From concept to reality: rebranding Google Squared
2nd November 2014
It’s catered to people working in the advertising and creative industries and encourages learning by doing and action over theory; training participants to affect change in their industries behaviour and methods by understanding how technology impacts society.
I was fortunate enough to discover Squared when it was first introduced and instantly identified with their vision and way of doing things. However, I had always felt that their branding was severely lacking. It wasn’t congruent with their can-do attitude and innovative teaching methods.
A massive case-study on the design process of the Squared education initiative by Google: http://t.co/xQWbKuT0NP
— Smashing Magazine (@smashingmag) August 11, 2013
Not long after publishing the conceptual rebrand, I met the small and passionate Squared team at Google London and in October 2013 they hired me to re-imagine the Squared brand from the ground up, for real. Here’s a brief overview of the journey we took to give a new face to their groundbreaking educational initiative.
Process
I joined the participant groups online to follow their discussions, studied the photos from Squared events and attended one of their prototype workshops at Google London, to understand what it feels like to learn with the team.
Student feedback
From their feedback, it was clear that change is a constant in the Squared experience. A similar trend appeared when observing the words the team used to describe the programme:
What if Squared were more than it is now? If we grew to become Google’s global education platform for teaching the world with the greatest experts, the latest technology and the fastest delivery methods, how would we look and sound?
The new Squared brand is the result of these philosophies.
Logo
The original logo was created back when Squared first began – as a scrappy, skunkworks project at Google London. Now that Squared had matured, such a literal execution wasn’t necessary.
Inspiration
We knew we needed to take the new Squared brand in this direction, but without sacrificing our edge by becoming overly friendly.
The frame
Memorable
The brain acknowledges shapes before anything else. Repeated exposure to symbols is what allowed brands like Apple and Nike to become so deeply ingrained in our minds. It’s why road signs aren’t written in text, because they need to be universal and instantly understandable in a fraction of a second.
Colour comes next. Blue, Red, Yellow and Green are Google’s calling cards. You’ve seen them thousands of times already and you’ll keep seeing them – every time you open the Google homepage.
Brutally simple, memorable and perhaps one day, iconic.
Versatile
To become ubiquitous, the frame needed to be able to accommodate a wide range of use cases. From collaborations with partners to playful logo illustrations, the frame is a mark you can take anywhere.
Agnostic
Although Squared is a Google project, the team’s teaching methods are ‘platform agnostic’. They don’t encourage the use of Google products more than competing services and they’ll collaborate with anyone if it results in a better experience for their students.
Because of this, it was important to deviate from Google’s typical product logo anatomy and position Squared as a standalone brand. A Google project, but with no bias toward the company.
One of my initial ideas was to integrate a bold logotype within the frame, completing the ‘S’ that’s implied by the frame.
Final lock up
Messaging
Having a clear voice to represent the new brand was imperative. Our old messaging had begun to feel awkward and clunky – a little too long to be a tagline and too short to be a manifesto.
Squared talks a lot about ‘the digital revolution’ (the one we’re in right now) and Google even named their Barbican London art exhibition after it – again, change is a constant for Squared. We knew that the brand should look and feel like the symbol of the digital revolution as a movement. A community with a shared belief system: the belief that the digital revolution is underway, that we’re right on the fringe and that we need to make the most of it.
The Google accent
Look closely at core Google products – from the experimental Chromebook Pixel to Google’s marketing landing pages – and you’ll see a simple strip of Blue, Red, Yellow and Green.
I’ve always loved this playful touch. Bold, energetic colours against an otherwise stark and minimalist aesthetic. It’s just like the Google homepage.
This is the new message for Squared. An idea that projects confidence and utilises what I call ‘the Google accent’.
When paired with an instantly recognisable symbol, Squared becomes the face and the voice of a new movement in education. Welcome to the revolution.
Note: The ‘google.com/squared’ URL is used for illustrative purposes only and is not currently active.
We are Squared
Using the new frame and message in combination allows for countless executions. International launches are a great example, evoking the sense that you’re a part of something bigger than yourself.
Identity system
Google’s design philosophy runs throughout the new Squared identity, bringing consistency and authenticity to the brand.
Colours
Typography
Iconography 
Identity guidelines
Collateral
Communications were drastically simplified across all of the Squared properties. Non-essential copy was either removed entirely or shortened for clarity, making way for clear and concise information with an upbeat tone.
Communication, Google-style.
Invitation
When I created the conceptual rebrand back in 2013, I said: “Being invited to join Squared should carry with it a sense of occasion. It should be a personalised experience, akin to being accepted to your dream university or gaining admission to an exclusive club.”
This idea featured invites via both email and post. In reality, students are invited to Squared via their companies and receive a confirmation email before they join. With this in mind, we needed to avoid having the email feel cold or empty, so we brought the sign-up tasks to the forefront.
This is typically participants first contact with Squared – it’s where they tell us all about themselves. Making it feel welcoming while also allowing it to be exciting and even a little nerve-wracking was important.
Note: Confidential information has been replaced with dummy text.
Website
Like the original Squared branding, the website for Squared Online (a distance learning version of the programme, powered by Home Learning College) was conceived when the project was much smaller and scrappier and the site was in serious need of an overhaul.
Despite this, application volumes for the programme are incredibly high, so the new site needed to be both visually aligned with the new Squared brand while also making it as easy as possible to apply to join.
Now fully responsive, the site pares content back even further on mobile, making it lightning fast and showing only the essential information needed to learn more or apply to join.
Advertising
Squared’s bold and direct tone of voice lends itself well to advertising, showing the project for what it really is: a new movement in career learning.
Note: The ‘google.com/squared’ URL is used for illustrative purposes only and is not currently active.
Welcome to the revolution.
Global launch
When I first met the Squared team, it was comprised of just 3 incredibly passionate and hardworking people operating within one country, but the work they did and the people they inspired (myself included) paved the way for something much larger.
Since the rebrand was implemented in April 2014, Squared has expanded globally: launching in Google Singapore, New York, Hong Kong and Germany, educating thousands along the way and becoming the foundation for an even larger international education initiative.
Thanks for reading. You can follow me on Twitter, here.