Software / SaaS
Workio
A complete brand system for a productivity SaaS, from blank page to documented identity.
- My role
- Brand lead: strategy, identity, illustration, web design
What came of it
The identity went live and the team applied it themselves
The company closed later. The brand was in market first, and the guidelines held without me.
The brief
A productivity SaaS with a name and nothing else. It needed to look credible next to established software brands without the budget of one, and the team needed to keep applying the brand themselves after I left.
What I did
- Ran the identity exploration and killed a warm peach-and-red direction before locking the system. The ruled-out route is documented as part of the rationale
- Designed the geometric wordmark, the standalone 'W' mark for app icon and favicon, and the signature blue (#0099e8)
- Paired Azo Sans with Adelle to balance the technical and the human
- Drew a custom illustration set of 15+ pieces so the brand never needed stock imagery
- Designed the full web layout at 1920px
- Wrote brand guidelines detailed enough to brief a developer, a print supplier, or a replacement agency without loss of fidelity
How it went
Workio needed a confident, clean brand that could hold its own among productivity software and grow with the company. I built it from the ground up: strategy, logo, colour, typography, illustration and web design, all documented in brand guidelines the team could hand to any designer and get consistent results.
The brief asked for something professional and considered, sitting somewhere between scrappy startup and stiff corporate. The name 'Workio' suggested energy and forward motion, so the identity needed to match: a bold geometric wordmark, a standalone 'W' mark that worked as an app icon and favicon, and a signature blue (#0099e8) the brand could own.
I explored several directions before locking the system, including a warmer peach-and-red palette that I ruled out on purpose. Writing down why a route was rejected helps the team understand the one they kept.
Beyond the logo, I designed the full web layout at 1920px, drew a custom set of 15+ illustrations, and paired Azo Sans with Adelle to balance the technical and the human. It all went into brand guidelines detailed enough to brief a developer, a print supplier or a new agency without anything getting lost.