Smartline · Brand / Identity / National rollout

Bringing a national mortgage brand into the REA Group family

Following Smartline's integration into REA Group, I was tasked with bringing the existing Smartline brand closer to the realestate.com.au visual family. The goal was to gain recognisability from REA's established brand equity while showing brokers and franchisees the strength and support of the wider group.

As the sole in-house designer responsible for the rollout, I evolved and applied the brand across adviser marketing, social, print, signage, shopfronts and national campaign assets. The work had to feel recognisably Smartline while becoming more clearly connected to REA Group.

Organisation

Smartline / REA Group

Role

Senior Brand Designer

Scale

300+ franchise businesses; 95% guideline adoption

Contribution

brand evolution, visual-system application, guidelines, rollout, franchise assets, environmental design and finished artwork

The brand challenge

Smartline already had a recognisable identity and strong adviser relationships, but the opportunity after joining REA Group was to make the brand feel more clearly supported by one of Australia's best-known property businesses. The visual evolution therefore needed to strengthen the family resemblance without erasing Smartline's own personality or local adviser model.

The system also had to work across hundreds of independently operated franchise businesses, so consistency and practical application were as important as the core look and feel.

Evolving the visual system

My role was to evolve Smartline's existing identity so it sat more naturally within the REA Group family. That meant working with familiar REA cues, particularly colour, typography, layout discipline and overall visual tone, while retaining enough distinctiveness for Smartline advisers and customers.

I translated that direction into practical brand guidance and a repeatable system that could be used across national and local communications.

Physical rollout

The updated identity extended across shopfronts, fascia signage and local adviser environments.

National campaign, OOH and social range

The evolved brand system supported both national campaigns and always-on adviser marketing across different audiences, while maintaining a consistent visual language.

A visual timeline of 20 years of Smartline

Created in response to a brief to capture Smartline’s two-decade journey, this infographic brings key moments, milestones and brand evolution into one clear visual story. It celebrates the people, progress and enduring purpose that have shaped Smartline over the years.

Results

The refreshed system was rolled out across more than 300 franchise businesses without pausing active marketing. A tiered rollout and self-service approach helped the network adopt the new brand efficiently, with updated guidelines reaching 95% adoption. At the same time, I continued supporting national and local activity with more than 100 compliant marketing assets each month.