How we visualised the world of parcels and turned staff into pros

PPL first approached us back at the start of 2021, looking for a strategic partner in marketing. Besides a new brand identity and a recruitment campaign, we also created campaigns for its Balík pro tebe and Parcel Smart services and the new mojePPL mobile app.

We had a free hand when creating the new visual identity. The only constraint was to keep the existing logo and the primary blue.

The basic building block of the new brand is nothing other than the parcel – a simple element that sits at the centre of every PPL service. The world of parcels is very diverse. To operate properly within it, we knew everything had to be clear and orderly, just like in the real world. That’s why our base pattern has a clear order and isn’t chaotic. Everything takes place in isometry with mathematical precision.

The iconic parcel is reflected in the colours too, as the blue is now complemented by carton beige. Since PPL is deeply committed to sustainability, a green colour symbolising its ecological footprint was also added to the brand book.

The range of applications for the new brand identity is broad, spanning all kinds of online and offline outputs — from banners through billboards and CLV displays to the mood design of the offices. We compiled all the rules for using the new brand identity, including the logo manual, into a clear brand book.

We used the new brand identity in the recruitment campaign as well. Its goal was to increase the number of applicants and fill open positions. The target group and the wider public often see work in logistics as uninteresting and not very appealing. We set out to dispel these prejudices in the campaign and present PPL as an attractive employer.

When journalists once asked a NASA janitor what his job involved, he told them he was helping to put a man on the moon. We built the campaign on a simple insight: there are no small jobs. We just sometimes tend to talk about our own with needless modesty. Those who — not only during the waves of the pandemic — saved us with their deliveries and often served as our only contact with the outside world can rightly be called heroes.

That’s why in the campaign we decided to showcase the superpowers of PPL’s employees. We highlight their skills and make it clear that we value them — and not only them, but also those who will soon join their ranks. The main unifying claim of the whole campaign was: When you’re surrounded by pros, you can be one too.

Through apparent exaggeration we explained what the job entails in the key positions we needed to communicate in the campaign. While warehouse worker Jirka lifts a tonne with one finger, Kristýna from Customer Service puts out fifty fires a day. When driver Olda approaches, the whole street stands to attention, and dispatcher Renáta can steer a hundred cars at once. And the best part is that Jirka, Kristýna, Olda and Renata are real heroes from PPL who actually work in these positions.