Happy Makes Branding
The Tax Farm Less Taxing
We’ve helped turn one accountant’s dream into a reality.
John Thorburn is not your typical accountant. He may have had a fairly traditional (and highly successful) career to date but not long ago, John realised that while the corporates get lots of smart tech and innovation to help complete their tax returns, self-employed small business owners rarely do. So he decided to do something about it. The Tax Farm is the result. It’s an accountancy service that really understands the sole traders, SMEs and landlords who are the core of The Tax Farm’s business. And it combines smart use of tech and even smarter prices with a friendly approach to create a very different sort of accountancy service. John asked Happy to create a brand, a website, social media presence and content that matched his vision.
Doing tax differently
There’s only one way to get a firm understanding of a founder’s vision – especially when that vision is a bit different to the norm. We spent lots of time with John understanding the business’ personality. At discovery sessions we explored design concepts, imagery, tone of voice and more, all of which are now part of the new brand. Take a look at The Tax Farm website, and you’ll find very little that feels like a traditional accountancy firm. The branding is edgier, with imagery and a feel that shouts difference and reflects John’s love of music. The language is more direct and conversational, designed to appeal to the target audience without the formality you’ll typically find on financial sites. And it’s already striking a chord with new clients.
“I had an idea to do accountancy differently,” explains John, “but I found it tricky to visualise that. Happy have taken what was in my head and made it a reality – and I’m so happy with the results and the process. From the very start, developing the brand and working with the team has felt easy.”
“It’s always so exciting to help someone create a business from scratch,” says Chief happy Happy Karen Lambert. “You have the benefit of starting from a clean sheet of paper, but that also creates the challenge of being the first to articulate an idea. I think The Tax Farm demonstrates our ability to take an unconventional business idea and turn it into a brand that really works.”