Guest article: Paul Croxton, Ascend Studio
Think of the brands you love the most. The ones that feel like they speak directly to you. The ones you follow, talk about and trust instinctively. Now ask yourself how many of them operate in the professional services space….
It’s probably a short list.
For a sector that trades on expertise, relationships and trust, professional services brands often feel…flat, bland, predictable. They stick to familiar templates – safe fonts, stock imagery, guarded messaging. They prioritise consistency and tradition over distinction and connection.
Sure, there are reasons for this. Safe branding feels low-risk. A consistent identity builds recognition and a formal tone expresses professionalism. But that can all be preserved within a brand strategy that does much more for a business.
Because if the purpose of a brand is to take up residence in the minds of clients, prospects, talent and stakeholders, then it has to work as hard as the best consumer-facing names in the world. It has to mean something and be memorable. It has to be human.
That’s where the idea of the ‘uncorporate corporate brand’ comes in.
Conveying a human side to professional services businesses is crucial for building trust, relatability and long-term client relationships, qualities especially important in sectors like law, where complexity and formality often create distance.
Our work with Thackray Williams is a good example of human-centred branding. Faced with an outdated identity that no longer reflected its values or ambitions, Ascend unearthed a core truth: Thackray’s greatest strength lay in its people.
The rebrand embraced this – including the strapline ‘Law firms don’t solve problems, people do’ – transforming the firm’s identity into one that highlights empathy, clarity and connection. Hand-cut paper illustrations were introduced to soften and personalise complex legal topics, making them more accessible and emotionally resonant. The result was a compelling narrative built around approachability and authenticity.
No more stuffed shirts
Corporate branding used to be about control. You defined your identity, designed your logo, chose your colour palette and stuck with them. The brand probably spoke in a formal tone – it was serious, professional and impersonal by design.
That made sense in a world where authority and hierarchy drove purchasing decisions, where facelessness signalled strength and where brands operated at a safe remove from their audiences.
But times have changed.
Today’s clients and customers expect more. They want transparency and to understand the people behind the business. They want to know about your values and stories and be given a reason to care. In short, they want brands that behave like people. In this environment, it’s the businesses that show up with honesty, clarity and humanity that thrive.
And for professional services, that means stepping out from behind the corporate curtain.
What exactly is an ‘uncorporate corporate’ brand?
It’s authentic. Cut the buzzwords and ditch the clichés. If your brand language sounds like it could belong to any of your competitors – “we offer bespoke solutions”, “we’re committed to excellence”, “we put your needs first” – it’s not saying anything real. Start from the truth of who you are. What makes your business different? What do you actually believe?
Show the people behind the work. That doesn’t always mean headshots and bios, but it does mean letting your voice sound like a person, not a boilerplate. People respect businesses that acknowledge uncertainty when it’s there as well as celebrating wins.
A strong brand is consistent, yes, but that doesn’t mean rigid. Build a flexible brand system that allows you to adapt tone, visuals and messaging to suit different contexts. The key is coherence, not uniformity.
Expertise doesn’t have to mean intimidation, either. Often, the most effective brands are the ones that make complex things feel simple, so try clear, conversational language. Design with accessibility in mind and make your brand feel like an invitation, not a lecture.
The real opportunity for professional services lies in becoming more relatable and more memorable. Not by abandoning professionalism, but by redefining what it looks like in a modern world.
A brand doesn’t have to be loud, but it does have to be real. So let’s move beyond the safe, the stiff and the forgettable and build brands that make people feel something.
Paul Croxton is the Creative Director at Ascend Studio.