Tiny Changes

New Business

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Opportunity

Early intervention is essential to improve mental health, but our public services are struggling to cope. Determined to do something to help, Tiny Changes was set up to support people and projects that positively impact young people’s mental health. The organisation was founded by the family of Scott Hutchison, the singer of Scottish band Frightened Rabbit, who died by suicide in May 2018. Scott’s legacy inspired a bold vision; to help young minds feel better. With this in mind we set about taking the brand in a new direction to be more appropriate for its younger audience and message, whilst honouring Scott’s values and creativity.

Our Role

Branding and guidelines
Copywriting
Typography
Iconography
Web design and experience
Animation
Online festival campaign
Social media guidance

Strategy

Tiny Changes support young people aged 0-30 so we had a large demographic to appeal to. Not only this but the conversations led by Tiny Changes meant that they needed a brand that would support them through difficult narratives one day but could also demand action the next. We didn’t want to alienate any of the valued support the charity already has but we had to create a trustworthy brand that could evolve with its new growing audience.

Through research we identified three areas of focus for the brand strategy that would help set Tiny Changes apart from other children’s mental health charities.

1

Positive narrative.

Raising voices of lived experience.

2

Honest conversation.

A brand as a tool to help people communicate.

3

Creative solutions.

Supporting projects that challenge expectations.

Inspired by Scott

Scott’s lyrics, artwork and creativity were medicine to many and we knew this would form the foundation of the brand. Working with typographer Mitchel Gillies we developed an alphabet and icons to bring Scotts characters to life. The trustees expertly named the typeface Extrasupervery, influenced by the song on the bands first album Midnight Organ Fight, and so this was the foundation of the new brand. Youthful and full of impact, it was perfect for the charities new direction.

Logo

Knowing that we had a more playful typeface we developed a logo that would work as a stamp of trust. It had to be legible at small sizes and look powerful. Tiny Changes may be a small charity but they make a big impact.

Typography

For body copy we chose Chromatica, which supports legibility for young readers but also harks back to the trustees roots in the Scottish Borders as it was developed by Polytype; a type foundry run by Lewis MacDonald from the Scottish Borders.

Coping Cards

To celebrate the healing power of words we turned the organisations business cards into a series of coping cards. Not only do the cards help start humble and honest conversations around the messages we all use to feel better, but they can be used as a set to help bring focus, clarity and comfort when needed. Thanks to the team, Tiny Changes audience and Scott for their powerful words.

Styling

Styling and colour play a huge role across the brand to create different moods to match different conversations. This flexibility really opens up the dialogue. Pastels and simple type evoke sensitivity, empathy and understanding, where as a more vibrant palette with styled typography conveys energy and activism. No conversation is off limits.

Voice, vision and mission

Scott’s lyrics made a deep connection with many. Words can hurt but they can also heal and we knew language would be an essential part of this brand. We worked closely with the trustees to develop tone of voice, vision and mission statements and key messaging to create consistency across communications from the website to social media. Scott’s core values of honesty, bravery, kindness and most importantly hope lie at the heart of everything Tiny Changes communicates.

Website

Educating funders, supporting and empowering young people as well as connecting and inspiring change makers are just a few ways in which we helped Tiny Changes communicate with a large and varied audience.

Accessible Application Process

We created a seamless user experience for the Make Tiny Changes Fund application process. The fund is a pilot grant programme that supports innovative ideas that will help improve attitudes and services around the mental health of young people. Inspired by the applicants we streamlined the process to make it as legible and simple as possible. It was essential the application catered to all ages and abilities.

Social Media

Social media is a key communication tool for the brand due to its youthful demographic. We created a guidelines for posts.

Tiny Gigs

A weekend of online gigs featuring performances from artists like The Staves and Frank Turner, aimed to raise support for an emergency COVID-19 relief fund. We created the promotional graphics, animations and set lists for the event.

Impact

Since launch in June 2020, the charity have had 8,422 new users (Aug 2020). The funds raised through Tiny Gigs and site donations continue to fund the charity’s Make Tiny Changes Fund which is going through its first round of applicants. Follow their journey or better yet become a tiny change maker by visiting tinychanges.com

Credits

Type designer: Mitchell Gillies
Animation: Dave Morrow
Site build: Infinite Eye
Social media: sTUFFs