Classic brand. New listeners.

How a refreshed visual identity and campaign helped Greatest Hits Radio attract a new audience without losing the brand equity it had already built.

Collage of brand guidelines pages for GHR

Even timeless brands need to evolve.

When Bauer Media’s latest research identified an opportunity for Greatest Hits Radio (GHR) to resonate with listeners around 10 years younger than its original audience – whose music preferences centred on the biggest hits of the ’70s and ’80s –we went back to the branding we’d created when Bauer launched the network.

The good news? The central positioning line that we created when we helped launch the brand eight years ago – ‘The Good Times Sound Like This’ – was still doing its job. Because good times are personal, it works for your era of music, whenever that might be.

What needed to move on was the visual identity.

We gave the look and feel a subtle shift – away from the original inspo of magazines and album covers of prog rock, disco and new wave, towards the optimism and graphic energy of the ’80s & ’90s; the era of breakfast television, music videos and early digital entertainment. All with a hint of Britpop thrown in.

We’ve also created a new brand identity guidelines document for Bauer’s growing in-house design studio and social media teams, giving them the tools to bring the refreshed identity to life consistently across channels.

The brand refresh coincides with GHR’s announcement that accomplished presenter Zoe Ball is joining the station for a new weekday afternoon show this month.

To mark her arrival, we’ve used the new brand look to create a physical stage set that frames Zoe for a classic photo and film shoot, in a launch campaign for her new show that puts the message front and centre.

Digital 6 sheet of Zoe Ball Campaign for GHR

London taxi showing an advert for Zoe Ball In the Afternoon on GHR

The thinking is deliberately simple: GHR has evolved.

The campaign runs across static street posters and taxis, as well as full-motion screens in shopping malls and social formats throughout September and October.

The result is an updated brand and campaign that feel nostalgic and contemporary at the same time.

The brand reset gives GHR the tools to attract a new generation of listeners without abandoning the familiarity and brand equity that made it successful in the first place.