Blood Cancer UK
Blood Cancer UK
A charity that funds vital life-saving research into all types of blood cancer as well as providing care and support to those affected including their families – the charity is a crucial source of support for those living with blood cancer.
Founded in 1960 by David and Hilda Eastwood who lost their daughter Susan to leukaemia – at that time survival rates were low, with most children dying from the disease, so David and Hilda started fundraising in the hope of finding a cure. Since then, the charity has spent over £500million on blood cancer research and now 8 in 10 children diagnosed with blood cancer survive.
It has dramatically improved blood cancer survival rates over the last 60 years, through carrying out research, giving patients support and information, and campaigning to raise people’s awareness. They support anyone affected by blood cancer — those with the condition, their families, carers and friends.
Studio
Created as part of Team Willer at Pentagram
Deliverables
Visual Identity
Design System
Guidelines and Toolkits
Measurables
General public awareness grew faster than any other charity in the YouGov Charity Index
General public awareness increased from 7% to 36%
People affected by blood cancer, awareness increased from 10% to 46%
Challenge
A fall in donations got the team thinking how they were communicating, identifying a disconnect between the brand and it’s audience as well as a lack of clarity with its name, then known as ‘Bloodwise’. It needed to grow its income, gain better engagement from supporters and help as many people suffering from blood cancer in all of its many forms.
Opportunity
There are a high number of charities working in the blood cancer space and with over 100 different types of blood cancer, Blood Cancer UK can claim to be the only one that funds research and provides support for them all.
Outcome
The new name adds clarity and helps define Blood Cancer UK’s scope, covering a broad spectrum of blood cancer types, helping people across the whole of the UK.
The word ‘Because’ is used to connect each activity and links back to the same cause – this later became an integral part of the tone of voice.
The charity was born from the story of one family’s loss and keeps the sense of family at the heart of how it operates. The symbol is a hand-drawn letter ‘B’, which stands for Blood Cancer UK, resembles a love heart and connects to the ‘Because’ tone of voice – a simple symbol that embodies passion, conviction and kindness.
The colour red was retained from the existing brand, elevated with new support colours to create a more recognisable palette that compliments the bright red. This is accompanied with typography that is friendly and yet scientific to indicate professional rigour yet remain approachable.
“Changing a name for the second time in five years is not something you do lightly. I expect we’ll get a some stick for doing it, and I still think we could have made the name Bloodwise associated in the public’s mind with blood cancer eventually and raised the money to play our part in beating blood cancer in the next 30 years.
But I realised that it would have been like driving with the handbrake on. We might have got there, but we wouldn’t have got there as quickly.”