POSTED BY: Mary Helow

It takes a village (the right team) to build a brand

19th Sep, 2018
Neworld Studio

It takes a village (the right team) to build a brand

Your business has many facets and a variety of talent within its walls. The main players might include CEO, sales/marketing, finance, technology, product development and administration – all working together to make your business a success.

Your branding partners also have a team of specialists all working together to create new and captivating brands. The plethora of talent under one roof allows your agency to customise teams of experience and specialities based on your particular project requirement. So what roles do these teams consist of? Below is an example of what your Neworld team might look like:

Strategists

These are the real thinkers behind your brand. Their sole job is to understand what makes you tick. They’re the question people – What do you stand for? Why would your customers choose you over your competitor? What is your true point of difference? They use a variety of tools – qualitative & quantitative research, tactical workshops, competitor audits and consumer profiles to truly define what you makes you unique. They help articulate your purpose, your unique position within the marketplace and your personality, delivering a brand strategy that gives your business clear direction for achieving long-term goals.

Designers

This is where the visual magic happens. They take everything from strategy that makes you, you and turns it into something you can see, touch and feel. In Neworld, we brief a large group of designers (from the 20-year old whipper-snappers to the well-experienced 40-somethings). It’s weeks of visual research, benchmarking, sketches, designing, refining and redesigning. It’s healthy(ish) debate and constant stress-testing against the brief. Design is a messy business and our ‘war rooms’ are flying paper with more Sharpies and Post-Its than you can shake a stick at. Whether we’re online or off, an ad in the paper, a piece of packaging on a shelf or on the web, your visual identity should always reflect the brand strategy and ‘fit’ with the business. It becomes the quickest way for your consumer to recognise you.

Copywriters

Language is a critical component of your brand. Whether your brand is light-hearted (Innocent) or romantic (Tiffany & Co), copywriters painstakingly and expertly craft a tone of voice that reflects your personality and speaks in a meaningful way to your customers and audiences.

Account Director

This is where I come in. In addition to acting as a primary contact and navigating projects through various stages of the process, my job is to represent the client within our walls. I’m responsible for understanding the business objectives and ultimately ensuring our creative response not only answers the brief but also exceeds their expectation. Keeping a keen eye on the budget and ensuring we hit timeline milestones also fall under my remit.

Of course, there are there are many others behind the scenes – from creative directors, to HR to finance and admin – but this gives a flavour of some of the key specialists that help shape your brand. It’s a complex and exhilarating journey we take with our clients and it requires a strong, collaborative group to deliver successes. Man, I love my job.

Mary Helow, Senior Account Director

Mary called San Francisco home until 2005 but prefers the cobblestone streets of Dublin. Her loves are understanding what makes a brand tick, Star Trek (Captain Kirk is king, she says) and any type of Mexican food she can get her hands on.