Akrôss

A new brand for chronic pain relief

The Client

Akrôss, both the product and the company, were formed from the partnership of medical scientists and performance artists who were frustrated by the current state of anti-inflammatories available in the market. They saw untapped potential in CBD as a medically safe form of topical pain relief.

The Project

A brand to build confidence and trust

Some key takeaways from our kickoff call:

"CBD has good science, but mostly the focus has been ingestibles."

"Most other CBD topicals are akin to snake oil (overpriced, ineffective)"

"We're working with clinicians, so we want a respectably clinical look."

"Nothing holistically granola hippy"

"Akrôss is backed by research, our efficacy is highly rated."

"We need no gimmicks."

Finding the Brand's Personality

Engaging stakeholders to find the individual personality traits for Akrôss

Company founders participated in a workshop where we built a character for the brand, using common archetypes as a framework to guide the conversation. Various traits of each archetype were discussed, compared, and debated. Which traits would best connect with their customers?

Once we aligned on 4 archetypes that represented the stakeholder's shared vision of the company, we then explored representative brands and imagery that personified each archetype. We took note of the elements we liked, as well as anything we wished to avoid. These notes would inform the first round of concept sketching for the logo.

Designing the Logo

Initial Explorations presented to stakeholders (sampling):

2 concepts selected to explore further:

Concept A

Influences from "Sage" and "Caregiver" archetypes.

Concept B

Influences from "Lover" and "Caregiver" archetypes.

Ultimately, Concept A was elected to drive the brand.

Stakeholders responded to the geometric feel of the wordmark.
The triangle pattern resonated, with comments that it evoked how the product absorbed through skin.
While "B" had its fans (particularly the Greek flourishes), the overall treatment felt too reminiscent of cosmetics.

Brand Deliverables