Brand Guidelines
Updated on 29 May 2024.
Hello, this is the Seagrass brand strategy guide.
It includes everything we stand for, as well as
how we feel, talk and look.
Content
01 Who we are
This is the core of who we are, why we exist and how we
show up. It sets the foundation that influences everything
we do.
Brand Mission
Seagrass, a subsidiary of E.ON, is a climate finance company with a mission to help restore our planet.
We provide the following services – Carbon Strategy, Carbon Analysis, Carbon Financing and Carbon Sourcing – with a single goal: sourcing high-integrity credits for buyers to deliver scale and capital to climate projects that reduce, remove or avoid emissions.
We source high-integrity credits for buyers, with a focus on hard-to-abate industries. We deliver capital to to climate projects working with project developers and investors. And, we partner with governments to deliver carbon governance structures and compliance schemes, alongside Article 6 transactions.
Seagrass facilitates trusted, tailored and fair carbon trades and climate investments. Depending on their needs, clients can invest in a wide range of projects, or access bespoke investment opportunities through our network and settle transactions through our infrastructure, both offline and digitally.
We aim to unlock the potential of carbon finance to deliver the transition to net zero and a more sustainable future.
Brand Values
Every decision we make should be driven by our values. They guide how we act, respond and show up every day.
Brand Positioning
WHAT WE DO
Seagrass is a climate finance company, with a mission to restore our planet.
FOR WHO
HOW WE DO IT
WHY
We source high-integrity credits for buyers, with a focus on hard-to-abate industries. We deliver capital to to climate projects working with project developers and investors. And, we partner with governments to deliver carbon governance structures and compliance schemes, alongside Article 6 transactions.
We provide four key services – Carbon Strategy, Carbon Analysis, Carbon Financing and Carbon Sourcing – with a single goal: sourcing high-integrity credits for buyers to deliver scale and capital to climate projects that reduce, remove or avoid emissions.
We aim to unlock the potential of carbon finance to deliver the transition to net zero and a more sustainable future.
Brand Rationale
Seagrass — a plant that plays a huge role in tackling climate change. A plant that captures carbon faster than tropical rainforests. A plant that provides the marine ecosystem vital security and support. And Seagrass isn’t singular, it’s a collective term that represents a complex network, with innumerable symbiotic elements.
Like our namesake, we want to provide the same security and support to our community with a safe and global voluntary carbon credit marketplace that facilitates trusted, tailored and fair carbon trades and investments. We will work collaboratively with our users and our colleagues towards achieving our mission - to restore our planet, together.
But we also understand it’s not always that easy. We’re here to help our customers turn a challenge into a chance, tackle big things simply, collaborate to overcome uncertainty and to equip them with the knowledge to make impactful decisions.
Because at the end of the day: You don’t have to save the world*
*But you can help.
02 How we sound
Whether you’re sending an email, creating a campaign
or writing a social media post — our brand voice should shine through.
Use this guide to make sure we maintain a consistent voice.
Our Personality
THE PRAGMATIC VISIONARY
OUR TRAITS
Our Voice
Our tone is how we say what we say. It can be dialled up or down depending on who we’re talking to, but should always be used as a base to help our personality shine through and help our users recognise us.
Our Verbal Mark
Our brand mark is the circled asterisk which helps us present ourselves as provocative, confident and clear. It also helps us bring our brand strategy to life - see example below.
You don’t have to save the world*
*But you can help.
03 How we look
Remember to keep it stripped back, and let the message do the talking. The clarity and simplicity should be visually obvious for the brand strategy and brand mark to shine through.
Our Logo
Our logo is our most valuable element. It highlights our brand strategy and represents our mission. The different spokes speak to the different people and partners behind out company.
Logo Overview
Logo Colours
Our logo is only to be used in black or white. As a general note, try not to place the logo on busy backgrounds. If the background is dark make sure to use the white logo and if the background is light make sure to use the black logo.
Sizing
Our primary logo has been designed to work at huge sizes, this means that we can scale it up as much as we need. If you’re looking to go smaller than 300px please consider using the secondary logo. However, if you’re looking to go smaller than 150px please use the brand mark on its own.
Clearspace
To ensure visibility, the logo should have a surrounding clearspace, free from text or other graphic elements. In our case, the clear space is 1x the asterisks.
Logo Dont's
Brand Mark
Our brand mark is the asterisk which allows our customers to immediately recognise us.
We have three main uses for the brand mark: we use it as as part of our main logo, a verbal device, and a decorative device.
Strategic Co-branding
How to present Seagrass in combination
with other brands.
01. Seagrass x Masterbrand
02. Seagrass x Tech Enabler
03. Seagrass x Startegic Partners
01.
Seagrass x Masterbrand
Priming branding
To highlight SEAGRASS a masterbrand we will use the primary logo - asterisks with SEAGRASS text.
02.
Seagrass x Subbrand
To ensure a clear hierarchy of relationships, we will have subbrands linked to our masterbrand. These allow us to build brand equality through our portfolio. eg Seagrass World Carbon Map
03.
Seagrass x Strategic Partners
To convey partnership structures and responsibilities across SEAGRASS engagement, we will present logos at the same level using the asterisk spacing size with a simple line to separate the two logos. SEAGRASS should be presented first.
Our Colours
Our main colours are a combination of punchy and neutral
greens mixed with black, white and cream. The punchy green,
which is our hero colour, is used minimally just to highlight
a specific element or message.
How to Use Colours
When applying the colours to a visual, try to maintain a bright background, with the correct colour percentage
White 50%
Cream 30%
Seagras Green 10%
Orca Black 10%
Colour Pairings
Our Icons
Our icons follow the same look and feel as our brand mark.
You can choose to use the outlined or filled versions
depending on how busy or clear the background is.
Outlined Icons
These icons are to be used as decorative tools, for print and social media purposes.
Filled Icons
These icons can be used across different digital mediums from social media to the product itself.
UI Icons
This set of icons is the main one for the digital product, these icons will be available within the UI system tool kit which you can find in the templates section below.
FavIcon
This icon is to be used for the address bar of the browser so that customers can easily recognize and find us in between their multiple opened tabs.
Our Photography
Our brand will come to life through the use of photography that combines aerial views of nature with the humans behind the platform.
Nature Photography
These images are used to speak to our core mission – the planet. The abstract images bring a sense of power and ambition, and each image contains an element of water to talk to our brand name.
How to use nature photography
Our hero photo - used on the majority of our assets.
Other images can be used as backgrounds for texts, or graphs, as well as dividers within presentations.
Demand Side Photography
When targeting the buyers we always use images with a low angle perspective, where the character is looking to the right side. These images should always be placed from the left side of any layout.
In our selection we try to showcase an inclusive group that resonates with our target audience.
Supply Side Photography
When targeting the sellers we always use images with a low angle perspective, where the character is looking to the left side. These images should always be placed from the right side of any layout.
In our selection we focus on showcasing the different types of sellers available on the platform.
How to pair supply and demad images
Throughout our communication, we might need to showcase the two sides of the exchange working together. Therefore we choosing images from the supply and demand please make sure to pick photos with complimentary hues and relative perspectives.
How to Crop
When cropping images try to keep the following points in mind:
- Center the subject
- Leave breathing room around the face
- Use a 4:5 or 1:1 or 16:9 ratio
Our Typography
We use Helvetica Now Display as our typeface. Its simplicity and clarity make it a good font to be used on print and digital.
Font
Helvetica Now Display is based on the classic and minimalist font Helvetica. A classic typeface bought into modern day, to evoke trust and familiarity. A font that is designed for the digital era creating more freedom in the design.
Type Hierarchy
Try to ensure that the text is used with the proper hierarchy to maintain visual equilibrium.
Type Alignment
What Not to Do
Our Layouts
This section will give you a clear overview about our margins
and grids so to construct consistent visual layouts.
Margins
To ensure a great visual layout, we use margins. To calculate our margins we use the longest side of the frame and divide it
by 25.
Note: In case the layout is using a very wide or very tall frame, the margins will need to be adjusted manually for optical correctness.
Layout - Aligned Left
Layout - Aligned Right
Our UI System
this section will provide you with the necessary tools
and assets to start designing the digital products for seagrass.
04 How we come
to life
These are a few examples of how our brand comes to life in
print, digital and environment.
Digital
Templates