Brand Strategy

Strategy Development

Agency Bel has worked with fortune 500 companies as well as small startups and with sectors ranging from technology to healthcare and everything in between. We utilize the same strategic process no matter how large or small the enterprise.

Branding is the emotional tie between your customer and your brand and programs. In order to establish an impactful visual and marketing approach for a company, the decisions must first be founded on a strategic rational: attributes and brand positioning relative to the competition. 

Often times a company is too close to itself to derive their own strategic positioning and attributes. During this phase, we get together for a strategic brainstorming session with 3-5 trusted advocates from within your team to understand your competition (5 top), unlock your brand and leverage it. We tie your marketing position to the core essence of the brand. We tie key benefits back to your brand essence. We tie attributes back to those benefits. So, together, we get to the core of the brand, and build it.

Utilizing findings from our research and the client’s feedback, AgencyBel will assist in creating three tiers of attributes. The core attribute(s) or “spike” is what becomes a company’s brand essence or identity, becoming the foundation for its brand strategy and positioning. Brand hierarchy of future sub brands will be addressed as part of a master brand plan.  At the culmination of this phase, the client will have a triangle of attributes, a brand personality to guide all of your future marketing initiatives as well as a targeted brand positioning. Successful brand strategy is making sure the creative solutions are aligned with a clearly articulated and / well-defined position.

A final document pairing new attributes with relevant images will be created and shared with you, the client. This document may be shared with outside supporters to introduce the concept and its mission.

Visual Audits and Communication Plans

• Review all current marketing materials and forms of communication
• Fully understand the selling process and communication stream through discussions with key individuals in a sales capacity
• Develop summary of interview findings along with a proposed top-line communications system, in flow-chart form
• Present interview findings and final communications system recommendation to client
• Receive final approval, going through the necessary channels, on the proposed system

• Drive all communications from the viewpoint of a client or prospect
• Ensure consistent presentation of branding and positioning messages
• A clearly defined communication path from broad introductions to detailed explanations
• Deliver the right message to the right target at the right time
• Reduce confusion by clarifying exactly how clients needs are met by the appropriate solution
  

Creative Naming Services

These days, name candidates must meet unprecedented requirements before launch:

• trademark and domain-name availability
• linguistic and cultural acceptability
• consensus among multiple decision-makers
• Oh, and don’t forget each name must creatively express brand essence in a way that’s magnetic, distinctive, concise, and long-lasting!

To ensure our clients clear these hurdles, AgencyBel has developed a naming process of best practices at every step:

• Immersion: Our upfront meetings ensure immersive understanding of business objectives and elicit hard-to-articulate name preferences.
• Creative: During name development, we create a staggering number of candidates, covering
  every viable name message, construction, and tonality (because sometimes you don’t know what you want until you see it).
• Screening: Our preliminary trademark screening phase is typically secure enough not not have to hire an attorney. If you have concerns beyond what AgencyBel discovers, please consult legal advice. 

From the moment you engage AgencyBel to final name selection our team is focused on guiding you toward creative solutions that surprise and excite you and that are ownable and protectable as trademarks. 

Strategy for Entrepreneurs

Small businesses get off the ground with bootstrapping and a bit of luck. A business card here, a website there, and finally a trade show or some signage. What may be left may be some confused customers. It’s time to take a step back and check in to see what your marketing efforts are based on. Our mantra is “it’s not hard if we all pull together in the same direction.” In this session, it is important to solidify the strategic roadmap that all stakeholders can follow, allowing your creative to propel your business forward rather than backwards.

Strategy for the Non-Profit Sector

Our studio has presented to and facilitated groups of all sizes and expertise levels, including boards of non profit trustees. As a former and current board chair, Laura brings a particularly deep level of empathy and expertise to her work with boards of directors. She currently holds the marketing chairs of the National Association of Healthcare Advocacy and The New Art Center.

Strategy for New Product Coming to Market

Did your company become known for one distinct product or service and is now growing to encompass a new branch of offerings? No problem. Ideally brands are created in such a way that it would be equally believable for your company to sell toilet paper as well as automotive parts. That is not always the case and that’s why some companies are known as one-hit wonders. In a brand building workshop we can fortify the good work your brand has already done and reinforce it for growth