Virtual Gurus

Objectives

• Evolve and expand the brand identity
• Equip the Virtual Gurus team with comprehensive, updated brand guidelines
• Apply the evolved brand to the website to create a foundation for the new brand
• Increase quality conversions and drive enterprise leads
• Create clear and intuitive user journeys for clients and virtual assistants
• Prioritize Virtual Gurus’ social mission on the website; make it clear they are a champion for diversity, equity, and inclusion

Challenge

Virtual Gurus was founded on a social mission — to create employment opportunities for traditionally underrepresented communities. The company quickly gained traction in Canada and the U.S. But as they grew, the team realized the existing brand struggled to attract enterprise customers, an important segment for growth.

Virtual Gurus shared their pain points:

• The brand felt small and too playful; It didn’t feel sophisticated enough for the size of organizations they wanted to attract.
• The photographic style and graphic elements were inconsistent and didn’t feel like they fit together.
• The brand guidelines were limited — there was no library of graphic elements or patterns that could be applied to sales and marketing collateral.
• The tertiary colour palette didn’t fit well with the primary and secondary palettes; the platform UI was using the tertiary palette which felt inconsistent with the web experience.
• The website was built with Webflow; Virtual Gurus had difficulty managing content and maintaining consistent branding across the site.
• There was too much text on the website; the copy was stuffed with keywords to drive organic traffic but lacked clarity and brand personality.
• The social mission wasn’t prioritized throughout the site; it wasn’t overly clear what sets Virtual Gurus apart from their competitors.
• There was little social proof from virtual assistants to validate the social mission and attract new virtual assistants to the talent pool.
• Clients and prospective virtual assistant user journeys were confusing; it was challenging for both groups to find information relevant to them.

Solution

We worked closely with Virtual Gurus to understand their vision for the brand identity. We learned that the team really liked the colours within the palettes, but they were struggling with applying them in the right proportions.

We evolved the brand from playful and child-like to elegant and professional, while still communicating the brand personality (friendly, collaborative, informative, energetic):

• Maintained the primary and secondary palettes, expanded the tertiary palette, and provided clear guidance for application to promote brand recognition and memorability.
• Introduced line graphics into the photography to add energy and personality.
• Developed robust brand guidelines to make it easier for Virtual Gurus to apply the brand properly across the website, sales, and marketing materials.

As we applied the evolved brand to the website, we focused on clearly communicating Virtual Gurus’ core beliefs through copy and design. We used photography throughout the site to highlight the diversity of the virtual assistant pool and strategically promoted the social mission to ensure Virtual Gurus’ north star was always evident.

We reimagined the user journeys to make it easy for clients and potential virtual assistants to find information relevant to them.

• Find Gurus is a page dedicated to clients in search of virtual assistants. All individual virtual assistant services pages are linked from here. We gave this page priority as the first link in the primary navigation.
• We nested nine virtual assistant pages (e.g. Executive Virtual Assistant, Social Media Virtual Assistant, etc.) within Find Gurus. Each page outlines the purpose and specific responsibilities of each role.
• Become a Guru is a page designed for individuals interested in joining the virtual assistant talent pool. We implemented a tabbed component on this page to make it easy for assistants to review a variety of information before applying. We promoted this page in the primary navigation but placed it further to the right to keep the focus on attracting new clients.
• Throughout the site, dual CTAs prompt clients to either select gurus through a self-serve portal or book a free consultation to learn more. This approach was designed to drive conversions with prospects who may be at different stages of the funnel.

We intentionally shifted the terminology used for virtual assistants. Historically, Virtual Gurus abbreviated the term “virtual assistants” to “VA”. While this is an accurate short-form, we saw this as an opportunity to differentiate from competitors. Instead of calling them VAs, we called them “gurus”. This term feels more approachable, implies skill and talent, and gives Virtual Gurus a unique term they can own in the market.

We created a robust Success Stories hub to highlight both client and guru successes. Showcasing both types of stories, paired with compelling testimonials, proves the impact of Virtual Gurus’ social mission.

On the backend, we integrated the website with WordPress instead of Webflow. Virtual Gurus needed a website that could be easily scaled while maintaining brand consistency. Webflow had previously given them the flexibility to change anything and everything on the website. But it didn’t allow for universal changes across the website. And the lack of editing constraints resulted in unintentional shifts in branding. With WordPress, the Virtual Gurus team still enjoys convenient content management, but there are strategic constraints around what can and can’t be edited. This will make it easy for multiple people to contribute to the website while maintaining the integrity of the brand on the website. And as the company grows and the website scales (as it undoubtedly will), it will be far more efficient to make global changes across the website.

Results

The Virtual Gurus team was thrilled with the refreshed brand and website. After years of growing the business and believing in the mission, they finally felt the brand accurately represents who they are and the change they’re making in the world.

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