Life Cycle’s journey to creating a more inclusive and accessible brand
New year, new Life Cycle? Well, not quite. But from January 2024 we are going to look a bit different!
Why? Life Cycle has been helping more people each year since we started in 1999. We’re still growing – and we want to reach even more people in the future. To help us develop sustainably, we embarked on a “digital transformation” – investing in our digital systems, website, and brand identity.
We've launched all three on the 8th of January 2024. Read along to find out what's happened!
What’s changed?
The way we look
We’ve updated our visual identity, to make it more accessible, inclusive, and engaging – so we can reach even more people, especially those who traditionally might experience more barriers to cycling.
Our website
We also have a new website domain that reflects our name change (we’ve removed the “UK” from our name) and is easier to type and read: www.lifecycle.org.uk.
The way we sound
Inclusivity and accessibility are at the heart of our new tone of voice: we want to be even more welcoming to diverse audiences and centre the voices of our service users in everything we do.
What’s stayed the same?
We have! Our vision and values remain steadfast. They unite the Life Cycle community in our mission to transform more lives through cycling.
And while reaching new audiences is a vital part of our mission, we’ll still be here for everyone who has been with us so far.
Got questions? Read our FAQs for more information.
We’re so excited to share the next stage of our journey with you all!
Join us for the big celebration!
Life Cycle will be 25 years old in 2024 and we’ll be celebrating in Spring. So if you’d like to hear more, subscribe to our newsletter.
Frequently asked questions
How does the new branding affect me?
Anyone who uses our current logo, house style and/or branded assets will need to switch to our new branding from 8th January 2024. We’ll share our new branding and brand guidelines with you when they go live, so you can start using them straight away.
How will the new website affect me?
While it might take a minute to get used to the new layout, in general our new website should be easier to use and navigate. But if something isn’t quite right, we’re open to constructive feedback.
How will the new website domain affect me?
We’ll be forwarding all pages from our old website to our new one, so no one gets lost if they use an old link.
Over time, we’ll be reaching out to anyone who has old Life Cycle links on their website and asking them to replace them with new ones.
How will this affect Life Cycle’s services?
Our services will continue to run normally (unless we’ve specifically told you otherwise), but the way that you book-on (or claim work, if you’re a freelancer), will change. For example, some services (such as bike maintenance courses) will use Eventbrite, others (such as Adult Cycle Training sessions) will use a new-look webform and some services, at least initially, will be “email to enquire”.
In general, we expect the booking process to be simpler and more streamlined. But Life Cycle employees will be on hand to help anyone who needs support to use our new systems.
Why does Life Cycle need to rebrand?
We’ll always have a soft spot for our old branding. But one of our goals is to be more inclusive and accessible. We knew we needed to update our brand identity, so it is more:
- Inclusive to people with visual impairments.
- Accessible to the wide variety of people we work with.
- Engaging to attract new audiences - so we can help more people each year!
How was the new branding decided upon?
We consulted our service users, and representatives from our staff, freelancer, and volunteer teams. To help us reach wider audiences, we also surveyed the public. From there we wrote a brand strategy which set the direction of our updated brand identity and tone of voice.
Why does Life Cycle need a new website?
Our previous website content management system (CMS) will soon be discontinued, so we looked for a new CMS that:
- Remains future-proof and flexible, so it can grow and develop as we do.
- Requires minimal support to develop – helping Life Cycle to be more cost efficient.
- Connects well with our other digital systems.
- Enables a more inclusive and accessible user experience.
Why is Life Cycle investing in its digital systems?
Life Cycle has grown a lot since we last invested in our website and digital systems in 2012. It was time to find new technology that could take us into the future. We’re excited to switch to a “low/no-code” digital environment whose flexibility and scalability sets us up for more sustainable growth, reduces admin and lays the foundations for a frictionless user experience for staff and service users alike.
Are there any changes to how donations are managed or allocated?
Life Cycle’s investment in our website, brand and digital systems was made possible thanks to the charity receiving a generous legacy. These funds were ringfenced by the Trustees for the purpose of paying for one-off development costs to support the sustainable development of the charity.
Our ability to continue offering quality services and support relies on solid and secure digital systems. Likewise, we need a strong brand and website so we can generate more income to keep our services running – and reach more people.
Rest assured that whether you’re a charitable Trust, Foundation, contract holder - or an individual donor - we are always clear about where your money goes. It’s thanks to your generous support that we’ve been able to help more and more people each year. And we’re on track to increase that number next year!
How can people get involved in promoting the new brand?
We are always so grateful when someone helps to spread the word about the work we do! We’d love it if you could share our social media posts or direct friends and family to our new website.
After the initial launch, we’ll be celebrating Life Cycle’s quarter century birthday – and looking ahead to another 25 years. So, we’ll be using this as an opportunity to shout about our amazing community and the difference we make in people’s lives. If you’d like to hear more about our celebration, sign up to our newsletter.