Transport for London. They’re a great brand. I love them. They get the absolute fundamentals of branding right. Not branding in the graphic sense, but in the true sense of shaping others’ perception of you.
Lesson 1: They employ everybody.
TfL employ anybody—everybody. Doesn’t matter how old you are. Doesn’t matter where you come from. Or your accent. Or your weight. And we, London commuters, see that. We interact with real people. It’s rare in any company to get an honest representation of the population. TfL do it well.
Your hiring patterns are one expression of your brand. A customer or client is always unconsciously adjusting their perception of your brand, and who they interface is one piece of this puzzle.
Employing indiscriminately gives a brand ‘forgivability’. People see the humanity behind the services and products. They find it hard to get angry at somebody who could be their father, brother, mother, sister.
And TfL make themselves extra human. By having staff present at every station, having them read out announcements that could just as well have been done by a robot. TfL is an extremely human brand.
Lesson 2: Their product actually solves a problem.
Throw away your car. There’s no need for it. Okay, not really. But like me, I’m sure there’s tens of thousands of Londoners who don’t drive because TfL is so good.
Buses and tubes run regularly. They stop at well-considered, well-spaced intervals. They (mostly) arrive on time. You can get from anywhere in London to anywhere else in London most of the time, quickly and comfortably.
Lesson 3: Everything is geared towards ‘service’.
There’s no confusing fluff at a TfL station. The tube maps, the signage, the Oyster machines, the ticket gates… everything is tailored to be radically clear, brutally direct, and as digestible as possible. This is truly ‘good service’. Not a happy smile and a long email. But helping people do what THEY need to do.
One of the greatest typefaces ever drawn (Johnston Sans) doesn’t boast, and calmly tells you exactly what you need to know. When you take a radically service-orientated approach, customers start to depend on you. When you misdirect customers, sell to them, or don’t consider their needs, they get annoyed.
Overall impression
No other brand leaves as positive an impression on me as TfL. It’s a public service, and, incredibly, it also actually feels like one. Every interaction I have with TfL is good, and I feel like they care about me.
I don’t know who’s made TFL how it is today, but thanks.
