Vatican reveals new brand strategy in collaboration with Accenture Interactive

During his short time as pontiff, John Paul XXIII was once asked by a journalist, “How many people work at the Vatican?” His response humorously affirmed, “About half of them.” Yet despite a cheerful allegory for the relaxed nature of Vatican operations in the 1950s, the Holy See today employs a labour force of over 4,500, with every year some five million people visiting the holy site. As the Vatican seeks to redefine its communications, its latest partnership with Accenture Interactive aims to deliver a new brand strategy.

Intending to increase the consistency and clarity of its communications, the Ministry of Communications (known as the Secretariat for Communications), has unified its previously independent channels under the new title, Vatican News. With a singular, streamlined entity now the central component of its communications approach, Vatican News now incorporates its entire media offering, including its radio channel, podcasts, newsletters, and updates on the pope’s activities.

Existing officially as an independent country within Rome, Italy, the Vatican’s city-state independence came in 1929, after the Lateran Treaty. Today, its legislative functions continue to be delegated internally, with acts of the commission requiring authorisation from the papacy, which is currently held by Pope Francis, whose recent comments on the meaning of the Lord’s Prayer signify his embrace of wider changes for the Christian faith. Yet on digital lines, Vatican operations have long been fragmented and outdated, despite its annual revenues exceeding £200m.

Monsignor Dario Edoardo Vigano, prefect for the Secretariat for Communications, says, “We are launching the last part of the reform sought by Pope Francis. Each reform does not originate from a mistaken past but from a present that calls for a change: in this case, today’s cultural and digital convergence require the adoption of production processes that are different from traditional ones. The collaboration with Accenture Interactive, thanks to their solid global experience, has allowed us to develop an extensive strategy capable of uniting various working groups, the diversification of formats and the strengthening of brand identity -- all while maximizing the value of our talented in-house professionals working in the Holy See media.”

Specialising in customer experience, Accenture Interactive’s work combines design, marketing, content and commerce to help clients achieve customer centricity, specialising in digital and wider connected products. Anatoly Roytman, head of Accenture Interactive for Europe, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East, says, “We’re honored to partner with such a venerable institution to reinvent the way it communicates. Accenture Interactive was chosen by the Ministry for our ability to bring a broad range of digital capabilities across user experience, design, content, branding, analytics, search, and social, as well our ability to help large institutions with the change management required for digital transformation to be successful.”