Find what matters
How do young people feel about sports? When Sport England went about answering that question, it was more complex than you might expect.
Sport England is on a mission: to get more young people to find sports and activities they love and want to take part in regularly. Having carried out thorough research into young people’s experiences and attitudes to physical activity, the organisation had unlocked vital insights.
Next, they needed to convey this information to sports leaders, practitioners and policy-makers who could use it to encourage more young people to get involved in sports and exercise, and form enduring habits.
The research identified six key personality groups and Sport England developed tailored advice on how to engage each of them.
It was powerful and often surprising content that we could all see would be invaluable to those delivering sports and exercise programmes. But it was complex and long. We needed striking visuals and practical, accessible content.
Make it matter more
We worked closely with the Sport England team, drawing on their knowledge and expertise of the issue and audience. The team was extremely passionate about the project, and were looking for external experts to help them prioritise their messages. They knew we could help them focus on what their audience wanted and needed to achieve their goals.
Working with Neo really helped us to clarify the key messages we wanted to deliver.The clear copy and the distinctive illustrations Neo designed for our Youth Personalities are helping more people notice the work, and understand it.
– Carol Fraser, business advisor, Sport England
First, we set about understanding and distilling complex research data into clear messages, being careful not to change meaning or dumb down information. Using quotes from young people, key statistics and striking infographics, we transformed dry bullet points into clear, accurate key messages that would stick.
The challenge for us was to think about physical activity differently and stay away from traditional, stereotypical visual references for sport. This style needed to represent a range of young people — not just sports enthusiasts, but intellectuals and introverts, into everything from archery to zumba.
We went back to the original interviews with young people from the research to find our creative solution. Each personality group was brought to life through illustrations of relatable and authentic people and objects, which represented their environments — from iPhones to teacups, pets to skateboards. The style felt fresh and energetic, adding to the sense that Sport England was behind a smart new way of thinking about how we reach young people and inspire them to be active.
Working collaboratively, we transformed the research into a series of vibrant and accessible tools and materials for the Sport England team. Using these, they could better target their communications and ultimately realise their ambition of helping young people find an activity they love, and stay active for life.
To help bring to life the insights in an authentic, engaging way, we developed a suite of short video animations. The films feature the words of some of the young people Sport England spoke to as part of the research — creating further layers of character to the six personalities.
Initial feedback has been extremely positive, “Working with Neo really helped us to clarify the key messages we wanted to deliver. Their clear copy and distinctive illustrations are helping us to reach more people; people who’re noticing the work and understanding it. ”Carol Fraser, business advisor.
The launch on social media created the organisation’s most shared post ever.
