Rive: Branding a freedom-loving proptech
For most of us, a home is the most expensive thing we’ll ever buy. Investment is high by all accounts, emotional and financial. On top of that, getting through the actual buying and selling process is damn hard. So, one could argue that the real estate industry has been ready for disruption for a while. In comes Rive, previously known as Kodit.io, and a bunch of other European real estate companies, now under one roof, one name. The simple premise of Rive is to make home buying and selling super easy. All aspects of it. This growth-hungry proptech company has been building an engine to unleash freedom and flexibility to benefit the urban homeowners and -buyers of Europe. Be the ultimate real estate services platform for people. Buy, sell, finance, rent-to-own, renovate. Make your move and live a dream.
Buy, sell, finance, rent-to-own, renovate. Make your move and live a dream.
The visual identity is inspired by Rive's values.
Werklig joined in the effort as the strategic and creative partner to brand the group of companies under one shining star. With a broad team of enthusiastic real estate disruptors from Rive, we defined the core building blocks from values to positioning, to ambition and purpose. The solid strategic foundations were turned into a very fine identity and sparkling online presence, fitting with the spectrum of hefty emotions involved in the home transactions. And the cherry on top — a name that empowers and excites. The path to a European changemaker is paved!
How to create a brand for a service that is so multifaceted that it’s hard to believe? A one-stop-shop for everything a person needs to make a home dream come true?
It all starts with positioning. Putting into crystal words the complex scale-up business and broad proposition to the customers. The whole works and nine yards were set in motion by CEO Kalle, a serial entrepreneur at the helm, with zero qualms about a rapid expansion of Rive. Rive’s mode of operations – innovating, trialing, and adjusting real estate services with a power pair of big data and local human intelligence — works in many places. Not least because it’s sealed with a Finnish handshake, which is pretty much the same as a blood oath.
Nobody-else-but-Rive values, positioning and identity that brings together people, homes, and technology
Without the values manifested in the people of Rive, there would be no story to tell. Together we had a virtual post-it party on Miro (really, it is THE metaverse until we get something better), out of which emerged 500 post-its and the pure essence of Rive — revolutionary, empowering, and unwavering. The behavioral code that keeps the company in motion, radiating into every aspect of every expression. That’s what the values are for! (And if you want to read more about the power of values, do a side tour of our Insights section)
What about the positioning, you might ask? Rive is a platform. A one-stop-shop. Of real estate services. Giving people the freedom to make their move. Have their dream and eat in it. Unapologetic focus on the needs of urban people across Europe.
The identity gets its radiant charge from Rive's one-of-a-kind values. It tells a story of human empathy and built spaces, punctuated with ingenious technology. This idea lives and breathes in all the elements, from colors to graphics and photography.
Unwavering principles of humanity, trust, expertise, and modularity shine in Rive's visual array. Proudly presenting the scale-up as the confident European proptech player it is. The one to trust with the most nerve-racking transactions of our lives.
The color use communicates a relatable, friendly brand. The typography talks trust. The play on negative space adds dimension and modularity — the perfect finesse!
And let's face it, pictures do sell a dream. Especially a real estate dream. With the Rive brand photography, prosperity and freedom are almost palpable and within reach. Real life stirs the hearts more. Kicks people into action to make their personal property dream come true, to move and be who they are. At home!
“We were super happy that so many people were able to participate in the project throughout the process. It made selling the rebranding internally much easier.”
Johanna Koponen, Marketing Manager, Rive
Rive has just launched! So, we will tell you more about the impact as the ripples turn to waves. But, as far as the Rive people are concerned, they are just getting into the groove. Which is, by the way, what Rive means in Finnish and English. To make a groove. To break new ground.
For sure, there are some quick wins and easy benefits to reap: One brand means all equity flows to one place and one place only, infinitely more effective for return on marketing investment. It also means one set of tools, one set of channels, and one set of key messages. Combined with human & digital intelligence, what could be more empowered and powerful.
On a little bigger impact: We wish Rive luck in their purpose to advance everyone’s prosperity. By making more homeowners in the world, by pushing back for the generation rent. We share their belief that broad access is pretty vital if we are to have a thriving and mobile society. People who own their homes have more power to make their choices, more safety, and more freedom. That’s a nice kind of revolutionary.
Scope
- Brand strategy
- Brand architecture
- Key messages
- Naming
- Brand story
- Brand identity
- Art direction
- Digital product
