Map and Fire

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder and owner of a ecommerce brand focused on giftable trees.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire, and what were your goals?

Before our company entered its next growth phase, we wanted to make sure our messaging was on point. We hired Map & Fire to review our brand strategy and create a brand strategy guidebook to direct our future messaging.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We followed Map & Fire for several years, so we were already aware of their work. Once the time was right for our company, we contacted Map & Fire to determine if they were able to help us. We were impressed by their insight and hired them.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

They provided a step-by-step workbook that a joint team from Little Saps and Map & Fire completed together. What was especially helpful for me as a small business owner - they listened to us explain who we are now and what our vision for the company is and they were able to distill all of it into a practical, useful guidebook that will help our company navigate the next chapter.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I worked with Clay (Lead Strategist), Monika (Strategist & Copywriter), and Tracy (Executive Producer).

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They made suggestions that we were immediately able to implement to help our customers better navigate our offering.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

They were efficient, communicative, and always on time. They've truly listened to our team and did not try to grandstand or talk over us. I felt that they understood us, which was critical if we were to trust the brand strategy and guidebook they created.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Their patience and accessibility; willingness to listen; and professionalism.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

No, they were great.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the president of a cleaning product brand that primarily sells through ecommerce.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire, and what were your goals?

We're embarking on some ambitious growth initiatives and wanted to solidify a few things to help us and to help new employees and contractors we work with in the future. We needed a better understanding of who our customers are, what they care about and are motivated by, and how we can speak to them.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Map & Fire was recommended to me by a peer who had worked with them in the past and had a great experience.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

The deliverable was a brand book. The process to get there was M&F taking the time to learn about us, our history and our values. Then they spend a lot of time interviewing our customers and random members of our target audience. That was followed by working closely with us to document what was learned, refine our values & mission, positioning in the market, UVP's, messaging, etc.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Clay (Lead Strategist), Monika (Strategist & Copywriter), and Tracy (Producer)

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The biggest outcome for us has been better clarity as a team, understanding more about what our brand is about and what our customers care about. The results were somewhat surprising to us. It's really changed where we think opportunities exist for our brand and changed how we are going about exploring those opportunities.

t's a little early to say say definitely what the outcomes will be, but I will say that it's changed the way we think and we're more excited about the possibilities to grow than we were previously. We've also been able to use this to more quickly onboard contractors.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

We had frequent calls, and it felt like progress was being made on a daily basis. While I don't think we rushed the process, we did want to get this done before the start of the new year so we could do a better job of planning initiatives in the coming year.

Map & Fire worked at a quick and steady pace, and we were happy how they were able to stick to the timelines, again, without it feeling rushed. There's a lot about this process that we as a team have to ruminate on, but when we made a decision on something they were always available to discuss it with us, make changes and move forward. We never felt like we were waiting on them, which is a rare feeling with an outside agency of any kind.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The magic is in Map & Fire's ability to approach what we do from a totally different perspective — one that's informed by customer and market research, and put that perspective down on paper in a way that's easy for anybody to understand. Our team has been working in this company for a long time and we (me especially) start to think we know what the customer needs, we know where the opportunities lie, and we know how to speak to our customers and prospects. It has been invaluable to us to get their perspective.

They're also amazing writers. We were giddy anytime we got fresh copy from them because we knew it was going to blow our socks off and we knew that it would be stuff that would resonate with our customers. We've been so blown away by that that we've continued to work with them on copywriting projects and package redesigning.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I really want to be able to give a constructive critique here, but there's honestly nothing that I would have changed about the process. Even the cost of the project, while initially we might have hoped it cost less, there's no question that it was a great value for us.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the owner of W4 Products, we manufacture a homeopathic muscle cream that provides both therapeutic pain relief and improved muscle performance at the source of the problem. Unlike other products, Dialed in is the only cream that combines the simple and focused mix of Arnica, Magnesium, and Sodium Bicarbonate with a pleasing neutral scent to provide full muscle and joint performance and relief with the confidence of a formulation developed and vetted by a world-class athlete.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire?

We needed help developing a brand message and positioning our product within a fairly competitive market.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We searched online for a content marketing company and since covid was in full force, we did a national search. We were impressed with the free Branding and Marketing Workbook that Map & Fire offered on their website and learned so much just from that tool. The interview went great and their reviews were stellar.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

After our Kick-off meeting, we were given a more in depth workbook that the team guided us through. We identified our unique story, developed key brand messaging, and clarified our product placement within the market. We ended the process with a beautiful Brand Guide that represents a clear perspective for all marketing communication.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

There was a team of three working with us: the account manager and owner, and two other content specialists.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are a brand new company, going to market next month, so we don't have stats to give yet. However, the workbook we completed has been a lifesaver for me in building our website and social media content from scratch.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was easy. They're a fun group to work with and Zoom sessions made it possible for all of us in different locationsHonestly to work seamlessly together.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Honestly, I found it so impressive that they were able to flush out such clear messaging and identify our vision for the company based on a few work-sessions. They listened and took the time to research the market.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I just wish they could build the website for us - with all the great content they developed.  

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the owner of a health and wellness company. We plan to sell supplements on social media platforms.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire, and what were your goals?

We hired Map & Fire for their branding services. They helped to build a brand for our herbal supplements from scratch. The engagement covered brand strategy, brand naming, identity design, packaging design, and copywriting.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We found a few matching companies for brand building. We chose this vendor because the owner Clay is a problem solver. He listened to our goals and laid out a clear schedule with detailed steps on how to build our brand from scratch as soon as we had our initial phone call.

His pricing point fits our budget and he has a very professional and credible team. We had no doubt in them.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

First, Clay and his team members meet with my team to fully understand our concerns and goals. Clay has a detailed guidebook on what information we need to provide.

As we provide them with what we know and what we picture, Clay and his team did thorough researches on the market and gives us their solutions/feedbacks. We had our weekly meetings to update everyone's status.

During the design process, Clay's team provided many different solutions until we had the perfect ones. Their final deliverables were impeccable. We now have full confidence in the brand.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We worked with Clay, Tracy, Monika, and Becky.

Clay is the team leader who manages the project. He makes sure every step is impeccable and up to our standard. He oversaw the project to make sure all parts of the branding process point to the same brand image.

Tracy helps to organize and record our meetings. She made sure all meetings and communications went smoothly. She also gave valuable information from a consumer side and with her social media background.

Monika is the writer and herbal specialist. Her choices of words made our brand look more sophisticated and helped our brand to catch customers' attention. She has a profound background in traditional Chinese medicine which made our project much easy and much better.

Becky is the designer. She is very thorough in details and gives multiple creative designs. She was very patient when we want to try out multiple different editions.

This is the dream team! We were so glad and so lucky we picked this team!

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Because of this project, we are able to communicate with our other business partners much better. Our business partners have full confidence in us after seeing our brand guide which is a document Clay's team delivered. Clay's team finished the project beyond our expectations.

Because they finished the project much early and much better than we expected, we were able to push our project's timeline forward and that saved us a lot of costs. Clay's final deliverables helped our suppliers, manufacturers, and our IT team to understand much better what we are doing.

Having everybody on the same page makes our future work more efficient.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Clay's team uses Basecamps to manage the project. I found this website significantly increased our work efficiency. We communicated through emails and work on google docs. We had weekly Zoom meetings. Clay and his team are around 24/7.

They make sure they can adapt our schedule and they always finish what they promised early to make sure they gave us enough time to discuss and respond.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

This is a team with enthusiasm. They showed their care for our project by doing great works and thinking ahead for us. They are not doing the project just for the sake of finishing the project.

During the process, they make sure that this brand will stand out in competition and the brand image will actually help to sell in the market. Everyone on this team has their expertise and is fully applied to our project.

We are forever grateful for how much they cared. We enjoyed working on this project with them. Our go-to branding heroes.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

They are perfect to the point where we made them our go-to team for branding and marketing projects.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Chief Corporate Learning Officer for Emory Executive Education at the Goizueta Business School, responsible for our non-degree professional and executive development programs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire?

We wanted to understand the market and positioning for a new type of program offering that is a cornerstone of how we want to be seen and differentiate ourselves. It was important to us that we bring in outside expertise to help us shape this opportunity differently and more imaginatively.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

3 companies were referred to us as potential contenders and through an interview and proposal process we quickly landed on Map & Fire as the ideal partner for us.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

We asked Map and Fire to conduct research via in-depth interviews and surveys with senior executives; to synthesize the findings from each into insights that would inform our direction and the positioning of this new offering in the market. Through this work they were also able to help shape how we described this new offering in a new and fresh way.

What was the team composition?

We worked closely with the senior team throughout the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are about to launch our new offering and have a great deal of confidence that it is built on a good foundation of relevant research, that the approach is solid, the look and feel is fresh and that the program is poised for success in the market.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Map & Fire was extremely responsive to our timetable and proved to be a willing and understanding partner for us.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The groundwork they laid through their preliminary approach was very helpful and the insights they were able to glean from the research was excellent. Most of all their willingness to work in partnership and their obvious interest in us as a client was refreshing.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

None that come to mind.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Marketing Operations Manager at Iris Healthcare, a SaaS company providing value-added advance care planning (ACP) through a comprehensive suite of tech-enabled solutions for at-risk providers across member populations aimed at reducing unnecessary care utilization, lowering cost of care, improving care quality, and member experience by ensuring that members receive medical care that is consistent with their values, goals and preferences.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire, and what were your goals?

Our company is in the process of converting our website from a B2C focus to a B2B focus. We partnered with Map & Fire to facilitate our brainstorming sessions and lead discussions surrounding new messaging that resonated with the C-level executives and healthcare executives.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We found several companies that we interviewed. Through the selection process we asked for references and work samples as well as met with company representatives. We felt Map & Fire were the best fit for what we were trying to achieve based on this criteria.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

We had several 90 minute sessions where Map & Fire led us through brainstorming sessions and extracted key information and details regarding our product and service offerings, our key differentiators from competition and SWOT analysis. Each session we revisited past ideas and expanded on other topics. By the end they provided us with a complete Brand Positioning Deck with suggested messaging and key points that were discovered during our 5 working sessions.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We worked with two members from their team the Head of Marketing and Business Development and a Brand Strategist.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have been able to utilize some of the new core B2B messaging for several different projects including web, marketing collateral and other marketing projects.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

We utilized Basecamp for sharing project files and some communication. We also used email for coordination of meetings and follow up or questions for both teams. Everything was on time and within our schedule.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

We liked the process that was utilized to walk us through each sessions. Using Basecamp for document sharing allowed us to easily access documents across team members instead of searching email inboxes. They had a personal connection with our field so there was a good amount of knowledge on their part about what we do and who our target audience is.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

There was not too much that we could suggest for improvement. Maybe the implementation of a Calendar to more easily schedule meetings/sessions directly with them but that was not a deal killer.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the co-creator of The Death Deck. The Death Deck is both conversation tool and party game that gets conversations started on a topic most people are obsessed with but often afraid to discuss.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire, and what were your goals?

We have two very different audiences (end-of-life community/game playing adults) and hired Map & Fire for help with brand strategy to reach them both. We also needed help with creating a website that went beyond product and shopping cart, and advice on creating content to drive sales.

SOLUTION

How did you select Map & Fire?

I hired Map & Fire a number of years back for a personal project I was working on. I had a great experience with Clay and the team and knew they would be a great fit for brand strategy for The Death Deck.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

Map & Fire helped us develop and launch our brand and has grown with us serving as our Chief Brand Officer -- advising us on overall strategy, website design and updates, content, creative marketing, research, and analytics.

How many people from the Map & Fireteam worked with you, and what were their positions?

I often work directly with Clay, but have found the entire Map & Fire team knowledgable, helpful and professional.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The creative input and work from Map & Fire has contributed to our overall company growth, including a 200% increase in sales over the last year. We look forward to more success in the years to come.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

By having Map & Fire available as an ongoing resource, we're able to consult on a monthly basis to gather valuable insights on decisions and new opportunities that are always coming up as our brand evolves. As questions come up - they are always prompt to provide a wealth of information and advice to keep our brand on point.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

We always feel like a valued client working with Map & Fire. They provide incredible resources to help us bring out the best in our messaging and brand strategy and have taken the time to get to know us, our product, and our mission to best serve our brand.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

So far, everything has run smoothly so I wouldn't change a thing.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of Eat This Much, a web and app-based meal planning and nutrition platform. Our service creates personalized meal plans based on users' food preferences, budget, and schedule.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire, and what were your goals?

Eat This Much is a product that appeals to a lot of different types of people -- we help users figure out what to cook, shop for, and eat, something that pretty much everyone deals with.

We were looking for help with narrowing down our target audiences, and the right way to position our branding to appeal to those groups of people.

SOLUTION

How did you select Map & Fire?

We evaluated a handful of branding professionals, and Map & Fire exemplified the professionalism and approachability that we were looking for in our own brand. We later found out that he lived locally in Los Angeles, a huge bonus :)

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

Map & Fire is very full-service with regards to our branding needs. They started by working worth analytics of our existing customer base to see what our most successful customers are like. They then helped us put together surveys to send to our customers to help us figure out the main reasons people were using our service.

They then analyzed the results, and put together a series of excellent landing pages that we put onto our live website as soon as we could. They also created a cohesive Brand Guidelines document that has been useful whenever we work with contractors and bring on new hires.

How many people from the Map & Fire team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I worked directly with Clay Ostrom, founder of Map & Fire.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I can only share limited information, but we had a significant boost in conversion rates from our new landing pages. We also constantly use the Brand Guidelines documents created by Map & Fire, and share them with all of our contractors and new hires.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

We had regular daily communication over slack, as well as weekly meetings over Zoom. Very hands-on coordination style. They are a big help in our needs, we continue to work with their team.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

When working with Map & Fire, we feel like they're a part of our company. They regularly reach out with new ideas for us even when we're not in the middle of a project, and it's awesome to know they're thinking about us.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Nothing comes to mind.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the co-founder and CMO of Hi-Lo Liquor Market - we are a modern take on the neighborhood bodega with a focus on craft beer, small production wines and artisan spirits + a market with delicious and healthy snacks,

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire, and what were your goals?

We had an internal vision of who we are but needed to truly define it to our team, to our customers and to ourselves.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They found us, came into the store and we talked. Once we began to expand (we are doubling in size this year), we realized that we needed Map & Fire to help us get down on paper what we had been carrying around in our heads - to refine it and define it.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

They began by sending us a thorough and thought-provoking questionnaire which our team filled out individually. Then we met with them weekly to do a deep dive and discussion about who we are - this all took place in a format guided by Map & Fire - and who we want to be. This became our Brand Voice/Identity Book and Our Team Core Values, which we have shared with everyone from a Social Media team to our new hires.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I worked with the entire team at Map & Fire. Great guys!

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have been able to hire the right Social Media team - someone who "got" our voice. We have been able to use the Brand Book to better train our team. And, most importantly, as we have been raising money for our growth, we have been able to incorporate some of the dynamic language around our brand to generate more interest and excitement.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

They are guides but also collaborators, we had very lively open discussions. But they also gave us homework each week and ran a tight, focused meeting.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Their commitment to getting it right for us was truly impressive. THEIR belief in the brand!

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

None at all.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I run Lunacy Productions - an indie film production company that also has the leeway to pursue other related innovative and entrepreneurial endeavors. I am sole sole manager of the LLC, and the chief decision maker at the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Map & Fire?

Brand strategy, marketing strategy, and implementation for the development of a new online education platform and an event-planning app.

What were your goals for this project?

For the education platform, the primary goal was to translate a course I’ve taught for the last 10 years into an online experience. This course nowo serves as the flagship offering on what will evolve into a more robust educational platform for our company. The app expands on a beta test we created for bringing people together around events and turned it into a fully functional saas product.

SOLUTION

How did you select Map & Fire?

We’ve been working with Map & Fire since 2015. They clarified our overarching brand strategy and helped us manage all the extensions of our brand including the websites for all our verticals. So they were a natural choice to assist us in the conception, brand strategy, and marketing of the educational platform as well as the app.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

For both initiatives they’ve assisted with all elements of the businesses from initial concepting to launch — including the foundational positioning, customer research, to the written and visual communication.

What was the team composition?

Clay served as the strategy lead and primary POC, and then helped bring in additional resources for various aspects of the implementation.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve successfully launched the educational platform and have grossed more in 2021 than I made teaching in person in all of 2019-2020 combined. Our core brand site’s traffic is up 130% YOY, and our organic traffic is up 112% YOY.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We’ve held consistent weekly meetings throughout the entire process and Map & Fire has been able to scale up those points of connection as needed during more intensive periods, e.g. prepping for launch.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Map & Fire is the most thoughtful, organized vendor I have. They’ve been a great partner to help navigate and clarify the direction and execution of some very complex concepts. In addition to everything I expect from them professionally, I also find them great company off the clock - and welcome their perspectives on issues outside core missions.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Like any small business, they have certain limitations. I wish they had more billable hours - I would use them! But I don't imagine that will be much of an issue for very long.