Lego Connect
D&AD New Blood 2020
Brief
There comes a time when toys, such as Lego bricks, get forgotten. The LEGO Group want you to create a powerful campaign that appeals to teenagers and rebuilds their relationship with the LEGO brand - on their terms.
The campaign needs to encourage and inspire teens anywhere in the world to take notice and use Lego bricks to make creative statements and actions that really matter for them, and the world around them.
Insight
Child psychologist Jean Piaget viewed play as crucial for cognitive development, seeing it as a primary way children learn and construct knowledge. The enforcement of social distancing measures as a response to the Covid-19 outbreak has meant that regular playful social interaction has been impeded, and has now been shown to interrupt normal psychological development in children.
Brand Identity Design, UX Design & Copywriting.
Solution
Introducing Lego Connect, a new gaming social media platform that encourages teenagers to engage in creative play online with their friends.
The application uses LEGO bricks to promote actions most associated with normal social and psychological development in children; practice play, symbolic play, and games with rules, each contributing to different aspects of cognitive development.
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Practice Play: This involves repetitive actions and movements, like a baby repeatedly dropping a toy. It helps refine motor skills and understanding of cause and effect.
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Symbolic Play: Children use objects to represent other things, like using a block as a car. This stage allows for the development of imagination, language, and understanding of symbols.
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Games with Rules: These games involve structured rules and often cooperation or competition. They help children develop logical thinking, problem-solving skills, and social understanding
The brand
Inspired by the physical form of LEGO bricks and the function of easy-reading, this is a very friendly brand identity that feels both new and familiar. Fundamentally, nostalgic.
The colour scheme is consistent with the LEGO brand, yet new colours were swatched from real Lego bricks to freshen up the look and feel of this innovative LEGO product. The graphic language was derived from the shape of the connector plugs, edges and corners found on the bricks. This was in order to recreate as much of the child's optical experience with the original brand's toys as possible, creating a wholistic and familiar experience.
The voice
Engaging children isn't always easy, but it helps to be clear and direct. Our approachable visuals combine with using soft, playful language to achieve a warm, friendly tone. Using simple language and giving specific instructions is key to their understanding.
...Tickling them with playful puns and puzzles also helps!
The app
The app itself needs to be instantly recognisable as coming from Lego Connect. Bold colours and playful use of language are imbedded throughout. Images of real LEGO bricks are also used throughout the navigation display to make it feel authentic and synonymous with the original LEGO brand.
Clear layouts with large button activation areas are used to create a smooth user experience for the children. Simple iconography is adopted in order to maximise understanding.
Promotion
Deploying effective advertising is essential to any successful business venture. Using the brand mark as a lens through which to see the world helps us see the potential in what can be made.
