SOFTWARE.
From end-to-end events planning to failed payment recovery to barbershop business management, I have worked with a wide variety of SaaS startups supporting entrepreneurs, small business owners, creators, and everyday humans.
FROM EVENTS TO EXPERIENCES.
CHALLENGE
Events.com aimed to revolutionize the events industry, which was notorious for its opacity and hidden fees. Their goal was to become a comprehensive platform for event organizers and attendees alike. Following a series of mergers and acquisitions, Events.com needed to realign its various components and boost brand awareness and conversion rates. They approached us to help them achieve these objectives and drive the company towards a new level of success.
PROCESS
We initiated the process with a comprehensive analysis of industry trends and stakeholder needs. This deep dive allowed us to align Events.com's core offerings, vision, and technical roadmap with a robust brand foundation and architecture, providing a solid base for all strategic decisions.
Building on this foundation, we delivered a comprehensive verbal identity guide, a refreshed visual identity guide and toolkit, a 36-month go-to-market strategy playbook, and a complete website redesign. These deliverables were crafted to bring the brand to life with a cohesive narrative, emphasizing Events.com's unique position in the market as a transparent, all-inclusive platform for event management and attendance.
IMPACT
Events.com successfully implemented the recommended strategy, launching their redesigned website and new brand identity in Q2 2023. This rebranding effort contributed to their successful fundraising round, where they secured $8.12 million in June 2023. The new brand positioning highlighted Events.com's commitment to transparency and comprehensive service, setting them apart in an industry often criticized for hidden fees. By emphasizing their role as a one-stop-shop for all event-related needs, Events.com has positioned itself for continued growth and success in the evolving events industry landscape.
With this strong foundation in place, Events.com is well-equipped to continue leading the industry with passion, reinforcing their position as an innovator in the events sector and driving towards their next milestone of likely going public in Q4 2024.
Client
Events.com
Status
Series B $266.9M raised
Work Done
Competitive Analysis
Market Research & Insights
Brand Foundations
Brand Architecture
Brand Positioning
Verbal and Visual Identity
Go-To-Market Strategy
Activation Playbook
Web Copy and Redesign
CLEAR CUT.
CHALLENGE
SQUIRE, founded in 2015 by entrepreneurs Songe LaRon and Dave Salvant, had established itself as the leading business management system for barbers and shop owners. At a critical inflection point, SQUIRE faced two significant challenges. They needed to expand their brand system and refresh their positioning, identity, and messaging to build a scalable brand and marketing infrastructure for future growth. Additionally, they had to evaluate their market opportunity, deciding whether to double down on the barber industry or expand into different verticals without alienating their core community.
PROCESS
We approached this challenge with deep respect for the unique culture and history of the barber industry, and its intersection with historically underrepresented communities. Our process began with attending the CT Barber Expo for multi-day field research, in addition to qualitative interviews with SQUIRE's founders and executive team while shadowing different departments at the trade show. Engaging with barbers, shop owners, current SQUIRE customers, and prospective leads provided invaluable insights about the lives, challenges, and motivators of barbers at various career stages. We also performed a thorough landscape and competitive audit.
Based on this comprehensive research foundation, we delivered a well-informed and differentiating foundational brand platform, a resonant brand manifesto, and an overall opportunity analysis to inform SQUIRE's business strategy. Additionally, we helped establish brand and marketing infrastructure that supported both a visual identity and verbal identity refresh.
IMPACT
During our engagement, SQUIRE achieved significant milestones by surpassing $1 billion in transaction volume and being identified as the next Black-owned unicorn company. They are currently implementing the new brand system across all external communications, marketing, and partnership touchpoints, positioning themselves for continued growth and success in their market.
Client
SQUIRE
Status
Series D
$167.1M raised
$1B+ valuation
Work Done
Competitive Analysis
Market Research & Insights
Field Research
Opportunity Analysis
Brand Platform
Verbal and Visual Identity
Tagline Copy
Manifesto Copy
Marketing and Growth Strategy
Activation Playbook
Campaign Development
OOH Executions & Print Ads
FAILURE ISN’T AN OPTION.
CHALLENGE
Vindicia, a failed payments recovery platform, faced a significant challenge in clearly defining and communicating the problems they solve for subscription businesses across various industries. They needed to amplify a benefit-driven narrative to motivate stakeholders to pursue integration. Additionally, Vindicia struggled with a lack of awareness among their target audience, which hindered their growth potential in a competitive market.
PROCESS
To address these challenges, we implemented a comprehensive strategy that began with a thorough company and market audit. This involved analyzing the competitive landscape and conducting a materials audit to understand Vindicia's position in the market. From there, we focused on positioning by developing a clear value proposition, defining Vindicia's category, and crafting a compelling brand narrative and manifesto.
Next, we produced a comprehensive verbal guide and key messaging across various platforms, alongside visual elements that aligned with the new messaging. This production phase included creating sales decks, email designs, a one-pager highlighting Vindicia's value, whitepaper designs, website content revisions, and email/CRM materials.
We also developed an awareness playbook and implementation strategy to guide Vindicia's marketing efforts. Throughout this process, we emphasized leveraging Vindicia's decades of experience and successes to establish legitimacy and leadership in the subscription management space.
IMPACT
The rebranding and positioning efforts led to increased general awareness, understanding, and recall of Vindicia among subscription businesses. A clear and desirable narrative emerged based on Vindicia's unique value proposition, which was cohesively applied across all touchpoints and marketing efforts. This positioned Vindicia as a category leader in the payments intelligence space.
These outcomes laid a strong foundation for future marketing initiatives and differentiation in an otherwise bland category, including an 8-bit gamified explainer video (which we scripted and produced), performance media creative, event activations, and campaign landing pages. With this strategic approach, Vindicia is now well-equipped to achieve category-leading awareness and drive exponential growth in the failed payments sector.
Client
Vindicia Retain
Status
Series E
$37.6M raised
Work Done
Competitive Analysis
Market Research & Insights
Opportunity Analysis
Category Definition
Brand Positioning
Brand Narrative and Manifesto
Full Verbal Guide and Brand Book
Sales Deck and Collateral
Tagline Copy
Web, Email, and Newsletter Copy Marketing and Growth Strategy
Activation Playbook
Explainer Video Script
Explainer Video Production
