Can playful be professional? How %b Happy Humans b% successfully moved upmarket to close bigger deals

Happy Humans is a prominent HR-services company based in Belgium. It believes that a satisfied and engaged workforce leads to increased productivity. With a team of 12 HR professionals, they've made it their mission to turn every employee into a happy human. Happy Humans uses employee satisfaction surveys to uncover blind spots for employers and HR managers. 

This is the story of how Happy Humans successfully managed to move upmarket and close bigger deals, while keeping their “fun” brand. 

The challenge

When your brand is keeping you from closing bigger deals

Happy Humans’ focus on building a remarkable product enabled them to grow significantly in the small business market. Riding that wave, they decided to move upmarket. They wanted to close larger deals with bigger SME clients. But in order to successfully do so, they knew they had to invest in a more professional brand perception as their brand wasn't ready for the scale and growth they envisioned.

• Brand Perception: Their existing “joyful brand” was not resonating with larger SME companies. This hindered their ability to close bigger deals. It didn’t help in conveying their professionalism and expertise. They needed to develop a more professional and credible brand image to attract and close these clients.
• Increasing Competition: Growing competition in the HR space ment they needed to distinguish themselves. They recognised the importance of standing out in the crowd, both visually and verbally. 
• Website Effectiveness: The old site was cluttered, difficult to navigate, and lacked a clear call to action. It did not effectively communicate their value proposition. As a result, the website was not generating the quality and amount of leads that Happy Humans needed to grow their business.

Happy Humans risked remaining in a low-margin market without a strategic rebranding.

“Our fun-fun-fun brand image and cluttered offering portrayed us as a small team lacking experience. This was seriously limiting our access to bigger clients and higher revenue opportunities.” - Elke Haemelynck, Founder Happy Humans

The solution

Adding professionalism without losing the fun

Happy Humans called for aid… And Valued’s branding and messaging experts answered! *cue the LOTR music theme*

1. Research: We engaged in multiple workshops with the Happy Humans team. Together we gathered insights on ideal customers, branding preferences, and company mission… We conducted interviews to understand the ideal customer. We wanted to learn their motivations for choosing Happy Humans.
2. Brand Guide: We developed a new "Brand Guide" with a mission, vision, tone of voice, and tangible elements like logo, colors, and fonts. We created a matching brand identity that was more professional and credible, while still retaining Happy Humans' core values of fun and excitement.
3. Message Guide: We boiled our research down to a clear brand narrative. The narrative effectively communicated their value proposition and differentiated them from their competitors. The new brand positioning emphasized Happy Humans' expertise in employee satisfaction surveys. It highlighted their unique ability to uncover blind spots and provide actionable solutions.
4. Website: We redesigned Happy Humans' website to be more visually appealing and effective at lead generation. The site now features clear product and service descriptions. It builds credibility by focusing on social proof and the founder’s thought leadership as an HR expert.

“The insights from the customer interviews are a literal pot of gold. The Brand Guide and Message Guide continue to be a valuable resource. We still use it to guide other marketing activities.” - Elke Haemelynck, Founder Happy Humans

The results

More credibility means more deals

The results of our collaboration with Happy Humans have had a significant impact on the business:

• Clear Product Messaging: Multiple ideal customers praised the new website for its clear explanation of Happy Humans' offerings. 
• Increased Brand Perception: Happy Humans gained credibility. As a result, they shifted focus to larger mid-segment clients. This led to bigger deals and increased revenue.
• Enhanced Website Performance: Within a year, the redesigned website has quadrupled the amount of qualified leads - yes, that’s FOUR TIMES as much. This growth happened even without a dedicated marketing or sales person in the team. 
• Ready for Scale: Armed with a professional brand and clear message, Happy Humans can now confidently scale up marketing and sales efforts.
• Boosted Employer Branding: As a “happy little accident”, Happy Humans saw an overwhelming increase in the amount of free job applications to join their team. This shows that their playfulness didn’t go away. 

Conclusion

By partnering with Valued, Happy Humans has transformed not only their brand but also the business. Their new brand image is now attracting larger companies. Their redesigned website is generating qualified leads that are converting into paying customers. As a result, Happy Humans is now on a path to crush its ambitious goals, dominating the Belgian SME landscape. This story demonstrates how strategic branding decisions can open up paths to bigger deals and more revenue.