Matchstic

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the creative director and head of brand for a franchise organization that’s based in the US and has a global presence.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

In order to better compete in the marketplace and position ourselves for the growth that we are anticipating and experiencing, we hired Matchstic to help us with our visual and verbal rebrand.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We undertook two contracts with Matchstic over the course of our relationship with them. The first was for the update and development of our brand identity, for which the deliverable is a full report on Matchstic’s market research findings. This would help us verify and compare our perceptions to other people’s perceptions of our business. 

The first step in that process was the discovery, where the team really immersed themselves in the brand. This was a challenge because not long after we began working together, the pandemic caused the entire world to shut down. Matchstic had to be resourceful with how they got to know the people in our company because any information they could gather would play heavily into the next step, which was the strategy. 

We then asked the team to produce a brand brief, which is a one-page summary of our brand’s positioning, personality, target audience, and value proposition. This would serve as an internal-facing tool that will guide our design and branding process. 

Matchstic then went into proposing a variety of concepts as we got into designing the logo, aligning colors and visual elements with the outlined strategy. We married those down to one choice that was fleshed out into a full identity system that involved messaging, headlines, and conversation starters.

Once all those brand guidelines were in place, we proceeded into the second contract, which was for launch consulting. Matchstic helped us specifically with the design and conception of a hardcover brand book that would provide art direction for our company. They also helped with the designing and production of our frontline employees’ uniform system and vehicle wrap. We’re a vehicle-based business primarily, so the SUVs that our employees drive are wrapped and designed a certain way. 

What is the team composition?

One of the co-founders was heavily involved in a creative director role. There was a project manager, a lead designer, a junior designer, a copywriter, and at least two strategists working with us. There were more people working in the background, but I mostly interacted with those seven people.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

It was out of their industry reputation and word of mouth. Matchstic is well-known in the brand strategy community, so I've known about them for a long time. When it came time for us to commit to a rebranding process, I was really excited to reach out to them and have the opportunity to work with their team. 

When our CEO filled out their contact form on their website, it only took 1–2 hours for their founder to email us and have a meeting scheduled for the following afternoon. Their responsiveness was impressive considering our CEO had filled out that form late in the evening. It sealed the deal for them at that point. 

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we've invested $155,000. We're getting ready to increase that as we enter into another contract with Matchstic.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in November 2020, and we’re currently about to enter into our third contract.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As a franchise organization, one of the most important things for us to understand is how the owners and their teams will react to the changes we’re making. We took a very hands-on approach with getting franchisee feedback and involvement at all levels whenever that was possible. 

As a designer myself, I would understand if Matchstic didn't want all those other people meddling or of getting in the way, but to their great credit, they not only accepted but embraced this as a strength. It really showed in the quality of the work.

I have not heard a single negative feedback from any person in our community when they saw what we had developed. Everyone was thrilled and excited about it and felt that it truly represented the brand that they’re a part of. I think that's the best thing you can say about someone's work in the branding world. The quality of Matchstick’s output was second to none. On a personal level, I think it was absolutely remarkable. 

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is outstanding and better than I could’ve hoped for. They have one dedicated project manager who was assigned to our accounts, and we have hit every target and every deadline.

Sometimes when the other vendors we were working with would drag their feet, it's not me who had to reach out. Matchstic took the initiative to prompt those vendors along. It was something they didn’t have to do, but nonetheless did because they were so committed to getting the work done on time. I really appreciate that about them. 

We communicated by email and phone call. We also flew down to their office in Atlanta about 3–4 times for a face-to-face meeting. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The first impressive thing about Matchstic is that they were phenomenal at listening and understanding what it is they're seeing and hearing. They also knew how to read between the lines and search underneath the surface, especially during the initial discovery phase. That ability is such an asset to the work that they do and their quality as partners. 

More than any other vendor I've ever worked with, Matchstic was confident in and committed to their process. We sometimes felt like we knew what was going to be found during the research or that some information might not be totally necessary, but Matchstic unearthed insights that were absolutely essential to the decisions we would later make.

The second impressive thing, which is related to the first, is how they acted as true partners of ours in this process. Naturally, an agency like Matchstic will want to make sure that they are on top of the work to remain profitable. However, we requested their help so many times for certain things that we didn't know how to handle, and they consistently rose up to the challenge. We are very grateful to them for that because it is so rare in this industry. If we are to do another project like this in the future, we would 100% take it up again with Matchstic.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything that I would change.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be ready to start with the strategy. Any good firm or agency will need to root the design and messaging in the strategy. It is so easy to get into the mindset of creating new logos, using new colors, and designing a new website when going through a rebrand, but never rush or skip the strategy session. Trust Matchstic’s process and they will be able to give you a much better output. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of marketing at North American Properties. We’re a commercial real estate developer that’s recently started focusing more on property redevelopment to reimagine existing assets.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We acquired a new project in November 2020 called Birkdale Village, which was an existing asset in Huntersville, North Carolina. It was a mixed-use development that was built about 20 years ago. Our team was tasked with redeveloping the site to create more community spaces in addition to reprograming the events and adding new leasing.

With that, we targeted Matchstic to support us with the rebrand, working over a number of months to discover the voice of the property and out outline how we’d instill the new brand into everything.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

Matchstic helped us rebrand and refresh Birkdale Village while keeping in mind its existing tradition. They actually traveled to the area to do research within the property and looked at a lot of the competitors in the area to see what else was out there. That was key to knowing how our new brand would align with the bigger community while still defining exactly what our piece would be.

They also spent some time getting to know our team, vision, and project goals. They wanted to know what we were looking to do with the final project and what the applications would be to the new brand.

After that, they started presenting a number of deliverables to look at along with suggestions based on what they saw from their research. The end result was both visual and verbal assets that defined the branding for the new Birkdale Village.

What is the team composition? 

There were two main people who worked with us: one focused on the visuals, and the other focused on the verbal identity. There were other supporting members on the project, too.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

I’ve known about Matchstic and their work in the industry for a number of years, and my co-workers had had some experience with them. They’d done a lot of work with real estate and people in our field. I’d actually met with Craig (Co-Founder & President) in 2019 for another project that didn’t end up coming to fruition.

When we were looking at bringing on a partner for this rebrand, we got RFPs from three companies, including Matchstic. I was drawn to their impressive clients as well as their experience and approach to branding. They had a great understanding of how branding was used and how important it was to have concise, defined messaging. 

How much have you invested with them?

It was about $50,000 for this project.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in December 2020 and just wrapped up. We’ve actually started a new project with them last week. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Anecdotally, being able to bring the new branding into the property and seeing the reaction from the community was great. It helped clearly define our role and what we were coming to do — without that, we wouldn’t have been able to jump in and make the splash that we did.

For our team, it was also really beneficial to go through the branding process together. Matchstic managed to get several roles involved to produce the final brand. We had a lot of great conversations that probably wouldn’t have happened without going through this process together. Being a cohesive unit fed a lot into the success of the project, and it helped us learn the community and demographics. 

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

It was all done virtually. I communicated with the project manager through email most of the time. We’d also get on Zoom calls where they’d share their presentations. The final deliverables were provided through a .zip file via email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

As I’ve said, they had a very unique perspective thanks to their experience and the diversity of their team. I can speak to this now that I’m starting a second project with them. It seems like their bench is quite deep because they have a number of people — it’s not like you’re working with the same individuals who already know your company’s brain and will feed it back to you. 

They’re very specific in who they’re partnering us with for each project, which makes for a unique approach that’s not just a cookie-cutter branding program. They take the time to get a bigger, broader sense of the project, location, demographics, and competitors, which allows us to see how we fit into everything else in the community.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’m not sure if all their clients are this way, but we have about 5–6 of our team members on each call, so we coordinate by using Doodle to check everyone's availability. It feels like it takes a long time to get our meetings scheduled because so many people have to respond, which can be a hassle when we have so many important deadlines and follow-ups. If there were a software tool that they could use to help with scheduling, that might streamline the process a bit.

As far as the overall deliverables, I don’t have any comments. We’re very pleased with their work and have been living with it for about six months or so.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The more you put into the conversation, the more you’ll get out of it. For us, it was helpful to have representatives from beyond our marketing team so that we could get a range of perspectives into the conversation. Having people see how we can use the brand in different ways can be beneficial. 

In line with that, try to have as much research as you can around the project from day one. That makes everybody’s job easier.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of marketing at a truck logistics company. We create dump truck logistic software, and we have one of the nation’s largest networks of technology-enabled dump truck drivers.

We connect construction companies and material producers with dump truck drivers when they need those services. Additionally, we have tools to help them manage all that work on a single platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We needed to do a rebrand of our company. Historically, our company was only known in certain regions of the country, and the people that heard about us thought that we only were a dump truck marketplace. They were not associating our brand with our other solutions and the functionality that we could offer through our entire platform.

We were going to launch a new product available nationwide, so we felt that the best way to change the perception of our company was to rebrand as a technology company. We wanted people to know that we had a platform that connected them to the marketplace and that they had available tools to manage their work.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Matchstic helped us redo our entire brand strategy and identity to come up with a brand voice and how our company attributes our positioning statement from a brand perspective. For this purpose, they helped us redesign our logo, update our colors, create new icons, and define a photographic style.

What is the team composition?

We worked with around 4–5 people from Matchstic on this project, including Cody (Project Manager) and Meghan (Senior Designer). There was also a copywriter designated to our account who helped us with the brand voice work. Other strategists joined throughout the project, and the co-founder was in a lot of our calls as well.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

We found them online while doing research. Initially, we narrowed our list down to five agencies, and we felt that Matchstic had the best value, so we picked them.

They weren’t the least expensive agency, but definitely, they weren’t the most expensive one either, so we felt that they would offer the best value for our money. Additionally, they had already done some branding work for other software companies, so we thought that they would be a good fit for us.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent close to $75,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them around January 2021, and we wrapped up the project in June 2021. We purchased a block of hours of their work to review our branded assets for the next month to ensure that we’re consistent with our branding.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I highly recommend Matchstic as a branding agency. They did a great job listening to our team and to the feedback that we were providing, and they incorporated those changes into their work.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team was really responsive, and they stuck to the project’s timeline and budget. We always knew where everything was; they were really great to work with.

Cody was our dedicated project manager, but we didn’t know what tools he was using to manage the project in the background. However, he coordinated all the meetings, made sure he sent our recaps and notes, and ensured that everything stayed on track — he was great.

What did you find most impressive about them?

This was my first time working with a branding agency, but I felt that Matchstic’s expertise and experience doing great things for B2B software companies distinguished them from other providers. We liked the portfolio of work that they had done for other companies, and their expertise was one of the reasons why we picked them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not really.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Get a really clear scope ahead of time containing what you’re trying to accomplish, document it, and get to an agreement on the objectives and outcomes of the project from both sides. Additionally, make sure as a client that you have the right people and level of leadership involved from inside your organization.

We included our CEO and our chief revenue officer in the entire process, which made the brand rollout to the rest of the company a lot easier.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for Stiles Corporation, and I’m the president of Stiles Residential Group which is a division within the overall sales corporation. We’re a 70-year-old, third-generation, family-owned business headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. We’ve developed a couple of thousands of units, and we’re targeted to the luxury market, what I call the high end of the residential rental market.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We had a residential project that had a commercial element on the ground floor as well as an adjacent office building, all on one city block. Our team engaged Matchstic to come up with the visual and verbal identity of our project. In doing so, we wanted to effectively create a brand that was unique for a market that has a lot of competition and also doing so within the context of this overall larger project.

This was one of the more complicated projects we’ve done with anyone — in my experience — because of the added complication of the sister project. We wanted to create our own brand that’d be distinct enough, so as to not be confused with the other project, to ultimately drive interest and traffic in our multifamily project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started out with naming for the project. Then, they handled the overall development of a creative brief in terms of creating the strategy of what we were going to do. That included creating the name, a logo, and visual identity. For the visual identity, they developed the color palette that’s associated with our project as well as established the imagery that’d be associated with our name and logo. Their team also created the verbal identity in terms of the messaging we’d have in taglines and headlines. The deliverable was an overall cohesive brand guide.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 4–5 individuals, and I’m sure there were others behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

Initially, we were introduced to Matchstic many years ago by our management company. They had an established relationship with Matchstic, so they introduced us to one another. Then, our team interviewed Matchstic along with some other groups and thought that Matchstic was the best fit. We liked their creative edge and branding focus as opposed to being part of a bigger ad agency. We’ve done two prior projects with Matchstic before this one.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested approximately $90,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

This project was from December 2019–July 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The brand has been well-received. We’re very happy with the visual and verbal identity they helped define and establish for us.

Some of the ideas we came up with as a team during the branding process ultimately got incorporated into the physical components of the building in terms of interior design. All of that has been really well-received as well. We’ve really tried to differentiate the physical aspect of the design, especially in the interior of the project. Residents and our internal team feel that the branding matches up with creating a different boutique and curated experience.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

Communication was generally presentations through Zoom or Teams.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What distinguishes Matchstic the most is the end product. Their end products are always very distinct. They have unique deliverables and their process is extremely thoughtful. Matchstic is very thoughtful in the way they go about coming up with their creative ideas.

Additionally, they’re really good listeners in terms of implementing our opinions. A lot of times, these are projects that we’ve been working on for 4–5 years, so sometimes we’re not engaging them for three years because there’s a process that leads to the start of construction. We have a lot of history and Matchstic respects and acknowledges that.

Their team is very open to hearing our opinions and considering them into what the brand will ultimately be. Then, they do a great job of melding that into something that’s a tangible output.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I really don’t have anything. We definitely want to engage with Matchstic on another project.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be as open and share as much information as you can as a principal who’s engaging them about your project, history, and any context you can provide to them. Don’t hold anything back that’ll ultimately filter through their process. Their creative brains will come up with a great output.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP for institutional advancement at a 112-year-old nonprofit aimed at supporting caregivers and helping people age well.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We have a wide variety of programs to support older adults and caregivers. We have an evidence-based care consultant program and we needed to develop branding, brand guidelines, brand identity, and a way to launch and talk about the products with the public. Our two key audiences are caregivers and professional EAPs.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Matchstic helped us with our overall branding development. We had the name but we didn’t have a visual or verbal identity. They created an engaging brand to draw people in to learn more about the product, as well as our organization.

First, we went through a discovery and strategy phase where they learned more about the product and our work. Then, we spent more time working on the identity of the organization and how to talk about our verbal identity.

They assisted us with a plan to launch most effectively. Matchstic also introduced us to another partner who helped us create a public relations and social media outreach plan for us.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Craig (President & Co-founder), Cody (Project Manager), Terry (Senior Designer), and Pamela (Co-founder).

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

We went through an RFP process and found Matchstic through a contact of our COO.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $40,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2020, and we wrapped up our first phase in November 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We finished everything on time, which was fantastic. They kept the process moving along smoothly. We’re a nonprofit and had to deal with a lot in response to COVID-19, and they helped keep us on track.

They delivered a brand that we were excited about and gave us something we were proud to put in the community to share with our constituents. We were very pleased with the discovery process. They did a great job and the result was fantastic.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

They worked with us and still kept us moving forward. We always knew where we were in the process and the expectations were very clear. Our team never felt lost or unsure. We were very confident as the process was moving forward. We had very visually stimulating meetings with a PowerPoint in each one. Everything was conducted remotely, so I give them a lot of credit for how they managed everything.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They did everything they could to understand us and succeeded. A previous vendor we worked with didn’t understand what we were trying to convey. Matchstic took the time to get to know us and think about how to best reflect our product. We clicked with the team very well. They were all personable, responsive, smart, and savvy. It was a great match and they understood we were a nonprofit trying to sell a product.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we had a fantastic experience with them. They were communicative, supportive, and understanding of our needs.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to be honest about what you want and your expectations so Matchstic can serve you in the best way.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of the founders and CEO. Our company’s called Tyrannosaurus Tech. We do custom software design and development primarily with organizations launching new products in health care, public health, and education.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We essentially wanted to refresh the branding for the business. Our team was eager to refresh the brand and build out a bunch of assets that would allow us to have a stronger digital presence and market the organization more aggressively and more proactively. Part of the need for the brand refresh was to think through how we’re presenting the company, the aesthetic, and how we speak about the company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

When we started with Matchstic, their initial work involved wrapping their arms around our identity and how we wanted to present ourselves. They wanted to understand the business, including our vision, history, and clients. That influenced what their team ultimately created for our brand refresh. They didn’t totally reinvent the brand but significantly changed it.

Following discovery, their team moved through more exploratory phases. They presented different visual concepts to help us articulate our core values and what language we wanted to use. Their team further refined those and put together different visual concepts for the brand. We thoroughly discussed the possible directions for the brand.

After we chose a visual style, their team created versions of a new logo and put together different applications of the visual style. We continued to make decisions and gave approval at different phases.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Craig (Founder & President) throughout the sales process. During the true engagement, we worked with three people, including the other founder of Matchstic and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

We were familiar with them and their work because Matchstic is also based in Atlanta, Georgia. They had a great reputation and when we realized we needed to do this work, we had a vague familiarity with them. They were one of the companies that we contacted to discuss the project. The sales process with Craig was great because he was patient with us as we weight our different options and asked a million questions. We chose them because they had the most established reputation and trusted their experience.

How much have you invested with them?

The total engagement cost $35,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together on this project between September 2020–January 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We considered the project successful because we received everything we expected from the experience. We also enjoyed working with Matchstic. The process was healthy, collaborative, and enjoyable. It was fun for us to think through the brand in an in-depth and strategic way, which we previously didn’t have the opportunity to do. We’re happy with their deliverables: the color schemes, aesthetic, assets, and logo. We’re confident that the refresh will bring value as it’s rolled out.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

We mostly communicated via email and Zoom calls. Matchstic answered all of our questions and remained patient with us even when we were indecisive. Overall, it was a good experience.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their skill level and extensive experience distinguish them from other providers.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we were happy with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take them up on their willingness to talk through your decisions. Matchstic is also willing to workshop items on the fly. Go into the project with a clear plan of how decisions will be made if your organization has multiple stakeholders. Follow Matchstic's process because the project will move along at a nice pace.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a national, multi-family development firm based in Atlanta, Georgia. We build apartment communities with institutional investors around the world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We needed help with the design and branding process for our communities.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Matchstic takes part in our early design process, which includes architecture, interior designs, and landscape architecture because those elements shape our communities’ identities, visions, and voices. They provide brand assets such as logos, badges, color palettes, and patterns. Their team also creates the narrative and voices of our projects. They provide the language — from headlines to paragraphs — to describe our units.

Their team tailors their branding package with additional services too. They designed the wrap for our construction sites and infused branding into the day-to-day experience of our residents.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

I had a relationship with Matchstic while I was with a previous firm. I introduced and brought them over to this firm because they had an interdisciplinary approach to branding. They work with all different types of clients across industries.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $260,000 on their services to date.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our first project together began in the fall of 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They bring valuable experience and perspectives to their work with us. We haven’t seen any project into fruition yet because our communities need to be constructed. Our experienced marketing director, however, said that Matchstic provided the most comprehensive and detailed brand guidelines that she had ever encountered. They don’t just give us graphics and blurbs but also tell us how to use them. Their team essentially gave us an instruction manual that we can give to anyone involved in building our communities.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

Once Matchstic’s on board, we bring all of our consultants, engineers, and architects together for a brainstorming session. Their team runs those sessions to understand the project’s essence. That meeting starts the design and branding processes and ensures both move cohesively. Their team’s detail-oriented and plans ahead. They’re always right on track.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their interdisciplinary approach to branding most impresses us. Matchstic works with clients in many different industries. They have a diverse and creative workforce, and their creativity’s unbelievable.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’re great.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the brand strategy and content manager for a financial services company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We were recently acquired by a larger company and needed to expand and evolve the brand to include more than just our one product. So, we engaged with Matchstic to work on positioning, our brand hierarchy. They helped us flesh out a new design and messaging that would illustrate the additional products we plan to launch next year.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

In the first phase of the project, they were focused on strategy. That included a lot of research and competitive analysis. They immersed themselves with our product team so they would understand the products well. Then they interviewed a number of our customers over the phone.

After that, they spoke to 20–25 different stakeholders throughout the organization. They worked with several different teams to get a better understanding of their perspectives.

In the second phase, we worked on brand strategy. They defined our brand architecture, came up with a vision statement, updated our personality attributes, and assessed our target audiences.

In the final stages, they developed a design system and messaging for target audiences that aligned with our brand architecture.

What is the team composition?

We worked directly with about five people regularly, and one or two more from the leadership team. That doesn’t include any of the designers or other people who we didn’t meet but were still working on our account.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

My colleague suggested them because he was familiar with their work on a few other projects. We also had several other agencies bid on the project. Ultimately, we decided to work with Matchstic because they were local. We knew we could work arm in arm with them because of their location and their work style. Their prices were also extremely fair, so they were a great value.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $100,000–$150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We kicked off the project in January and wrapped up in August 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were particularly pleased with their design work. They gave us a few really thoughtful options and we were able to blend a couple of their initial concepts to come up with a solution we’re really pleased with. They did a great job explaining why they focused on particular design items and how they help us evolve our brand.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a great job managing the project. We had one account manager who handled the calendar and kept us on timelines. We also had to pause and change directions a few times throughout the process because of COVID-19 and they were really flexible and accommodating. They quickly picked back up when we asked them to and adjusted the schedule as needed. They made sure the project went smoothly for us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I consider them to be a boutique agency, which means that we get to work with their top talent and they’re very hands-on. We were really pleased with the attention we received. They bring the best to the table every day.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We had to contribute more to the marketplace positioning within the brand brief. So I think they could improve their research. They could have a stronger position on their recommendations. We’d appreciate it if they were able to articulate why they were taking a particular stance.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Like with any agency, having a well-defined scope of work is very important. Matchstic was really open to our initial discussions about what we wanted from our brand.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

PolyVision is a manufacturer of CeramicSteel surfaces used for whiteboards, chalkboards, and architectural wall systems. I’m the director of global brand and marketing communications, responsible for ensuring that the brand is consistent across global markets and promoting any campaigns or product launches.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We were targeting architects and designers working on corporate, educational, and healthcare facilities. We were launching a line of 10 new products within the brand portfolio, and Matchstic helped us develop the visual and verbal identity of the brand in addition to naming.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We went through an ideation process, exploring different avenues. They brought us four naming concepts for the product line. Matchstic did a preliminary Google and trademark availability searches for us, and we narrowed that list down to the final names we’re using today.

The second part of the project was the visual and verbal identity of the new product line. We had a brainstorming session where Matchstic asked different questions to clarify where we wanted this brand to go, what our vision for it was, and how we wanted it to be perceived.

They came back with three visual concepts and style boards to explore the design and branding we wanted for the product line. They also helped heavily with the brand and product voice and messaging. Matchstic created identity guidelines for us after all of these items were finalized.

The next phase of the project was to take all of these identity pieces and put them into a catalog. Matchstic created imagery style guidelines for us and identified a rendering partner that could bring our vision to life.

They guided us through the process and helped the renderer understand the core elements of the brand. They created a catalog for us using those renderings and the messaging, and they made some additional visual mockups on how the content might be used on our website and social media campaigns.

What is the team composition?

Melissa (Account Manager), Brit (Design Director), and Danielle (Associate Creative Director) were my key contacts. I also worked with Blake (Co-Founder & Creative Director), and there was another designer involved. There were five people in total that I had communication with.  

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

I was introduced to Matchstic through a previous coworker that had done a couple of projects with them. I reached out to Blake, and we met up for lunch to talk about the project and the services they were able to deliver. Their culture felt right to me. They were down to earth, and they liked getting into the weeds with the client. They seemed very easy to work with, and it turned out to be a great partnership.

How much have you invested with them?

It was around $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project ran between April–August 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Results are more anecdotal at this point. We launched the brand just at the beginning of September, and we’ve gotten a lot of great feedback from the independent sales reps that are going to be selling the products. They’ve been impressed with the marketing, imagery, and concept behind the brand. It’s only been live for about a month, so that’s all I can say at this point.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

I give them a 10/10 in this respect. Melissa was the project manager, and she always did a good job of lining out schedules, getting feedback from our side, and communicating with me day to day on how things were going, whether they were missing information from us, and so on. They did a really good job managing all the different aspects.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Matchstic is staying ahead of the trend right now. They were able to bring a fresh perspective to our brand. We may not have been able to clearly articulate what we were looking for, but they pulled that out through different insightful questions. They really brought the brand to life, even though we weren’t exactly sure what we wanted it to look like.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I really can’t think of anything. They went above and beyond to help us with creating the imagery. It wasn’t in the original scope, but they fit it into the hours they were already billing us. Matchstic really wanted for us to be successful, and they were willing to put in a bit more work to help us get there. I really can’t think of anything they could’ve done better. The communication and deliverables were great.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

It’s important to be open-minded. A couple of people on our team were hesitant about some of the visual concepts Matchstic brought us — they thought they were a bit out there. If the client is open-minded, I think that Matchstic can help shape the brand they’re working on.

Whatever the project is, we have to get out of our comfort zone and not think about our personal preferences but about what’s best for the brand. Matchstic did a good job helping us reframe our thinking in that manner. We had a lot of conversations about personal preferences for naming and colors, and people get really opinionated when it comes to that. If the client keeps an open mind, they’ll be successful.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a founder and chief experience officer at Craft Bank, a new bank organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Matchstic?

We hired them for branding and custom website development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Matchstic developed our website from scratch. They worked in tandem with our hosted network service provider, but they did all of the heavy lifting. In terms of branding, we already had our name, but they came up with our logo, branding information, tagline, marketing tools, and visuals.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a total of five teammates, including Blake (Founder & Creative Director), Cody (Project Manager), Devin (Strategist & Writer), Terry (Senior designer), and another teammate.

How did you come to work with Matchstic?

I knew Blake personally, and I knew his work. I saw a campaign that Matchstic had worked on and I thought they did a fantastic job. We decided that, because we’re a new bank, we wanted to start with the best, so we wanted a custom site.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in the fall of 2019, and we’re about to wrap up.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

My goal was to have a website that looked like no other bank’s website, and it gets rave reviews from people in the banking technology community. Matchstic did a terrific job with the language for the branding by pulling out the essence of who we are.

How did Matchstic perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is terrific. Cody has kept the process going. Matchstic helped us figure out exactly what we wanted to say, and they took us through a process to help us think more outside of the box. Blake is really nice. Matchstic also worked very well with our hosted network service provider.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team’s energy distinguishes them. They’re very customer-oriented. I’ve never felt like any concern I had wasn’t immediately addressed. Matchstic is creative and collaborative. They didn’t just tell me what the website was going to look like; we talked about it together.

They have a good process for non-creative people, and they bring out what’s important to the organization. I didn’t know how the process was working, but I trusted their judgment.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I really have nothing bad to say about them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust them and go through their process. Someone on my team was a naysayer because he didn’t understand the process, but I told him to commit to the process, and I would advise customers to do the same. Matchstic will work with you and give you something that's better than you expected.