We’ve got people in Spain, France, Finland, and even one team member bouncing across Eastern Europe (soon to be logging in from Colombia).

Since the COVID days, remote work has become second nature (or maybe first nature, depending on how you look at it). And while we wouldn’t trade this lifestyle for anything, Q4 of 2025 reminded us just how powerful both remote and in-person collaboration can be, especially when the people involved are aligned, passionate, and working toward something bigger.

This is the story of two big ICOM projects that unfolded almost simultaneously. One happened entirely online, across time zones and continents. The other was in person, on a tiny Mediterranean island.

Let’s start with the first one.

The power of virtual collaboration

Two years ago, ICOM kicked off one of its most ambitious projects to date: a full brand refresh. Like any proper project of this scale, it wasn’t about a new logo or a sleeker website – this was about real strategic realignment. About reflecting who the organisation is today and where it’s headed next, and how that determines how it presents itself in every touchpoint. 

In true ICOM fashion, this project brought together multiple member agencies from around the globe. Switch had the privilege of articulating the brand foundations – its promise, values, tone of voice, and the story it wants to tell. We were also entrusted with coordinating all the moving parts behind the scenes. A big task, and one we were genuinely excited to take on.

The visual identity was led by Ad Angels in Estonia, the website was crafted by ImageMakers in the US, SEO support came from Espace M in Canada, and the strategic direction was shaped by input from even more agencies worldwide. It became a real-time, real-world case study in international collaboration.

Yes, it meant 5am calls for some, 9pm wrap-ups for others. There were feedback loops, time zone confusion, and plenty of “you are still on mute” moments. But even more than that, it meant growth. Learning, patience, being open-minded, and a shared desire to create something that truly represents this incredible network.

Fast forward to October 2025, and the new ICOM brand went live: bold, confident, and deeply reflective of the network it represents.

All made possible through collaboration from a distance, and yet, with so much closeness.

The magic of meeting in person

A few weeks after launch, we had the opportunity to host the 2025 ICOM EMEA Regional Meeting in Gozo. And let me tell you, while I’ll always advocate for the flexibility that comes with remote working, there’s something undeniably special about gathering in person.

Gozo was a deliberate choice. We’d hosted our last regional meeting in Valletta back in 2018, but this time we wanted to offer something a little different. Slower, more grounded, and a space where agency leaders could pause the day-to-day and actually breathe, reflect, think and connect.

With that in mind, we decided on the theme: “From Gozo, with Growth.”

For a few days, surrounded by the Gozo’s green hills, sea, and silence, we explored what it means to grow – with new business, existing clients, as independent agencies and as a collective. There was strategy, of course, but there was also laughter, late-night chats, spontaneous brainstorms, and the kind of unfiltered conversations that only happen face-to-face, with people who just get it.

Hosting this event was everything we hoped it would be, and more. If I had to pick one word to walk away with (other than the obvious, growth), it’d be joy – because so much good came out of it.

And once again, it was a reminder: when you bring good people together (virtually or in person), magic happens.

These two projects couldn’t have been more different in execution. One happened entirely over screens. The other around shared tables, hidden away from the noise of everyday life, in peaceful Gozo.. But both were driven by the same values: curiosity, collaboration, generosity, and a deep belief in doing meaningful work, together.

And that’s what ICOM is really about. It’s why we’ve been proud members since 2006, and why we’ve worked as their communications partner since 2019. It’s a network that challenges us, inspires us, and reminds us why we do what we do.

So here’s to bold ideas, to remote calls and in-person hugs and to collaboration that works wonders.

The post From virtual meetings to Gozo: a tale of two collaborations with ICOM appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

“Cities were mostly designed by people who didn’t use them.”

The nature of our business puts us in touch with some fascinating individuals. The quote I led with is from a chat I was having with Catherine Barratt, Managing Director of Furnitubes, a company based in England that produces urban outdoor furniture. Working with Furnitubes, and speaking with Catherine in particular, confirms that we don’t need to be engaged in the same business activity to share a set of values.

One of our shared obsessions is to do all we can in a way that has lasting impact because this makes the most sustainable use of resources. It preserves time, materials, and financial resources.

Another shared value is that all we do should benefit as wide an audience as possible. And in the case of Furnitubes, this is taken to mean absolutely everyone.

Consider the supply chain of outdoor urban furniture. The bench you sit on when you’re in a public space like a city square has been manufactured by a company like Furnitubes, directly paid for by the city council, chosen by an urban planner or designer, and finally you get to take a moment’s pause by sitting on it. It is you, this last person in the chain, who has indirectly paid for it all because it’s ultimately our taxes that build cities.

Despite this, for the longest time, cities have been designed by people who were designing for themselves. They didn’t consider other demographics, nor did they take the wellbeing of a large group of people into account. Cities were largely designed for the efficiency of trade and this meant that transportation was central to this design. We built cities around cars and us humans had to make the adjustments necessary to give traffic the highest priority.

In the past, we designed with humans in mind. Barcelona, for instance, was designed to take into account that a high population density will need more open spaces if they are to feel like they can breathe in the city. Cities like Rome and Athens were designed to leave a legacy of beauty behind.

The discourse surrounding the transformation of urban spaces is both timely and essential, as the delineation between indoor refuge and our time spent outdoors becomes ever more pronounced. As we spend more time indoors, the time we spend out of our homes becomes even more precious. And this serves as an imperative for our urban environments to provide us with a healthy dose of wellbeing.

Catherine is fully immersed in this sentiment. When speaking about the way they regard their role in society, she states that, “if you make an area welcoming and functional, it has ripple effects across the whole community. People look after spaces they value, crime goes down, and health indicators improve. We strive to build long-lasting products that benefit the public,” she says. “Our decisions are made with a better future in mind.”

How can the manufacturing industry participate in this movement?

Catherine believes the private sector has an important role to play. “The private sector has a moral imperative to lead this charge,” she contends.  “Businesses must demonstrate the potential and the value of sustainable, human-centric urban design. Every park bench, every planter, every element we introduce into the urban fabric should be a testament to our belief in a more beautiful, more connected future.” And this is the way she leads Furnitubes, to set an example through sustainable practices and innovative design that puts people first.

Peering into the future, Catherine adopts an optimistic stance regarding the trajectory of urban planning. 

She sees cities that embrace human-centric design, nurturing environments that are not only livable but also enriching and inclusive. This forward-looking perspective shows that well-conceived urban spaces can act as catalysts for community, creativity, and well-being

And this reflects a broader commitment to building cities that not only function efficiently but also resonate on a deeper, more personal level: “We have a responsibility to leave a legacy of functional beauty. Beautiful outdoor spaces add value to the lived experience of all those who make use of them. This is what great cities do.”

These are great platforms for us to build a better future on. Innovative design and manufacture around the world gives us a glimpse at what’s possible when manufacturing leads, rather than follows. A new generation of savvy customers are demanding better. The time for inspiring, responsible, and lasting manufacture is here. If we keep this vision in mind, we stand a chance at building the world that we and future generations deserve.

The post Manufacturing a better future appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

If you couldn’t join the live session and would like to access the recording, click below.

Your company is brilliant. Your products are solid. So why is it so hard to articulate your value in a way that truly connects?

Join Ed, our Head of Brand Strategy, for a one-hour webinar designed for CEOs, founders, and business leaders.

We cover:

• The four common “crises” (comms, recruitment, culture, sales) that are really symptoms of a single identity crisis.
• The difference between having a logo and having a brand that builds real equity.
• A step-by-step brand framework to define your Ambition, Purpose, Values, and Personality.
• How to turn this internal clarity into impeccable differentiation in the market.

This session is for leaders who are tired of being misunderstood and are ready to build a brand that is authentic, powerful, and profitable.

The post The Power of Clarity [Webinar] appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

We are not architects, but we are builders – of brands, strategies, and narratives that stand the test of time. We believe in sustainable growth that goes beyond buzzwords and bottom lines. It’s not enough to do less harm. Whether you are constructing buildings or businesses, true sustainability requires beauty, integrity, and long-term thinking.

So while real estate may not be our domain, designing with purpose definitely is. Here’s the perspective we’ve given Money Magazine on the illusion of sustainability in the built environment, and what it can teach us about creating better businesses too.

The illusion of sustainability

We throw the word ‘sustainable’ around and hardly ever stop to consider the full reach of its meaning. It has come to be associated with any activity, resource use, or process that has a lower negative impact on the environment than a comparable equivalent.

That isn’t really sustainable. Neither does it encapsulate the full meaning of sustainability. For something to be sustainable, it must be able to be upheld over time without causing harm or depletion to its environment, society, and the economic ecosystem it forms part of. It implies that our actions today do not impede future generations to meet their own needs.

The starting point

Let’s start from the most essential point of departure – that of our point of view. We depart from a grossly anthropocentric view of everything we do, and this is crucial when speaking about sustainability. While we are the species we are concerned about most, we are but one link in an intricately interconnected ecosystem. What might sustain us at the expense of any other species is not, in fact, sustainable for the entire ecosystem.

From there, we build upwards and consider the multiple ways in which our activities can be sustainable.

If we are to leave an inhabitable planet for our progeny, we cannot leave the old “do a little less harm” definition of sustainability on the table. We must wrap it up in recycled paper and deposit it in the recycling bin. Even a neutral stance is unsustainable. Unless we look at our constructed environment with a view to reverse the staggering amount of harm that we are causing to the natural environment, we are neglecting our duties towards future generations.

If we consider that global cement production is accountable for 8% of our CO2 emissions, we can see that the construction industry is a major contributor to the sustained damage to our environment. And that is simply the view of one side-effect of a single material (before we even consider the impact of its transport costs).

Beyond the environment

But sustainability is not just about the environment. A sustainable practice is one that can continue to exist from an economic standpoint. If I decide to spend 10% more than what I earn every year, it is easy to see that there will come a time when my spending becomes completely unsustainable.

As we continue to construct the world around us in a way that is decoupled from the realities of those who inhabit it, we know that we are heading towards an inevitable inflection point. When the supply side outstrips demand – mainly for reasons of affordability, the market finds a way of self-regulating. An easier way of saying this is that there is product on the market but no one there who wants to purchase or rent at unreasonable rates. The fact that we’re still keeping the two sides balanced does not mean the situation will remain as is indefinitely.

What goes up

A long term view of everything we do is essential. We’ve built, torn down, and rebuilt so much of what’s around us – especially when we were forced to look at what we’d built in a hurry. Sometimes there is very good reason to do so. Look at Rotterdam. The city was flattened during the second world war and rebuilt in a hurry. The haste was an absolute necessity. Since then, a large majority of panic building was torn down to be rebuilt in a way that is more practical and more beautiful.

We are, after all, an ostensibly intelligent species. We want our surroundings to be aesthetically pleasing as well as functional and practical. While a war may justify building a city twice within 5 decades, we don’t have too many other excuses to waste time, materials, money, and energy. Concrete is devilishly hard to repurpose and recycle so it usually ends up relegated to the mountains of construction waste that will endure beyond the expected lifespan of our species.

For good, in both senses

Building with a very long term view in mind is sensible and admirable. We are lost in admiration for the structures that have endured since ancient times – Mayans, Romans, Egyptians, Greeks, etc – all  built for posterity and the results of their efforts stand today as proud reminders of what happens when a long-term view is the primary focus of any endeavour worth embarking on. Buildings that look beautiful and last a long time benefit absolutely everyone. As Le Corbusier claimed, those who could not afford to live in buildings he designed ought to be able to benefit from their beauty as they passed by.

Aesthetics and longevity can and should be intertwined notions. We should build to last and we should build for beauty. There is no reason for us to walk through a street and be assaulted by ugly. It’s a challenge to be anywhere around a built-up area of our tiny islands, look around you, and be solely captivated by the beauty of the buildings that surround you.

When the majority of new builds are designed by accountants, it is no surprise that they have the aesthetic appeal of a spreadsheet. We’ve gained density and lost beauty. The Greeks and the Romans and the rest of our global civilisation-building ancestors would be appalled to know how we’ve perverted the example they left us a few millennia ago.

Beyond brick-and-mortar

The principles of sustainable construction extend far beyond cement and steel. Organisations themselves can be built with either short-term expediency or long-term resilience in mind. Just as we wouldn’t want our buildings designed primarily by accountants, we shouldn’t let our business models be dictated solely by quarterly results. Whether constructing physical spaces or building brands and companies, the foundation matters. And that foundation begins with the narratives and values we design into our organisations from day one. Truly sustainable businesses, like truly sustainable buildings, require thoughtful architecture at their core, with systems and structures designed to weather challenges while creating lasting value for all stakeholders.

We are actually in control

When we think of what we’re about to do next we know that the word sustainability is going to be expected of us. It is up to us to define the word in a way that is meaningful to those who come next. Luckily, there is plenty at our disposal to help us construct the world around us in a way that future generations will be proud of.

We have techniques and materials and best practices that have been developed over the years and that are there for us to use wisely as we design and build the spaces we need. There is also plenty we can do to use existing buildings wherever possible. The notions of adaptive reuse, retrofitting, infill development, and even what the Italians call the ‘albergo diffuso’. This involves using existing buildings that are spread around the town as a hotel – not only does it preserve the architectural vernacular but it saves on the material and energy costs of constructing a new hotel building.

Of course, pursuing these ideals comes with practical challenges. Initial costs for quality materials and thoughtful design are often higher, even if they pay dividends over many decades to come. Malta’s dense regulatory landscape, from planning permissions to heritage preservation requirements, can make adaptive reuse projects complex undertakings. Finding architects and construction contractors with experience in sustainable retrofitting or preservation-minded construction presents another hurdle. 

These challenges require creative solutions and perhaps revised financial models that account for long-term value rather than just upfront costs. But what will we think about a century from now? Will future generations dismiss exemplary builds by saying, “They could have saved 10% by skimping on thinking”? I don’t think so.

The post The Illusion of Sustainability in Real Estate: Why Building Less Harm Isn’t Enough appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

Do you ever feel like you could go hours talking about the technicalities of your business offerings, only to feel like you’re shouting into a black hole? Showcasing your value proposition and strengths isn’t about how much you say – it’s about how effectively you say it. Think about it: technical products are niche by nature, solving very specific problems. Marketing them demands the same level of precision to ensure your solutions are understood and valued.

Why We Believe in a Fractional Marketing Team (And Why We’re Biased)

At Switch, we’ve seen firsthand the power of fractional marketing teams for technical SMBs. It’s true – we’re biased because this is one of the core services we provide. But our belief in this approach isn’t based on what we do, it’s based on what we’ve seen work. We chose to focus on this service because we believe that it’s the best way to grow a business sustainably.

Too often, businesses tend to look for piecemeal solutions to solve an immediate need (or want): a one-off SEO audit, a standalone content strategy, some social media content, or sporadic ad campaigns. These services can help in the short term, but they rarely address the bigger picture. Marketing isn’t just a collection of tasks – it’s a cohesive, long-term effort that connects your brand with your audience, strengthens your positioning, and enables you to partner with clients at a strategic level. By aligning your marketing with your business objectives, you unlock the potential for more meaningful and sustainable growth.

When we work as a fractional marketing team we don’t commit to a certain number of tasks, but instead we promise to put a team of experts together to help you build, and run, a long-term marketing strategy for your brand. Since they’re not contractually beholden to a certain number of posts or efforts, they will do whatever it takes to help you grow your brand. 

With more traditional agreements, if you buy a set of services from an agency, it’s hard for them to come and tell you they’re not working, because the implication is that you’ll reduce their business. So while a long term contract for 8 posts a month might be a very comfortable thing to have for an agency, it’s absolutely not in the interest of the client to have something so rigid in this day and age.

Explore Our B2B Marketing Services

Discover how Switch’s fractional marketing team can help your business grow with tailored strategies designed for long-term success.

The Growth Bottleneck in Technical Companies

Technical businesses thrive on precision, innovation, and problem-solving. But marketing in this context is rarely straightforward. Business leaders often face three key challenges:

1. Complex Products Need Clear Narratives

Your audience doesn’t just need to know what you do, they need to understand:

• Why it matters,
• How it’s different,
• And why it’s better than the alternatives.

Communicating this effectively requires a mix of industry insight and creative storytelling, which is an uncommon combination that’s tough to maintain in-house.

2. Overloaded Teams and Leadership

Marketing often falls to internal teams who are already stretched thin or to C-suite executives whose focus should be elsewhere. This creates a bottleneck:

One of our early conversations with a now-client highlighted this challenge perfectly. Their issue wasn’t closing deals – once they got in the room with potential customers, their conversion rates were exceptional. The problem was getting into those rooms in the first place.

Inconsistent outreach and sporadic communication left their sales team struggling to secure those all-important initial conversations. Marketing gaps weren’t just frustrating, they were holding the business back, even though it was clear where the problem originated from.

3. Fragmented or Inconsistent Communication

When marketing becomes an afterthought, it shows. Inconsistent messaging:

• Confuses potential clients,
• Undermines trust,
• And ultimately reduces conversion rates.

The Case for Smarter B2B Marketing

Whether in-house or outsourced, effective B2B marketing is built on a few key principles:

• Clarity Over Complexity
  Technical products often address niche problems. Simplifying your messaging ensures that your audience understands your product while also seeing its relevance to their challenges.
• Consistency is Key
  The modern B2B buyer engages with brands across multiple touchpoints. A consistent voice and regular communication build trust and keep your company top of mind.
• Strategic Resource Allocation
  Marketing today requires expertise across a range of disciplines: SEO, content creation, paid media, analytics, and the ability to craft thought-leadership content that provokes meaningful conversations. 

Building an in-house team with this breadth of knowledge is a significant investment. Outsourcing gives you access to these capabilities without the overhead.

Why We Think This Works (And Why It’s Different)

Many agencies offer marketing services that feel templated: a fixed number of blog posts, a standard ad package, or off-the-shelf SEO recommendations. These services might fill a gap, but they don’t solve the problem.

What we’ve found works better is an approach that’s deeply tailored to the business. At Switch, this means starting with your business objectives, understanding your technical product, and building a narrative that aligns with your goals. This clarity forms the foundation for every piece of communication, ensuring all efforts – whether content, design, or lead generation – work together to move your business forward.

It’s not about quick fixes; it’s about creating a sustainable strategy that grows with you.

The Switch Way

We work with purpose-driven, innovative B2B companies in technical sectors, to align their marketing with their broader business objectives. From building unique narratives that capture your value, to creating marketing strategies that attract your ideal clients, and executing a plan that provides you with concrete and tangible results, we’re here to work side by side with you in the long term. And we’re committed to helping you grow in a sustainable way with all of the tools you need.

We know outsourcing isn’t for everyone, and that’s okay. But for companies ready to focus on their core business while letting a dedicated team drive their marketing forward, it can be a game-changer. And, based on what our clients say about us, we don’t feel like an outsourced team. We feel like we’re part of your team, your favourite part, most of the time.

A Transparent Invitation

We’re upfront about it – this is what we do, and we’re passionate about it because we’ve seen it work. If you’re exploring how to make your marketing more impactful, let’s have a conversation. Whether or not working with a fractional team is the right step for you, we’re happy to share insights and help you think through your options.

The post Fractional Marketing:  B2B Marketing Teams for Technical Companies appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

I’m okay now, chemo is (hopefully forever) behind me, and I’m now preparing to embark on the next round of treatment.

But this post isn’t about my cancer journey (I’m writing plenty about that over on Instagram.)

This post is about what these last few months have taught me about leadership, culture, and the responsibility that comes with showing up for others – especially when you are struggling to show up for yourself.

Leading Through Uncertainty

Alongside the medical recovery came a very different kind of reckoning:

If I talk about it, do I risk burdening the people around me?
If I don’t talk about it, do I set an example that battles should be fought silently?
Is empathy in leadership about being open? Or is it about protecting your team from your own chaos?

These were the questions that kept circling in my mind for weeks.

And here’s the thing: I still don’t have neat, packaged answers.

But I did make the decision to be transparent about what I’m going through.

Not because it was easy. And definitely not because I wanted to be the centre of anyone’s attention.

Part of that decision was about raising awareness. The particular type of ovarian cancer I was diagnosed with (Low-Grade Serous) makes up just 2-5% of all ovarian cancers. It’s rare, it needs research, it needs attention. And one of the ways you get that is by talking about it.

But just as important was something else. I wholeheartedly believe that kindness belongs in organisations. It’s the foundation of any culture worth building. And if we say we lead with empathy, we can’t only do it when things are going well.

Pretending I was fine would have been hypocritical. One of the most important things I want to teach my son is that you should never hide parts of yourself to make other people feel more comfortable. And I cannot teach him that if I am not willing to live it myself.

Culture goes beyond what we see when everything is easy.
It’s what holds you when things fall apart.

When Culture Becomes Tangible

These past few months have been some of the hardest of my life – physically, mentally, and emotionally.

There were days when I couldn’t find the strength to get out of bed, let alone open my laptop or jump on a call.

But even on the darkest of days, I had something that every person in any organisation deserves to have: the peace of mind that I would be supported, fully, even when I couldn’t show up.

What struck me most during those moments was this: I was never met with pity or sadness. There were no awkward silences to fill. No uncomfortable conversations to tiptoe through. Just strength. Flexibility. Care.

And that doesn’t happen by accident. It happens by design. 

This is what we mean when we say culture isn’t cosmetic – it’s structural. It’s the thing that holds, even when everything else shakes.

Storms test structure. And I couldn’t be prouder of the one we’ve built together at Switch; a culture shaped by intention, held together by care.

For years, we’ve prioritised our deeply ingrained core values to guide every decision we make – whether it’s about the business or about our people.

We’ve made space for real conversations. About purpose. About what we stand for. About what makes us show up and feel fulfilled. 

So when I shared what I was going through, I got to experience (yet again) that those values aren’t just words in our brand book. They became tangible. They showed up in how the team responded. In how the work continued. In how I was treated – not as a manager in crisis, but as a human being navigating something hard.

A strong foundation doesn’t mean you won’t face storms. It just means you won’t be swept away by them.

The Test of Strong Foundations

Here’s the tricky part about having strong foundations: 

Living by your brand fundamentals doesn’t always feel comfortable. In fact, the strongest, most authentic values an organisation can have are the ones that push us out of our comfort zones by making us ask the hard questions. Again and again. 

For me, that meant showing parts of myself that don’t fit the polished, curated version of leadership we’ve been taught to portray.

What I’ve learnt though is that by showing up as our whole, authentic selves, we model something vital.

We show our teams that being human is allowed. That strength and struggle can co-exist. That we don’t need to compartmentalise who we are from what we do.

I can’t stress this enough: culture isn’t a line item on a spreadsheet.

It’s not a yearly quota measured by how many team-building events you’ve organised.

Culture is the invisible infrastructure that holds everything together – or lets everything fall apart.

Storms will come. In life. In business. In leadership.

The question isn’t whether we can avoid them. It’s whether we’ve built a culture strong enough to stand in the middle of them.

So I’ll leave you with this exercise. Get your team together and ask yourselves:

• Have you built a culture in your organisation that could carry you through both a business and a personal storm?
• Are your values known, lived, and visible — or are they just words on a wall?
• What version of yourself are you hiding at work — and what would it take to let a little more of it be seen?

The post The strongest foundations are built before the storm appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

If you didn’t join live and would like to access the recording, click the Access Recording button below.

This webinar explores what commoditisation is, why it’s a trap, and, most importantly, how to escape it.

It covers:

• Understanding commoditisation
• Recognising the symptoms
• Strategies for de-commoditisation
• Switch’s Journey & the CATALYST Framework
• Q&A

Presented by Richard Muscat Azzopardi, CEO at Switch

The post A Guide to De-commoditisation for B2B Businesses [Webinar] appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

It also covers the common symptoms of being commoditised, so you can identify if you’re heading down that path (and hopefully correct your course early enough in the process).

The post A Deep-Dive into De-Commoditisation [eBook] appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

Barcelona is a textbook example of genius planning – but that doesn’t prepare you for the overwhelming sensation of being in the thick of it. I could describe the thinking behind the Barcelona superblock, the hierarchy of its street widths, the perfect interplay of the rigidly planned grids of Eixample with the more organic medieval maze of the Gothic Quarter, and the visible presence of stalwarts like Gaudì, Miró, and even van der Rohe. It would enthuse anyone with an interest in shaping the future of our cities but it would not capture the essence of the city.

Spending 24 hours in the city, on the other hand, can imbue a visitor with the intangible attributes of the city. The sights, the sounds, and the scents. The way the city nudges your journey through it as you attempt to traverse its incredibly different neighbourhoods. The planned chaos of the Ramblas during the day and the quiet introspection possible at sunrise on your way back to your hotel after the city has swallowed you up for the night.

You will go back home and realise there is more to be said than any amount of research in advance can possibly provide. This deep-seated culture, the way that centuries of planners and architects and designers have contributed their fingerprint to the way a city feels, is all part of the organic, yet completely coherent, construction of a city brand that benefits from the accumulated experiences of generations.

But what makes a city more than the collection of buildings and streets that are evidence of its physical construction? What gives it a distinct identity? As with any brand, it is a complex and multifaceted combination of the history, the cultural values, the traditions, and the aspirations of all the people who have lived in the city and who call it home today. It is the collective sense of ownership and shared identity that is felt by all of its inhabitants. And since it is so democratic, it isn’t the kind of sentiment that can be forced from the top down. It takes time, gentle nudges, deliberate interventions, and the will of the many to make changes to the brand of a city.

Is all the world one city?

I am speaking of the city brand because it is the easiest way to exemplify the notion. A country brand is just as important but, in the case of most countries, this tends to be fragmented and influenced by the differences between city identities. Milan and Rome, Amsterdam and Rotterdam, Tokyo and Osaka… we can mention city pairs that show us how different a city brand can be from that of another city in the same country and how each is clearly distinct from the national brand.

Malta is a small country. Small enough, sometimes, to think of it as a compact city. But the realities of the country show us that trying to force a single communal brand to the entire archipelago would be to ignore the unbelievable diversity of attitudes and values that the tiny islands somehow present.

City brand by design

So far, the notion of a city brand may sound like much of it is left to chance. But it is the people responsible for designing the constructed environment that have the most impact on a city’s brand. Without deliberate intent, a city’s identity meanders through time, taking on the guise given to it by the next generation of planners and designers to make their mark.

There is a better way. As with a commercial concern, being deliberate about a city’s identity can provide a more fundamental and longer-lasting impact. It can shape the entire future of a city, committing great ideas to history. The design choices we make today, the ones that are so brilliant that they will stand the test of time, are the marks that our generation is responsible for committing to posterity.

We think of aesthetics when we think of deliberate design, but that’s just a logo. The real work contributes to the deep-seated narrative of the city and it is based on a thoroughly thought-out set of values, a deliberate contribution to the sense of place, and a democratic sense of what will create a better experience for those who live and work in the city.

Who’s cooking?

When we hear the words ‘city’ and ‘brand’ in the same sentence, we think of tourist boards. It is almost like they have been given the role of branding a city because no one else wanted to do it. It is also the most absurd place for this responsibility to reside. One must design and construct a city or country in a way that reflects its identity. Only then can we hope to attract visitors.

As self-evident as this is, we might need the numbers to back it up. The most visited country on earth is France, with 100 million people picking it as their holiday spot every year. France, the country that makes little effort to ask you to visit, has such a strong sense of national identity that we just flock there.

This places the responsibility of a strong and believable city brand firmly in the capable hands of designers, architects, and city planners. The tourist board will then package and communicate the result.

Purpose-driven design

Designing for a city requires intentionality that goes beyond the specific reach of the project one entity happens to be working on. It requires us to ask a set of questions that uncover the foundations of the city and lay them bare for us to respect and design for. It requires practitioners to think of the purpose of the space they’re working on and how it dovetails with the core values of the city. It broadens the question of who one is designing for, allowing the audience definition to extend beyond those commissioning a project. And perhaps even more crucially, it asks deeper questions about legacy.

When we consider the legacy of a city we think of functional buildings like residences or workplaces. But we must also think of third spaces – those realms that belong to everyone in the city and that are the in-between spots. City squares, parks, walkways, and even a tiny bench under a solitary tree. These are the spaces where connections are made. They are the spaces where we flourish as a species that is gregarious and that depends on human connection. The spots that turn a city into a living and breathing whole rather than a collection of unconnected individuals.

Design for good

There are more elements that go into purposely defining the identity of a city. As we evolve our notion of what constitutes a great city, we shift our performance indicators from those that were purely fiscal to ones that address the wellbeing of its inhabitants. We look at green infrastructure that incorporates flora and fauna other than humans, improving our sense of wellbeing as well as the air quality of our cities. We consider accessible and universal design that create connections for all, regardless of age or ability. We also think of a human as one that needs a healthy body for a healthy mind and create spaces and opportunities for activity such as walking, running, and cycling.

Mixed-use developments create more vibrant neighbourhoods by combining residential, commercial, and recreational spaces, and as we build denser cities these can just as easily be vertical. And the responsible preservation of existing structures serves to cement the history of the city while being sensible with the use of resources.

We’ve all got a part to play

Every aspect of city planning ought to be deliberate and every player can have a direct positive impact towards the construction of a city we can be proud of. We see it reflected, for example, in the work of companies like Furnitubes, a British supplier of urban outdoor furniture that prioritizes social connection and environmental responsibility in its design and manufacturing processes. They happen to be clients and our work within their organisation has given our agency first hand experience of how a thoughtful approach to the design of outdoor spaces can be a powerful tool for social good.

The city of the future

Ultimately, shaping a city’s brand is about more than aesthetics or economic development. A city, at its heart, is a collection of human stories. It’s the laughter in a playground, the quiet contemplation on a bench by the sea, the chaotic functionality of a flea-market, the shared experience of a community. 

Shaping a city’s brand is about crafting a legacy. It’s about creating a place where people feel connected, where communities thrive, and where the future is built on a foundation of shared purpose and thoughtful design. The choices we make today, from the grandest architectural gestures to the smallest details of street furniture, will resonate for generations to come. This presents an incredible opportunity: to design and build functional spaces that are also meaningful places which foster connection, resilience, and a legacy we can all be proud of.

The post Beyond aesthetics: Building a city brand for connection, resilience, and legacy appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

I’m not an engineer or a mathematician, but I appreciate that if you make a number of small improvements to your system, the cumulative benefits can be monumental given enough time and progress.

For years on end we focused on this, tweaking parts of the engine to squeeze out some profitability here and there, to reduce costs, to increase efficiency. We looked at every aspect of our business until we got to a stage of diminishing returns. 

As we made progress, the market changed. There was more competition and budgets were squeezed from clients who constantly seemed to be going through a cost-cutting exercise. The tiny incremental moves we made were just about helping us keep afloat. They were changes that became necessary to keep us in business, not to thrive.

And there’s very little you can do to squeeze out more when you’ve been improving incrementally year on year and you’ve looked at every aspect of the business.

Evolution is important, but from time to time you need a revolution. Sometimes you need to strip your business down to its core and make some bold moves to get yourself out of a rut. Because, as someone bright once said, the definition of insanity is trying the same thing twice and hoping for a different outcome.

Over the course of the next few paragraphs, I want to share some lessons I learned from one of our boldest moves ever as an agency, definitely one of the boldest moves I’ve ever made in my career, and seeing it pay off has been extremely satisfying. It’s also been a good lesson on the importance of bold moves, the pitfalls around them, and the benefits you can reap. Looking back, there are a few lessons that I wish I had known before.

Should we make bold moves? How should we make bold moves? What are they, and how can we know if we’re prepared for them?

Let’s start at the beginning.

The Bold Move at Switch

Our bold move was pretty radical, and it was multifaceted, we had to make multiple moves at once for it to all make sense together. First, we took a decision to reduce the number of services we offer to just two, then we also chose to only focus on one type of business to offer it to (B2B clients). The benefits we saw were major, but they would take a great amount of courage because to get to our destination we had to accept that we’d be refusing business from our traditional client base.

It’s been a couple of years now, and it’s not always been easy, but now we can confidently say that we’ve moved past the hardest thresholds of the bold move, we’re now only onboarding clients in the two areas we’ve chosen to focus on, and it’s put us in a position where we’ve effectively moved away from being seen as a commoditised service provider. There are far fewer potential clients for us locally, but we’ve built a reputation that allows us to go after our ideal clients no matter where they are in the world.

Triggers for bold moves

Triggers for bold moves can be both internal and external:

On a macro level, external triggers that might signal the need for a bold move include geopolitical ones, and larger events outside your control (wars, pandemics). These can be easy enough to spot when they’re as dramatic as a war or a pandemic, but there are other signals that creep up on you at a much slower pace (a country’s ethnic mix changing gradually). Other external factors include changes in the market, or new technological shifts (generative AI, anyone?). On a smaller scale, you can have opportunities opening up more directly, such as a competitor going out of business or, on the other extreme, buying out another of your competitors and consolidating.

Internally you can have quite a few catalysts that might require bold moves. An employee (or a whole department) resigning can be devastating, especially if they had a skill that was unique to your business. You could have too much cash in the bank, or not enough (this is always riskier, but potentially a better catalyst for change), or you could have simply witnessed a plateau for a few years and want to jolt the company out of it.

Each one of these motivators has a different effect on us, as business leaders, yet in most cases, each one of them can be equal parts terrifying and exciting. Rocking the boat is never something that most of us are naturally inclined to do, so we’ll make all the excuses we can to keep things as is, improving ever so slightly wherever we can.

Building the courage to act

This can be the hardest part. The fear of pain is often even worse than the pain itself. Think about all the time you spent thinking about your next dentist’s appointment. I’m pretty sure you spent far more time anticipating, and fearing, the pain than the time you actually spent in pain. And I’m also pretty sure you felt much better once you were done, too (or at least I hope so, for your sake).

Bold moves with business are pretty much the same. We tend to spend too much time overthinking them and fearing failure than we do actually taking decisive action. This is not to say that you should rush into major decisions without giving them the proper consideration, but neither should you postpone the move indefinitely.

Prepare yourself psychologically, and if you can place proper risk management strategies in place. In some cases, if you’re lucky enough, you can run a test, or a series of tests and mitigate the risk. On our end, for example, we effectively ran a small separate agency within Switch that specialised in our new areas before actually shifting all our business externally.

The benefit of breaking the move into smaller pieces is obvious. It makes it easier to test out your hypothesis. However, this brings a major drawback with it: it can potentially slow down how well you can judge the changes you’re making. Once again, looking back at our bold move, the longer we took to make the shift, the harder it was to serve both kinds of clients, to attract both kinds of clients, and crucially, to work on both sets of services at once.

Types of Bold Moves

I can’t possibly list every kind of bold move for every possible business, but in general, some of the bold moves I’ve seen when working with businesses across all walks of life include mergers and acquisitions, shifting products or services sold (or, as in our case, reducing the number of products or services to specialise), exploring new distribution channels or simply deciding to hire someone new to start on your journey to expansion.

And in the end…

Bold moves aren’t about reckless risk-taking – they’re about calculated actions that can transform your business. You have to have the courage to implement something that might feel like it’s out of your comfort zone, but if you do you’ll find success. 

The post Revolution or Evolution: Choosing a New Beginning appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.