DeSantis Breindel

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the chief development officer for a district energy company. We provide thermal energy services to 19 districts and 12 cities in North America.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

Our company was carved out of a larger organization, so we needed someone to help us rebrand with a new name and base assets. We wanted to present ourselves as a focused business as opposed to part of a larger organization.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

We brought on DeSantis Breindel to work with our team on a new brand identity. In the first phase, they looked at how our team members viewed our company and helped us determine the values that we felt were most important to our business. They interviewed people throughout our organizational chart across various regions. Then, they spoke with a significant number of customers as well as those who elected not to do business with us due to a given challenge.

The second phase involved aligning our team’s values. DeSantis Breindel conducted a market analysis to see what similar companies were doing, bringing back their messaging to help our executive team define a directional strategy for the new business. In the end, they worked with us to come up with a name and logo along with our color schemes for our base website, templates (e.g., PowerPoint, social media, letterheads), and mission statement.

What is the team composition? 

We spent a lot of time with about three people, and there were 4–5 others who supported them. The team consisted of a project manager and other branding specialists.

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

We issued an RFP for branding consultants and selected three companies to interview. Out of all of them, we were most impressed with DeSantis Breindel’s approach. They wanted to get to know us first, came prepared, and presented a vision for the process that they would follow. We were also rebranding on a very fast timeline, so their ability to execute in a timely manner was critical.

How much have you invested with them?

It was in the low six-figure range.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them between September–December 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

DeSantis Breindel’s team did a great job of really listening to everyone’s viewpoints throughout the organization. They were able to interpret our ideas and assimilate them with comments from our external stakeholders to craft a brand identity. It was very strategic thinking combined with tactical advice on our assets.

The general response was that our brand had an excellent approach that really focused on what we did. It clearly conveyed that we worked closely with local communities even though we were a large, national business.

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

There was a lot of work to be done before we got to a point where we could start picking names, and they kept us in line to meet that timeframe. We had multiple calls per week.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They focused on listening so that they could understand our company’s values and people. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They weren’t the least expensive, but I was tremendously impressed with the work that they did.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You should actively engage with them. Don’t defer to them for answers, but rather collaborate.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for a publically-traded global business advisory firm as the VP of marketing and business development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

We needed to create a whole new visual identity because it had been a while since we’d addressed it. Over time, it became inconsistent and outdated. We wanted to make our look and feel more modern and in-line with our messaging.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They came up with a new looking and feel, including a color palette, fonts, collateral, and templates. Their work resulted in a large PDF containing our brand guidelines and templates for our website. While we haven’t implemented their site design yet, they did deliver a view of how the site would look. The collateral they delivered included brochures, case studies, white papers, and more.  

What is the team composition?

We worked with about five people, including the creative director, a designer, and a digital director. There was a project manager as well.  

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

Our internal designer knew of their work from past engagements and was impressed with their skills and expertise. We thought that their knowledge of branding and marketing would be our best bet at navigating through this effort.   

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from January–July 2019. Once they delivered, we started working on plans for implementation. They gave us all the assets we needed to implement.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

When we rolled out the new visual identity internally, employees across departments and tenure sent in very positive feedback. They’re now all proud to send presentations to clients. One of our employees said this helped team morale and pride in the company.   

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great, providing us with weekly meetings and a progress tracker to stay on top of the work. We had a shared Excel document that acted as the tracker. It was a very organized process, which helped everything go smoothly.  

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their work along with their level of thoughtfulness is clear in their deliverables.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

There isn’t anything I can think of. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Let them do what they do best. They’re a great team, so you shouldn’t need much advice.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m responsible for sales, client relations, and marketing for a small company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

We didn’t effectively communicate our value proposition. We addressed a spread-out audience and didn’t have messages that resonated with them.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We originally hired them to clarify our messaging. As we began working with them, it became clear to us that we needed to clarify more than our messaging. We needed to change the position of our company in the minds of our different audiences.  

Their team came up with a complete rebranding strategy. They renamed the company and defined our different service offerings, enabling us to clearly communicate our value propositions. Their team then executed logos and taglines and revamped our website. They created product literature and a sales presentation deck too.

What is the team composition?

I interacted with about six people from DeSantis. Their team included an account executive who was our day-to-day project manager as well as an art director, a strategist, copywriters, and designers. There was also a website developer on the project.

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

We searched for a vendor for over a year and none of the agencies that we talked to fit. I had a business relationship with Howard (Co-CEO) and called him about this project. I invited him to talk with us and prepare a proposal. It was clear to my partners and me that their team was the best fit for us.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started around June and ended around December 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? We recently executed their work, making it difficult for us to share specific metrics. However, they clarified our audiences and different subsegments within those audiences. The changes enabled us to more effectively present and gain more traction from our presentations. We’re receiving more requests for information because we’re able to succinctly present our value proposition. Our team is enthused, and our clients have responded well to the new brand.

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

I was pleased with their project management. Another agency manages our advertising initiatives, and I told them that they had big shoes to fill and needed to perform as well as DeSantis did. Any kind of questions or challenges, their team stepped right in to resolve them. I have no complaints at all.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They proactively helped us grasp the importance of rebranding our company. Their team was ready to make and explain their recommendations rather than just reacting to my requests.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they did a great job. I would be delighted to work with them again.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open-minded. Don’t look to lead them every step of the way. Be respectful and receptive to their ideas, which may differ from yours. Hear them out because they’re good at what they do.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the director of marketing for an engineering firm. We work mostly in the built environment as well as in other areas such as life sciences.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

We initially wanted DeSantis Breindel to redesign our website. We then decided to rebrand our marketing materials so that they were consistent with how the website looked and how it was designed. We used to have old templates that we wanted to upgrade to the new branding look. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

DeSantis Breindel provided marketing templates and design services. They worked with other people in our firm for the website design and used a PowerPoint template design.They talked to us to understand what we wanted to do in terms of the templates.

The team came up with the design concept. We told them how many templates we wanted to create, so they included the cover templates, dividers, project information sheets, the resume templates, and materials we use to create a proposal for a client. They also did some graphic work. 

We gave them an idea of what we wanted in a graphic layout, and they were able to come up with a new design for us. As they had done the website first, they were familiar with the design style that we were looking for.

We let them know that we wanted our marketing templates to look similar to our website so they already had that concept. 

DeSantis Breindel divided it into three sprints. The first sprint included a few of the layouts, and for each sprint, they would come up with a first draft of the design of the templates they worked on, and then we had the opportunity to give them feedback. 

They would take our feedback, redesign it, and come back to us for another review. There was another chance to give them feedback and then they would provide us with the final layout for that sprint, and we did that with sprints two and three as well.

What is the team composition?

We had one main point of contact who I think was the account executive or project manager. We were also in touch with 2–3 other teammates, including designers and the person who did the production.

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

We found them when we were going to redesign the website. I was part of the group that was working on the redesign, but I wasn’t leading it. The leader who was doing the redesign had a few companies come in to meet us and provide us with their proposals for redesigning the website. 

Out of the three, we decided that we liked DeSantis Breindel the best. They were professional when they represented themselves, and they sounded like they knew exactly what we wanted.

We felt like there was a connection. Since we had been working with them on the website, we decided to continue working with them on the other design elements.

How much have you invested in them?

We spent under $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We kicked it off in mid-February 2020. They delivered all the layouts at the end of May 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

My marketing team has been very excited about using the templates, and they’re really happy with the look of the layout. People within the company have told us how great the templates look and that the look is very consistent with the website.

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great. The team kept us on schedule but were also flexible with people’s schedules. They were very open to feedback from us, and we could tell that they learned from our feedback and the design got better with each sprint. 

We had less feedback over the course of the process because they learned from the previous feedback we had given them. We had a weekly check-in call and when they had a new design layout, they would present it to us through a video call which was held on a weekly basis. 

Other than that, we communicated through email and phone. Our main point of contact kept everything on track and scheduled meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve only worked with one other designer for a marketing template, and that designer had been working with our company for a really long time. He had designed other collateral for us and he was great, but DeSantis Breindel took more risks. They didn’t just take our word and do exactly that; they were creative.

Are there any areas they could improve?

When they presented the design, they were a little bit short on commenting on why they designed something in a particular way. Sometimes we weren’t sure why some things were done a certain way. 

Occasionally, I asked them questions and they didn’t respond, but then we would see a revised version the next time. A little more explanation of their design concept would’ve been helpful, but it didn’t really hinder us, and we got a great product at the end.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Keep the line of communication open. We had a scheduled weekly check-in, but if there are any other questions or issues, just communicate that immediately rather than waiting for the weekly check-in. Whatever your goal is with your project, make sure that DeSantis Breindel is on the same page.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of marketing at HALO Branded Solutions, a promotional products distributor and recognition solutions provider.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

We’ve been in an aggressive growth mode for the last several years, and we’ve brought on different companies. Our challenge was operating several brands in addition to HALO.

Going to market with several brands was confusing to our clients and had a negative impact on the client experience and perception of HALO. We were trying to align all the companies and to move towards a master brand approach.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

DeSantis Breindel had a very comprehensive discovery and research phase. They spent a lot of time not only interviewing our key leadership members but also interviewing our customers and employees and conducting surveys with them.

They did this research to make sure that they understood all of our audiences, how they viewed HALO, and how they wanted to see the brand moving forward. The team then used the insights that they gathered from our audiences to refine our messaging and to figure out how we could best reach our audience.

What is the team composition?

We have two key contacts, but several teammates take part in our phone calls. DeSantis Breindel’s leadership has also been involved, including Howard (Co-CEO) and Dru (Co-CEO).

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

We did a lot of internet research for different branding companies and talked to people who we knew. DeSantis Breindel made our shortlist of contenders just from the work they had done.

We reached out to seven different companies and conducted phone interviews. We had a good feeling about this team’s work and how we would be able to connect and interact with them.

When we moved to the finalist stage, 4–5 companies came on-site and gave presentations, and the consensus was that DeSantis Breindel was a great fit. That was primarily because of their extensive discovery and research process.

Because we were bringing together so many disparate brands, it was important that we did comprehensive research to have insights that allowed us to understand the challenge and the best way to address it. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $425,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We contracted with them in August 2019, bu our project is currently on pause because of COVID-19. We haven’t fully launched the new brand, but we’re almost done. All of our messaging is wrapped up and we’re into the creative process.

Even though we haven’t launched, we’re in regular contact with DeSantis Breindel and we hope to resume the project in the next six weeks.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

One of our biggest successes from this project is that we’ve been able to build consensus among our leaders to get them on board for moving towards on HALO brand, which can be difficult to accomplish when you have CEOs of companies who are very protective of their brand.

To go through this process, build that consensus, and have the research show that it makes sense for us to move to one brand has been really powerful. We’ve been able to take the messaging that DeSantis Breindel developed for key target audiences and use it when we’re presenting to clients.

We’re implementing some of the team’s work in small ways, we just haven’t done a full rollout. The messaging has been very positive.  

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management has been effective. Our key contact serves as our project manager, and she makes sure that we’re all communicating and meeting timelines and deliverables. We have a day-to-day point of contact, but we also have a strategy team that we can talk to at any time. 

In some organizations or projects, there’s always a gatekeeper; that’s not the case with DeSantis Breindel. We have a fluid relationship, and they create an environment where we have access to anyone we want, which makes the process much more positive and approachable. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their organization is very open. While they may have a direction or a conclusion about something, it’s not set in stone. The team is open to receiving feedback and making sure that they have a clear view and understanding of where everyone’s coming from.

It’s not just their vision or their way; if someone on our team has questions about a direction or any challenges, opinions, or recommendations, DeSantis Breindel takes that very seriously and makes sure that they investigate and pivot based on other opinions. It’s a very collaborative and open exchange of ideas.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not that I can think of. We’ve loved working with them because we formed such a great relationship with everyone on their team. We feel comfortable, and it’s been a terrific partnership. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open to their feedback and recommendations, but also remember that you know your business better than anyone. Don’t be afraid to share your insights and background to add to their recommendations. 

Openness, honesty, and a partnership approach will help anyone get the most out of the experience. Collaboration is definitely the key. The more open and honest you can be and the more people on your leadership team you can get engaged, the better the outcome will be.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for West Monroe, a consulting firm. My role is senior marketing manager. I oversee both the digital and direct marketing channels. I work on all digital programming, whether it’s paid, owned, or earned programs, and that’s inclusive of our website or demand generation.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

The big challenge was that our website was 5–6 years old, and we'd outgrown it. We initially hired DeSantis for brand refresh and strategy work, so in conjunction with that, we wanted to give the brand an opportunity to live in a new space on our website. If we wanted to up our game with our refreshed brand strategy, our website – which is arguably one of the key storefronts for West Monroe – should reflect that new brand. We wanted to make sure that we were doing that channel its due diligence.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The scope of the brand project was helping us develop our brand strategy, so redefine and refine our current brand to be a bit more specific for how we want to go to market and the types of clients that we serve. That included a brand workshop, development of our brand strategy, and delivery of our refined and refreshed brand guidelines, which cut across all of the different channels: digital, print, verbal, and video. They gave us the materials we needed to really bring this new and refreshed brand to life and to market. 

The brand project was what we used as the launching pad to bring them on for the website work. We felt that they really understood us as a company, and they obviously understood our new brand. They were able to parlay that relationship into the website redesign. That included creating an upfront strategy and doing work sessions, both internally with our team and externally with clients, to understand what was needed for a best-in-class website experience. That led to a full UX audit of the current site and looking at the gaps and what we needed to address. Then, we did user flows and site maps to determine how we should build out the taxonomy and architecture of the site. They did the full concept design and brought those pages to life visually.

Through a partnership that they had with production partner, they brought the design into production and built it on top of a Sitecore CMS. 

What is the team composition?

Debbie (Managing Director, Creative Operations and Program Management) was our main project manager, but there was a large contingent from the DeSantis team, whether it was Clinton (Creative Director), who led the design; Leyah (Director of Brand and Digital Strategies), who oversaw UX and strategy; and Howard (Co-CEO), who checked in from an executive leadership standpoint.

It was a multi-faceted team, and they provided the digital strategy and design support that we needed. Through their partnership with the production partner, we got the production expertise necessary to make sure that everything we were designing could be brought to life on screen.

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

For the brand work, we went through an RFP process. We were considering 6–7 different partners, and I think DeSantis was selected because of their rigor and how they proposed helping us bring our new brand forward. Their presentation really resonated with our team and the type of brand that we want to have. Frankly, their process, rapport, expertise, and collaboration made them feel like the kind of company that West Monroe is. We had a good connection. 

Then, the website was a natural next step from the brand work. We did go through another RFP process, but we ultimately felt that DeSantis really got us and would bring the same high-caliber work that they did on the brand to the website.

How much have you invested with them?

The brand work was somewhere in the realm of $200,000–$220,000. The website was around $450,000. I think we were able to get some efficiencies from not having to worry about ramping up a new team; DeSantis already understood our brand.

What is the status of this engagement?

The branding work started in May 2019. We did the RFP process and then selected DeSantis in mid-May. That project lasted until October 2019. Then, we did the website RFP process from September–October 2019, and we selected DeSantis in November. That work went through May 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Anecdotally, I think that the new brand has brought a lot of new life to our internal teams. The whole purpose of doing this brand refresh was to do what we call raising the submarine, so raising the purview that we have with our potential clients. We’re finding that we’ve been able to do that because of the refresh. We have a much more sophisticated brand that feels akin to the type of work we provide. It feels very us. It's a challenger brand, and I think it resonates with our clients.

In the end, we were able to deliver a fully functioning, robust website. We’re only a month or so out with the website, but I would say the big success is that we are driving really great increased conversion rates as compared to before. Also, people seem to be enjoying the website experience itself, especially the ease of finding different thought leadership and content. It’s too early to explicitly quantify the success of our work together, but anecdotally, we're happy.

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

It was a flawless transition between projects. You can expect bumps in the road with any project, but DeSantis has always been, first and foremost, a partner. They’re interested in doing what’s best for their clients. We’ve had both great conversations and difficult conversations, but they always responded quickly and with the type of work that we wanted to quickly move the project forward in a really positive way.

DeSantis is in New York and West Monroe is in Chicago, so we knew from the outset that we weren’t going to be able to have a lot of live discussions, but we were comfortable working more virtually. We did have 2–3 in-person meetings, but we primarily communicated via conference calls, Skype, and Zoom.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What DeSantis does really well is listen to us. They involve us as part of the process; they’re not doing stuff to us, but with us. We felt that both projects were truly collaborative. I’ve worked with a lot of partners that take the work, do their stuff, and then do a big reveal. DeSantis wasn’t scared to show us work-in-progress and give us an opportunity to work together, to ensure that we felt really good about where it was going before they invested a ton of time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

One of the challenges we had was that DeSantis didn’t have a production team in-house to do the technical development of the website, so they had to subcontract through another partner. The communication was occasionally a bit spotty, and sometimes DeSantis had to play catch up. I’d have liked to see stronger continuity between DeSantis and that third-party partner.

Any advice for potential customers?

I would tell them to be honest. DeSantis is really good at listening and understanding what a client needs so that they can come back and provide the right recommendation. They’ll give you the opportunity to sit down, talk through the challenges, and set clear expectations. They ultimately want to provide the best work; I know a lot of partners do, but I’ve found that many want to tell their own story, not the client’s. DeSantis will listen to what your business needs are to provide the right answer.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CMO at a global organization that helps companies and city governments with sustainability challenges.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

We were going through a major rebrand, which resulted from the merging of several existing businesses within our company. Our new team needed someone to create a new brand identity, focusing on visual and voice.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their main task was developing a new website for us. In that effort, they were responsible for supporting our messaging and visuals. They worked closely with our designers to devise a branding eco-system that played a role in informing our brand guidelines, which we developed internally. Their team was also critical to thinking through brand strategy with us and facilitating competitive research. 

The website was built from scratch using a Craft CMS platform. They incorporated our messaging into the new site, drove the layout, and took charge of technology infrastructure. Additionally, they own some of the copy development for various pages, working hand-in-hand with my team to implement the content strategy they created. At this point, the work is almost complete. We’ll remain engaged with them until the end of 2019.

What is the team composition?

The core team consisted of between 7–9 people. I communicate mostly through a project manager.

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

Originally, we leveraged Clutch to find them based on our core requirements. It was important for us to find a full-service agency that focused on transforming businesses on a global level through technology. Historically, we’ve worked exclusively in the United States, but we wanted to change that. Of course, we were also looking for exceptional design and copy capabilities that could bring a brand to life. 

In our discussions, we were immediately impressed by DeSantis Breindel’s thoughtfulness. They felt comfortable in the space and proved to be very strong with brand strategy. Their ability to implement and take company visions to the next level as opposed to being order-takers really stood out to us.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $250,000–$500,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2019, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The project, so far, has collected very positive feedback. They were able to add significant value from a messaging and voice perspective. The team brought our voice to life in a way that I wasn’t expecting. We typically do our messaging internally, because it can be difficult for an external team to nail down your brand voice. Their abilities in messaging support truly stood out overall, but the entire project went very well. 

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

I’m able to work through a project manager or through specific team members who’re key to various aspects of development. From a collaborative standpoint, they’ve made communication very fluid. We had consistent clear, direct communication.

They were able to leverage all the necessary project management tools on their team to run everything efficiently. We were also able to have productive discussions about tasks that were to be included in the scope, which I thought was strong project management on their end. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their ability to provide a high level of support around messaging and brand voice was impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There was much joint work between our two teams on developing imagery for our company. We had a good bit of back and forth on that. It would be great to see more attention to make sure we were meeting our audience’s expectations when it comes to visuals. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They do everything you could ask of an agency partner in our situation. However, the team can’t operate in a vacuum. You have to give them the insights they need to do their jobs, especially in a high-pressure project with quick turnaround times. Be prepared to support them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of corporate marketing for a software company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

We needed to rebrand and refresh our image. So, we needed them to help us do everything from visual branding to messaging.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They did a ton of research, met with internal and external stakeholders, and went through a brainstorming period. We did focus groups with the marketing department as well. From there, they did a few iterations surrounding both visual and verbals aspects of the brand. The process was pretty fleshed-out. 

The key deliverable as a high-level corporate messaging document that we’re calling the “messaging Bible.” They also delivered a visual brand structure, new colors, brand guideline documents, and a photography library to go along with it. 

What is the team composition?

There were between 4–5 people on their team. One of those team members was our main point of contact.

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

We were looking for someone that had B2B technology expertise, strong rebranding chops, and a collaborative spirit. To start, we did an agency search and their name came up. We ended up chatting with them on the phone before meeting in-person in New York. In that meeting, they seemed like the agency that could meet our specific needs. We probably spoke to about five other vendors before selecting them. My CMO and I made the joint decision to hire them.  

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $1,000,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in early 2018 and launched in May 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Our team loves the work, and we’ve received nothing but positive feedback externally. Our email open rate increased in situations where the only difference was the branded header. We attribute that to the new brand. The brand and digital ads have been positively received. We just finished an out-of-home campaign that we got excellent leads from. We’re really pleased with the results of the branding.  

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

The project manager is very good. Communication is pretty strong.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their video capabilities are their strong suit. The editor and producer is the best I’ve ever worked with. She’s amazing.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could probably be a little more proactive. Most of the time, they act more like order-takers as opposed to offering up suggestions or ideas.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure you’re clear with your expectations upfront. Expectations are everything, and they’re talented, communicative people. Everything will go great if you communicate clearly from the beginning.  

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Art Director at Education Week which is a nonprofit media company based in Bethesda, Maryland. We have a 35-year history of serving the nation’s pre-K-12 policymakers, educators, researchers, and other influencers with independent and highly respected journalism, research, and data. Our work engages readers with important news, meaningful analysis, and distinctive explanatory and investigative journalism across digital, print, and broadcast platforms and through live and virtual events. Our mission is to serve as an indispensable source for news, information, analysis, and services essential to drive critical changes in pre-K-12 policy and practice.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire DeSantis Breindel?

We needed significant help in unifying our current brand messaging and brand awareness as it is deployed in the redesign of our website--edweek.org and across all of our brand materials (e.g. marketing, communications, and social media) bringing a visual and verbal cohesion to our work.

What were your goals for this project?

To clarify and clearly communicate the Education Week master brand and to increase loyalty and trust among our audience. We also wanted to increase brand awareness among the range of other products and services that carry the Education Week brand such as EdWeek Market Brief, EdWeek Top School Jobs, EdWeek Marketing Solutions, and the EdWeek Research Center.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We started with a simple Google search, but then our Editor in Chief touched base with a friend in the media business. That friend gave us a short list of highly recommended agencies in the field. We did our due diligence in vetting that short list and decided to move forward with DeSantis Breindel.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

We started with an initial kick-off meeting with necessary stakeholders.They helped us finalize questions for a brand survey that we were about to field out to a non Education Week audience to gauge brand awareness. We then bombarded them with a huge amount of materials to review, some of which included existing customer research. The conducted a competitive audit of 6 of our top competitors.

They synthesized and analyzed massive amounts of research before coming back to present their findings and hold an office "brand positioning" workshop with representatives from almost every department of Education Week. They synthesized those findings further and later returned with a thoughtful brand strategy recommendation which included positioning, pillars, and personality. The also worked with us to develop a core messaging platform along with messaging for most of our sub brands.

The second phase of their work included a fresh new logo design, along with recommended treatments for our sub brand logos. They recommended a complete design language for Education Week (e.g. color palette, typography, photography, iconography, and sample mocks of how the brand would come to life in other collateral). They worked closely with internal stakeholders to develop a company brand book and style guide that met our needs.

What was the team composition?

I worked most closely with their project manager, Laura Mulcahey, who was the most organized, pleasant, and responsive person I have ever met in my life. She was truly amazing. I also worked closely with three of their brand strategists (Leyah Farber, Emmy Jedras, and Shelley Whiddon) who were all incredibly talented and highly skilled individuals. We truly were in awe of just how smart and thorough this group was. We hit the jackpot in the strategy department. We worked closely with their graphic designer, Clinton Clarke, who also was extremely responsive and talented.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Everyone within the company loves the new branding and is truly excited to see it become external facing. Though we are still knee-deep in the trenches of a total digital overhaul which will include a complete redesign of edweek.org, we have slowly been trickling out the new brand via social media, e-newsletters, and other collateral and our audience seems to love it.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We had weekly phone calls which were conducted by their project manager. We were using an outside project management firm to keep not just this, but our entire digital transformation project on track and DeSantis was more than willing to work with that company. DeSantis would update the Gantt charts on a weekly basis. Again, their project manager was super responsive and very accommodating, which made what could have been a very stressful project, go quite smoothly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

So many things! It's hard to just pick one. I was very impressed with their commitment and desire to do the job well. Numerous times they went outside of the defined scope of the project and I would get nervous and ask them if there would be any additional cost because of it.

They believed in transparency and repeatedly assured me they would never charge extra without first letting us know that something was out of scope. They were always willing to go the extra mile, which sometimes meant going out of the defined scope of the project because they felt strongly that they couldn't skip steps and felt a strong desire to do things well.

Are there any areas for improvement?

The initial RFP was done quickly and had a few typos. Within the RFP, we had asked a few questions of them and didn't get them answered on the first round, but with a little prodding they were eventually answered. Fortunately, we didn't rule them out based on that early experience. They are a phenomenal agency to work with.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re specialized in specialty produce-grade chemicals for the manufacturing industry. It’s a company of about 800 million in sales, serving companies in automotive, steel, aluminum, machinery, and other industries dealing with metal.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DeSantis Breindel?

Part of the plan was to help us with rebranding. We were in the process of merging with another company that was based in the US and in the same field of activity as Quaker. We closed the deal just a month ago, and are a leader in the field of process-grade solutions for the manufacturing industry. We needed to be able to successfully integrate the two companies under one comprehensive ethos and brand.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The whole focus was the rebranding of the company. The first step was to assess, both internally and externally, what the rationale for the new brand would be. We went through a number of different processes, including interviews with key senior executives in both companies, meetings in different regions and segments of the companies, surveys, and interviews with a small number of high-level customers to assess their views on the corporate brand.

We also formulated the ethos of these brands, and what we should put forward for each one. The key elements for each were the corporate brand, the verbal expression (including the tagline), and all the visual expressions of the brand, including every template and material we could think of. All of that was eventually analyzed and approved by the executive team of the company in the form of a comprehensive brand book.

What is the team composition?

It was a small team of 4–5 people, and we had a single point of contact. The project manager tracked the process and made sure we were progressing according to plan. They put a lot of time and thought into understanding the business and culture of both legacy companies, and they drove the graphic design work. We also had a commercial contact at DeSantis Breindel, but they had a lighter touch, obviously.

How did you come to work with DeSantis Breindel?

We looked at around five companies with different proposals, and we selected two frontrunners. We had meetings with them and they delivered their speeches. We benchmarked cost versus potential performance, and we felt comfortable with DeSantis Breindel because of the specialization of the company in corporate rebranding, and also because of the size of their company. They weren’t too small—like a two-man show—but they also weren't too big. We felt they would prioritize us.

Finally, we felt extremely confident in the working team. They listened to our needs and understood our culture, and, at the same time, they were pushing their suggestions, even at the pitch level, clearly but not boldly. They wanted to make it clear from the start that they would listen to us, but they would also help us make decisions rather than just doing whatever we wanted because we were the customer.

What is the status of this engagement?

The proposal was in July 2017, and the final recommendation was in September 2018, although we did a bit of additional work after that.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We haven’t done an internal first-launch survey, as we’ve just launched and are in the middle of all kinds of opportunities, from commercial to procurement, production, etc. The feedback’s been extremely positive so far, however. It worked really well in the spirit of the combination, and we’ve received a lot of good feedback on that, especially the tagline, “Forward together." It’s short and sweet, and globally understandable. It works in English and can be gotten in French as well. It works pretty well with our customers. I haven’t heard specifics from them, but I also didn’t hear anything negative, as we were fearing had we gone too bold or too different.

This was really helpful during the technical elements of the transition. The new logo has elements of both old ones, so it wasn’t completely unrecognizable to customers seeing it printed on our products. We’ve had small technical issues, but it’s been good overall.

We launched some of the branding from day one internally, so the brand was highly visible. The feedback we received internally was extremely positive. We’ve gotten good feedback from distributors as well. We’ve had no issues from their side, so far.

How did DeSantis Breindel perform from a project management standpoint?

The project spanned more than a year and a half, for internal reasons. We had to get approval from all kinds of external bodies. I was disappointed by the fact that we had three different project managers during this time, but I have to say that all three of them were excellent. The kind of project we were running could’ve gone wrong very quickly, but they were very diligent. I think we were a bit unfortunate to have those project management changes, but, in the end, they didn’t have an impact on the project. We received very high quality from the team working at DeSantis Breindel. I would score them higher had we not had those changes, but it was really just an annoyance, rather than an issue.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What's most impressive is the quality of their people and the genuine effort they put into understanding our company and business, which are pretty complex. We employed another agency 5–6 years ago, just for a refresh of our brand at the time, and not a merger. Compared to them, DeSantis Breindel really understood the heart and soul of this company and tried to differentiate on the people, the services, and the products.

DeSantis Breindel got the idea of our positioning, which is more on solutions, services, expertise, and customer-centricity, rather than products. They’re dedicated to articulating this positioning, and this has come through in both the verbal and visual elements of their work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We exchanged feedback pretty well, so there’s nothing serious. I wasn’t very convinced by the first visual elements we received. Some of the graphic design and videos provided weren’t good, but we discussed it and they adapted quickly. They delivered a second round that was better than what we could’ve imagined.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

All these projects require some time to set up a broad range of deliverables. That enables DeSantis Breindel to navigate through the organization and through the customer base pretty wisely, with tact and confidence. This worked very well in getting us customer participation for interviews. Clients shouldn’t hesitate to bring DeSantis Breindel in and present a set of thick orders. They will deliver above expectations.