiff)
• Helpful (but not overbearing)
• Ambitious (but not overpromising)
• Clear (but not patronizing)
• Empowering (but not fearing)

Yes, we have branded goodies too!

From mugs, tote bags, to chocolate bars or notebooks, we have them all! We were very excited to incorporate our new visual identity into colorful goodies. Follow our Instagram to catch a glimpse of our awesome merchandise!  

Redefining our brand is just the beginning. We’re glad that you are with us on this journey, and we hope you will stick around to witness our growth in the exciting future ahead. One thing for sure though, Appical promises to continue to empower HR professionals and employees all over the world with an unforgettable employee experience. 

We’re proud of having empowered people, and we won’t stop doing so any time soon. Happy to have you on board!

Do you have any questions about our brand identity, or do you want to take a look at our Brand book? Contact Appical’s Brand Manager Christophe Wallecan via christophe@appical.nl.