Defenders Campaign Guidelines
1
Go Beyond...
- Our technology goes beyond the competition. We’ll clarify this difference in our campaign and elevate innovation in our product launches year-round.
- Our people go beyond for our customers every day. We’ll build momentum around this with our internal culture and elevate it externally through our thought-leadership.
- Our brand & campaign will go beyond for defenders in ways no other cybersecurity brand has before, giving them the praise they deserve and the AI cybersecurity they need.
2
...for Defenders
We’re going to shift the narrative on cybersecurity. The industry, the competition, and the general public constantly hear or promote a culture of fear and doubt around cybersecurity. No doubt, the stakes are high, but we believe customers deserve more recognition, and more ways to stay ahead of threats. We will:
- Champion defenders in cybersecurity by elevating the customer voice and giving them the recognition and cybersecurity they deserve.
- Champion defenders in culture and draw parallels to the characteristics of cyber defenders to make them feel seen and celebrated.
Key Considerations for Compositions
Images Show Context
To strengthen the concept, our images provide context that helps the audience connect with the narrative. Highlighting the subject alone can work for big campaign moments, but not at the product level.
Making Messaging Work
With an established messaging framework in place, scale becomes critical. The impact, narrative, and legibility of each asset must align to ensure clarity and effectiveness.
More Than a Single Asset
While strong images and punchy messaging are important, we’re solving for challenging ratios and high-impact ad formats. That means approaching the work with both structure and pragmatism.
Color Combinations
How To Use Combinations
We encourage following the approved color combinations and order shown here, which maintain strong contrast, ensure legibility, and create a balanced, impactful visual presence.
We encourage following the approved color combinations and order shown here, which maintain strong contrast, ensure legibility, and create a balanced, impactful visual presence.
Grid & Layout
Our grid approach offers structure and simplicity. Without organization, messaging gets diluted. That’s why we think so carefully about the underlying structure of everything we do. Grids might be invisible, but they’re essential for balance, emphasis, and understanding.
Apply these principles to help construct your ideas in a way that visually reflects the FY26 Brand Campaign.
Apply these principles to help construct your ideas in a way that visually reflects the FY26 Brand Campaign.
1
Use a frame margin Frame margins are determined by scaling down the frame size by 5%
2
Determine the logo size Logo size is determined by 25%-30% of frame’s width (depending on context)
3
Create space Spacing between elements for messaging and Imagery is half the size of margins.
Restricted use of celebrity
Clark Gregg's likeness, image and campaign structure are not to be reproduced, distributed or reinterpreted without the explicit direction and guidance from the VP of Brand, Jeff Rennacker via brand@darktrace.com
Thank you for your consideration, we are under legal obligation to maintain our contractual agreements.
Look and Feel
Optimistic and impactful The look and feel is defined by the feeling of optimism, grounded with humanity and a cinematic warmth. This is achieved through a color grading approach with lighting and contrast to communicate the campaign’s message.
Bold and engaging Composition prioritizes medium closeups and shallow depth-of-field to focus on the subject’s expression and connection. The still photography and short-form digital pieces inherit their look and feel from the original films, in which we must maintain for continuity across all mediums.
Bold and engaging Composition prioritizes medium closeups and shallow depth-of-field to focus on the subject’s expression and connection. The still photography and short-form digital pieces inherit their look and feel from the original films, in which we must maintain for continuity across all mediums.
Do only use approved Clark images
Do use Clark to celebrate defenders
Do keep the Clark assets as is
Do NOT use Clark images without VP, Brand Marketing Jeff Rennacker’s approval
Do NOT celebrate Clark, he is there to celebrate defenders
Do NOT use Clark in any relation to Marvel
Photography Treatment
We treat our photography in a way that allows our subjects to extend beyond the image frame in the composition. This reinforces how Darktrace makes defenders feel heroic or larger than life.Our grid approach offers structure and simplicity. Without organization, messaging gets diluted. That’s why we think so carefully about the underlying structure of everything we do. Grids might be invisible, but they’re essential for balance, emphasis, and understanding.
Cropping Subjects Outside the Image Border
Cropping Subjects Outside the Image Border
1
Compose the Image
Place image in the image container as demonstrated in the Grid and Layout section on page 28.
Place image in the image container as demonstrated in the Grid and Layout section on page 28.
2
Use Mask
Make a copy of your image inside the container and mask the subject to remove the background, then place the subject’s mask beyond the image container.
Make a copy of your image inside the container and mask the subject to remove the background, then place the subject’s mask beyond the image container.
3
Ensure Placement
To make sure your subject has been placed correctly it has to be visible beyond the image container and maintain legibility with other elements within the asset composition.
To make sure your subject has been placed correctly it has to be visible beyond the image container and maintain legibility with other elements within the asset composition.
Do crop in and zoom in on photos where necessary for the design and layout
Do use Clark imagery only after approval
Do crop subjects out of frame with a proper masked image on top that provides removed context
Do keep the asset as is, only using photography that is currently approved
Do NOT mask subject’s heads/limbs and restrict legibility
Do NOT adjust hue, saturation, contrast, or make any other color adjustment to the photos
Do NOT skew, stretch, distort, or make images black and white
Do NOT put headlines or any other copy over the subject’s faces.
