Following the introduction of new legislation for short term loans, annual losses of £37.3 million, and a festering reputation as a daylight robber, the loan company Wonga has rebranded and repositioned itself as a more “Responsible and transparent” company. The rebrand (which will hopefully also do away with those terrifying pensioner puppets) was spearheaded by StartJG, and sees the (now infamous) loan sharks (remember that 4214% APR!?) repositioning themselves as a company that can deliver the “Best outcomes for its customers.” To represent this friendlier and more trustworthy approach, the new Wonga logo is far softer and generally more aesthetically pleasing than its forebear, with a blue and green gradient colour scheme and the “W” of Wonga encased in a speech bubble. You'll also notice that they've completely done away with the “.com” part of the branding. A new strap-line that read “Credit for the real world,” has also been coined, and a new advertising campaign, which plays on the idea of personal responsibility, will be rolling out online and across television, radio and print from the end of this month.
A rebrand spearheaded by StartJG for Wonga, sees the (now infamous) loan sharks repositioning themselves as a more trustworthy company
The new direction arrives almost a full year after Wonga suspended all of its advertising in July 2014. This was a move made by the company to stop inadvertently attracting young lenders, which is something they had been accused of doing with their earlier campaigns. Wonga's UK chief executive Tara Kneafsey, admitted that “The puppets were inappropriate,” and underlined that the new adverts would not be shown on children's TV, or channels or programmes with a large audience among younger people. A new website has also been designed to give clearer information to customers including new policies and products such as a 24 hour money back guarantee.
Wonga – New TV Ad
New legislation passed in January means that people who enter short-term credit agreements will never have to pay back more then double what they borrowed. This obviously out a spanner in the works for Wonga, who previously made the lion's share of their profits from unreasonable interest rates. The company really appears to have turned a new leaf with its new business plan though, which it obviously needed, given the aforementioned £37.3 million annual loss reported last month. At that point, Wonga chief executive Andy Haste even went so far as to suggest that a name change was on the cards, but it seems they went with a less hasty decision (sorry). StartJG chief creative officer Darren Whittingham, said of the rebrand: “A fresh design approach to the Wonga brand and its communications provides a clear signal of change to its stakeholders, employees and customers, and mirrors the positive transformation the business is going through, helping give new life and positive energy for new era.”
The new direction arrives almost a full year after Wonga suspended all of its advertising in July 2014
The rebrand is the start of what looks to be a real sea change for Wonga, with the payday lender also planning to offer longer-terms loans and new products under a different brand name later in the year. Kneafsey said: “We’re trying to fix what we’ve done in the past and starting to position ourselves to move to the more responsible lending space.” It's also cutting a third of its workforce to help it adapt to new rules that regulators believe may drive some payday lenders completely out of business. Kneafsey added: “Our new product features and today's marketing relaunch are further proof of the action we've taken, and continue to take, to ensure Wonga is lending responsibly and putting customer outcomes first.” Time will tell if they can live up to such proclamations.
