Designing Joy: Emil’s Collaboration with Zen Laughter

When a small community organisation needed a fresh brand identity to better connect with its community, Skilled Volunteer Emil stepped in to help.

About The Charity

Zen Laughter is a South London-based organisation that works across boroughs to support unpaid carers and older people in the community. They also collaborate with corporate teams to reduce workplace stress, improve team dynamics, and boost well-being through laughter-based workshops.

Zen Laughter’s mission is simple: to empower individuals and communities through the power of laughter, creating spaces where people can grow, connect, and thrive. Their core values, fun, emotional resilience, connection, and community are at the heart of everything they do.

The Project

Zen Laughter reached out to Link UP London looking for a Skilled Volunteer to design a professional and visually appealing logo that reflected their mission. As they looked to expand their reach, they needed a strong brand identity to establish credibility and increase visibility.

The Skilled Volunteer

Enter Emil, a freelance graphic designer looking to gain more experience in branding and logo design. Having completed multiple courses in branding, logo creation, and corporate identity design, he was eager to use his skills to support a good cause while growing his portfolio.

Link UP London matched Emil with Jaycee, the founder of Zen Laughter, and together they embarked on the journey to create a logo that truly represented the charity’s mission.

The Project

Emil worked closely with Jaycee to create a professional, visually appealing logo that truly reflects Zen Laughter’s mission. With a new brand identity in place, Zen Laughter now plans to increase its visibility on social media. Jaycee shared, “Having a logo that I can use on social media content will support me in building a consistent brand identity and messaging.”

As part of Emil’s design process, Jaycee completed a brand questionnaire, which she found to be an interesting and valuable experience. “The process helped me gain clarity about the business concept and the message I want to put out there. It was probably the first time since registering the organisation that I have done this. In many ways, it helped affirm what inspired me to create Zen Laughter.”

Emil went above and beyond to understand the organisation and its values. He took the time to listen, research, and incorporate meaningful elements into the final designs. Jaycee was particularly impressed by “How tuned in he was to understand the organisation. He really listened to what was important to me and carried out extensive research into symbols, quotes, colours, and words that were significant to me. He took the time and consideration to incorporate these into the final designs. I liked that he presented a range of different designs and was happy to make adjustments at my request. I would highly recommend Emil. He is extremely attentive, talented, and listens to his clients’ needs. I can’t express how important this was to me. Thank you.”

The new design has already made a difference in Zen Laughter’s marketing, PR, and social media presence. Jaycee now feels more confident and professional in promoting Zen Laughter, particularly as she looks to pivot more towards corporate wellbeing. “I now have a professional logo that represents the organisation’s brand. And in doing so, it has helped me feel more confident and professional in promoting Zen Laughter, especially as I am looking to pivot more towards corporate wellbeing.”

She also shared, “I feel extremely grateful and happy to finally have a professional logo that aligns with the concept of my organisation. I love it! I feel proud and know it will help me feel more confident in presenting a clear, consistent brand identity and messaging. I’ve loved the whole design process, it’s been very empowering! It has helped me reconnect with the passion and inspiration at the heart of Zen Laughter and, in a magical way, has given me permission to express my own personality through the design. Thank you so much.”

For Emil, the experience was just as rewarding: “Without Link UP London, I would never have had the opportunity to work with the amazing Zen Laughter charity. Link UP facilitated a great connection between designer and client, providing support while also allowing us the freedom to manage the project independently. I look forward to continuing to be part of this very worthwhile venture.”

A Win-Win Collaboration

This project showcases the power of Skilled Volunteering – talented designer gained valuable experience while a small charity with a limited budget received professional branding support that will have a lasting impact.

Want to use your skills to support a local charity? Join Link UP London today and help transform communities through Skilled Volunteering!