Our approach

Inside the studio.

How we define the problem before we design anything, and the craft that carries it through.

Spend more time on the problem than on the solution.

Zach GerkeDirector, Zelexis

Most briefs describe a symptom: a new identity, a campaign, a new website. The cause is usually upstream, in who the business is for and what it is known for.

So the first weeks of every project go into understanding the business, its buyers and its competitors, and you see the findings at each step. By the time anything is designed, the hard decisions are already made.

The method, in four steps.

Every project moves through the same four steps. The rest of this page shows the thinking and the craft inside each one.

  1. Step 1

    Diagnose

    Where is the business seen today, and why?

    Interviews, an audit and a clear view of the gap

  2. Step 2

    Position

    What should it be known for, and by whom?

    A positioning statement, agreed before design

  3. Step 3

    Deliver

    How does every channel carry it?

    Identity, website and marketing, built to the plan

  4. Step 4

    Improve

    What is working, and what comes next?

    Reviews, refinements and ongoing support

Each step is agreed before the next begins. Nothing is designed on a guess.

  • Agreed at every step
  • You see the findings
  • One team throughout

Where we start.

One session, three questions, one agreed answer each. An example from a property developer.

AudienceWho is the business for?

  • Private developers
  • Councils (set aside)
  • Repeat clients
  • Any landholder (set aside)

AgreedOwners who plan to hold the building.

Reason to chooseWhy do they choose you?

  • Design and build in one team
  • On budget, every time
  • Lowest price (set aside)
  • Fast approvals (set aside)

AgreedDesign and delivery under one roof.

BarrierWhat stops them calling?

  • Nothing to show a director
  • Hard to compare us
  • Price (set aside)
  • Location (set aside)

AgreedThey cannot see the work.

Four foundations, drawn first.

Each one answers a question the brand, the marketing and the website will have to answer later.

Illustrative, for a property developer.

Buyers Wider market Influencers Directors decide
Who decides, and who influences.Buyers at the centre, then the people they ask, then everyone else.
SpecialistGeneralist Price-ledValue-led Volume builderProject managerDesign and constructBoutique firm You
Where the space is.Competitors cluster on price. The open ground is specialist and value-led.
SearchCompareNo proof to compareEnquireQuoteSlow, unclear quoteDecide
Where buyers stall.The path from search to decision, with the two points where work is lost.
Market standard Licensed and insuredDelivered on budgetClear pricing Design and build in one teamBuilt for long-term ownersNamed projects as proof Parity: match itDifference: win on it
What to match, and where to win.Parity earns a place on the shortlist. Difference wins the work.

The words and the type, set together.

A line is rewritten until it is plain and specific, then set in the type that carries the same tone. Both are decided before any page is designed.

Copy deskFinal

Type deskChosen

Illustrative lines and pairings. Each client’s are chosen and set from their own position.

  1. Phase 1 of 5Diagnose

    Understand

    Interviews with your team and clients, a look at competitors, and an honest audit of what you have.

    You receive
    A findings summary
    We need from you
    Two or three conversations

  2. Phase 2 of 5Position

    Define

    Who you are for, what you are known for and why you, agreed with you, with priorities set.

    You receive
    A clear position and priorities
    We need from you
    One workshop and sign-off

  3. Phase 3 of 5Deliver

    Create

    The identity, content and website built from the position, with review points along the way.

    You receive
    The finished work
    We need from you
    Feedback at each review point

  4. Phase 4 of 5Deliver

    Launch

    Everything tested, put live and handed over with guidance your team can use.

    You receive
    Files, guidelines and a walkthrough
    We need from you
    Final approvals

  5. Phase 5 of 5Improve

    Improve

    A look at how the work is performing, and what to change next.

    You receive
    A short review and next steps
    We need from you
    One conversation after launch

One method, four lenses.

Every service runs on the same method: diagnose, position, deliver. What changes is where we look first, and how far the work carries.

  1. Brand strategy & identity Looks first at Position. We start with how buyers compare you, then build the identity around the one idea you can own.
  2. Marketing & content Looks first at Position. Every piece answers to the position, so the plan decides what to make, and what to stop making.
  3. Innovation & consulting Looks first at Diagnose. We follow the whole path from first enquiry to signed work, then fix the steps that cost you the most.
  4. Websites & digital Looks first at Position. The website is where the position has to work hardest, so structure and copy come before design.
Where the work starts, and how far it carries

Every project starts with a conversation about the problem.

We reply within 1 to 2 business days

Discuss a project

From start to finish, the whole process was easy, professional and stress-free.

Billi-Jae, Paint GodsResidential and commercial painting5.0 on Google All reviews on Google

Published projects, each showing the problem, the position we agreed and the finished work.

All case studies
Switch’D: agriculture

Switch’D Electrical & Air Conditioning

Electrical, commercial & agriculture

Two audiences, each with a clear way in.

Commercial and home customers met one generic contractor. Now each audience has its own clear route into the business.

One Long Table: heeney street
Multicultural food festivalOne Long Table logo

One table.
One night.
Endless flavours.

One Long Table

Community event, sponsored by Zelexis

One invitation, carried across every channel.

A sponsored event website and one consistent invitation across advertising, social and the site.

Bring us the problem.

Tell us what is not working, even if you are not sure why. That is where the best work starts.

Discuss a project

We reply within 1 to 2 business days.

5.0 on Google, from client reviews