Case Study: The Gut Stuff
On the outside, twins Alana and Lisa (The Mac Twins) are identical. However, during a research project with King’s College London, they discovered something surprising – despite sharing 100% of the same DNA, their guts only contained 40% of the same microbiota. This discovery was a revelation: it explained why their bodies behaved differently, and it led to the creation of ‘The Gut Stuff’.
The Gut Stuff – Balloon‑style gut animation by Jones Knowles Ritchie, Yellow Pencil winner 2018
Created along with entrepreneur India Wardrop, The Gut Stuff began as a YouTube channel, with a mission to bring ‘gut health’ science to the public. The concept was just beginning to expand to offer supper-clubs and a standalone website when a dinner party conversation with Jones Knowles Ritchie’s (JKR) Head of Strategy ignited an idea.
As ECD Sean Thomas recalls, “We immediately saw the potential in their mission and knew we could provide them with an opportunity to accelerate it by creating a brand.“
The Gut Stuff – Balloon‑style gut animation by Jones Knowles Ritchie, Yellow Pencil winner 2018
The brief
The Mac Twins asked JKR to craft a brand that furthered the goal of The Gut Stuff to make gut health ‘digestible’ for the masses, and “simplified the science and jargon so that every one of us can get to know our insides inside out.”
The twins themselves communicate gut health in a relatable, way, and the identity would have to reflect that. There would be no media budget, so the idea and execution would need to stand out.
The idea
Thomas describes the ideation process thus, “The insight behind the idea came in the form of conversations. Loud ones. Alana and Lisa are full to bursting with charisma. So the key question we asked ourselves was: how can we create a brand as playful, down to earth and impossible to ignore as The Mac Twins are?”
So the team set about immersing themselves in the world of gut health YouTube videos. There was one clear take away: everybody’s guts are unique and continually evolving.
With this insight in mind, the team searched for a metaphor for the gut that was relatable, and funny. As Thomas says “it wasn’t long before we all had balloons in our hands”. The benefit of balloons was their malleability, “It was a gift for animation, endlessly creating quirky new graphics and idents - from DNA strands and brains.”
Using real balloons, the team road-tested a host of ideas, “to learn their geometry and capabilities and find out which elements we wanted to borrow from and which we wanted to simulate.”
The Gut Stuff – Balloon‑style gut animation by Jones Knowles Ritchie, Yellow Pencil winner 2018
The execution
The concept allowed for a wealth of gut health topics to be represented, including bloating, irritation and flatulence. The team were ruthless, “Anything that wasn't instantly recognisable (or went past roughly four lines of copy) didn't make the cut.“
A typeface was chosen that was as joyful and uplifting as a balloon itself. Likewise, a light-hearted shade of pink was used across the board. Aurally the idea was brought to life with comical squeaks and squeals, produced by sound designers Resonate. Each of these design choice combined to give the balloon-filled identity a distinct purity and clarity.
And it was all brought to life in CGI, a discipline that JKR are first to admit they’re not known for.
The launch
There was no media spend for the launch, so they would have to reply on existing channels, and the sheer outrageousness of the new creative.
The launch of the new identity began with a takeover of The Gut Stuff’s social media channels. Thomas describes how they created “a world of millennial pink complete with lively animations and quirky message-led copy.” The identity then came into physical form at the next supper club, where it featured on menus giant balloons and napkins.
The Gut Stuff – Balloon‑style gut animation by Jones Knowles Ritchie, Yellow Pencil winner 2018