What we loved about future proofing the ABHI

We are really excited that four of our projects are shortlisted to be Finalists in the Communique Awards 2019. We are so excited, in fact, that Kirsty and I have written a series of short blogs sharing what we loved about each of these pieces of work. The series will be on our website – mearnsandpike.com – but to save you a click of the mouse, you can read our first blog here…

ABHI (Association of British HealthTech Industries) has represented the interests of the UK medical technology industry since 1988, but its position as the leading voice in the sector was under threat. 

Conscious that their reputation was of a traditional trade association, the Executive Committee and Board decided that action was needed to “future proof” ABHI to broaden their appeal and membership base and position them more strongly as a forward-thinking force in healthcare. 

Our brief was to reinvigorate the ABHI brand and positioning and use this as a platform to promote future growth and influence in the sector. We achieved this by gathering insights from ABHI members, stakeholders and the wider environment, changing the organisation’s name to reflect the focus on HealthTech, creating a new visual brand – with our friends at Nu Creative - and developing a new story, tone and lexicon that would underpin everything ABHI does internally and externally.  

As a result ABHI is experiencing a higher level of engagement with influential stakeholders, including Secretary of State Matt Hancock. Membership is growing with a strong representation from the digital/app/data sector and online and social media followers have increased significantly.

Jon: What I loved about this project…

I really loved working on this because everyone was so open-minded and ready to challenge their preconceptions based on the insights gathered from members, stakeholders and the internal team. We didn’t end up where we thought we would end up and that, for me, shows that the process worked and that the client was ready to challenge the old ways of doing things to give themselves the best chance of success in the future. Watching how they have built on the new brand to grow members, influence and their appeal is really inspiring and makes me feel proud to have played a role in helping them to define their future.

Kirsty: What I loved about this project….

This was a true team effort between us, the ABHI team and Nu Creative. We gathered the insights and helped everyone to make sense of them so together we could shape the direction. Nu Creative created a fabulous new logo and brand that would propel ABHI forwards, and the ABHI team took these ingredients and ran with it, creating a whole host of materials and activities to bring the brand to life. Working in that way is fun, rewarding and allows everyone to bring their strengths to the table – I loved it!