Press release: 23rd July 2015
South Manchester based mutual society Shepherds Friendly, one of the UK’s oldest mutual societies, has unveiled their new brand look following a period of in depth research and feedback from their members.
Shepherds Friendly has taken the opportunity to implement a new visual identity and online presence to support its member’s requirements and needs, as well as the growth of the society.
The new Shepherds Friendly Society brand was designed from the ground up with their members at the forefront of all their decisions. Feedback was sought throughout the process via focus groups email and their customer services department.
In addition to the new brand the Society has simultaneously launched its redesigned website. The new website offers members easier access to essential financial information such as product literature, finance blogs and news about how the Society supports its members and the local community.
In keeping with its ethos of always putting the member at the heart of everything the Society does, the majority of the work completed throughout this project was carried out by Shepherds Friendly employees. The Society utilised the skills of its staff for a variety reasons including:
- A better understanding of the Societies mutual ethos therefore always putting the members at the forefront of their individual project or task
- A sound awareness of the Shepherds Friendly customer journey and how the companies mission, values and principles affect it
- The ability to manage and control the overall project in real-time and cost efficiently
The decision to develop the new brand and website in-house was a brave, unique and innovative step for the Society to take. With under 50 employees, it was a daunting challenge; however the skill sets and expertise of the Shepherds Friendly employees involved allowed the project to be completed on-time and within budget for a fraction of the cost of outsourcing it.
This level of dedication was also witnessed recently when Shepherds Friendly received their Investors in People bronze award in a record amount of time. The creation of the website and its development truly reflects the time and effort the company puts into its employees on a regular basis, through a variety of methods and techniques. Shepherds Friendly are now currently working towards their Investors in People silver award.
Over the next twelve months Shepherds Friendly’s aim is to continually develop the customer journey both overall and through its website by adding additional user-friendly features such as a member log-in facility, podcasts, videos and more.
Ann-Marie O’Dea, CEO of Shepherds Friendly Society, said:
“This is a very exciting time for Shepherds Friendly. We can’t thank our members enough for the time they have given us to help with this project. The dedication and expertise of our staff team has meant that we have been able to create a stronger brand, which is representative of a modern mutual. The development of our website is sure to enhance the Societies already established position in the mutual sector”
