# Starfish Starfish Reviews (49), Pricing, Services & Verified Ratings - Premier Verified - 4.9 out of 5 average review rating - 3 connections joined Starfish's Network [Visit Website](https://www.starfishco.com/?utm_source=clutch.co&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=clutch-nonpaid) [Get a Custom Proposal](https://clutch.co/profile/starfish) **Brand and Creative Intelligence™ Agency** Starfish is the Brand and Creative Intelligence™ agency that strategically builds brands for the rapidly evolving integration of the human and AI universe. Headquartered in New York with offices in France and Florida, Starfish has for more than 20 years helped organizations lead their markets through four expertise areas: brand experience, brand soul, brand coherence, and brand intelligence. We have helped PwC, Gallup, Dunkin’, ADL, Baxter, Avis, Principal, and hundreds of other brands that lead their markets. Through one integrated practice, we coherently express brands across the physical, digital, and AI worlds they now inhabit. Starfish. Strategically masterful. Creatively human. Technologically-powered. ## Company Information - Minimum project size: $25,000+ - Hourly rate: $200 - $300 - Number of employees: 10 - 49 - 3 Locations: - New York, NY (Headquarters) - Boca Raton, FL - Paris, France - Founded in 2002 - 2 languages: English, Spanish - 4 timezones: Central Standard Time (CST), Eastern Standard Time (EST), Mountain Standard Time (MST), Pacific Standard Time (PST) ## Services, Focus Areas, Industries, and Clients ### Service Lines - 40% Branding - 20% Advertising - 15% Marketing Strategy - 15% Web Design - 10% Content Marketing ### Focus Areas - CMS Focus: - 70% WordPress CMS - 15% Umbraco CMS - 10% Sitecore CMS - 5% Drupal CMS - Branding Focus: - 40% Brand strategy - 20% Brand messaging - 15% Corporate identity - 15% Product branding - 10% Naming - Advertising Focus: - 40% Print advertising - 25% Other advertising - 25% Out of home advertising - 5% Broadcast video advertising - 5% Radio advertising ### Industries - 15% Legal - 10% Non-profit - 15% Medical - 10% Business services - 10% Consumer products & services - 10% Financial services - 10% Construction - 10% Real estate - 10% Government ### Clients - 15% Small Business (<$10M) - 45% Midmarket ($10M - $1B) - 40% Enterprise (>$1B) ## Pricing Snapshot Average rating for cost based on this provider's reviews: 4.8 out of 5 **What Clients Have Said** *(This summary is based on verified Clutch reviews.)*: Starfish offers good value for cost with project budgets ranging from $15,000 to over $1 million. Clients appreciate their responsiveness, project management, and alignment with company values, often highlighting their ability to deliver high-quality work on time and within budget. **Most Common Project Size**: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 36 reviews *(Pricing information for this provider is based on reviews where the project size was available.)* ### Pricing by Service - Branding: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 25 reviews - Advertising: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 9 reviews - Graphic Design: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 6 reviews - Web Design: $10,000 to $49,000 based on 3 reviews - Other Digital Marketing: $50,000 to $199,999 based on 3 reviews - Market Research: $50,000 to $199,999 based on 2 reviews - UX/UI Design: $10,000 to $49,000 based on 2 reviews - Web Development: $10,000 to $49,000 based on 2 reviews - Content Marketing: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 2 reviews - Marketing Strategy: $50,000 to $199,999 based on 1 review - Other Design: Less than $10,000 based on 1 review - IoT Development: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 1 review - Social Media Marketing: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 1 review - Video Marketing: $50,000 to $199,999 based on 1 review - Digital Strategy: $200,000 to $999,999 based on 1 review - Custom Software Development: $10,000 to $49,000 based on 1 review - Digital Asset Management: Confidential based on 1 review - Logo: Confidential based on 1 review - Video Production: Confidential based on 1 review ## Reviews Clutch investigates each reviewer's identity and work history. Every review goes through a rigorous, human-led verification process to confirm the reviewer's identity, and reviews that we verify are visibly marked as 'Verified' so you can trust that they come from a real client. [Learn More](https://help.clutch.co/en/knowledge/how-clutch-verifies-reviews) ### Starfish Review Insights Overall Review Rating: 4.9 - Quality: 4.9 - Schedule: 4.9 - Cost: 4.8 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 ### Top Mentions - Timely (21 mentions) - Great project management (13 mentions) - High-quality work (11 mentions) - Creative (10 mentions) - Collaborative (6 mentions) - Proactive (6 mentions) - Exceeds expectations (5 mentions) - Well-organized projects (4 mentions) - Flexible (3 mentions) - Personable (3 mentions) - Professional (3 mentions) - Accessible (2 mentions) - Accommodating (2 mentions) - Communicative (2 mentions) - Easy to work with (2 mentions) - Great team (2 mentions) - Patient (2 mentions) - Reasonable pricing (2 mentions) - Results-oriented (2 mentions) - Team players (2 mentions) ### Review Highlights **Commitment to Understanding Client Needs** Clients value Starfish's commitment to understanding their business needs and objectives. This dedication to client goals ensures that deliverables are aligned with strategic priorities, enhancing the overall effectiveness of their work. **Areas for Improvement in Time Management** While generally praised for their project management, some clients noted occasional delays or the need for improved time management. Ensuring prompt responses and timely delivery remains an area for potential enhancement. **Impressive Creative and Strategic Expertise** Starfish is praised for their creative and strategic expertise across various projects. Clients appreciate their ability to understand business objectives and translate them into effective branding and marketing strategies, leading to successful campaigns and rebranding efforts. **Strong Project Management Skills** Clients consistently commend Starfish for their strong project management skills. They are described as responsive, timely, and organized, often delivering projects on time and within budget, even under tight deadlines. **Effective Communication and Responsiveness** Starfish is noted for their effective communication and responsiveness. Clients appreciate their proactive approach, regular updates, and willingness to adapt to changing project needs, fostering a collaborative and supportive partnership. **High-Quality Deliverables Across Various Industries** Starfish delivers high-quality branding and marketing solutions across various industries, including healthcare, real estate, technology, and consumer goods. Their adaptability and industry knowledge contribute to successful project outcomes. **Creative Solutions with Tangible Results** Many clients commend Starfish for their ability to deliver creative solutions that result in tangible business improvements. Their campaigns and branding initiatives frequently lead to increased visibility, engagement, and sales. **High Client Satisfaction and Positive Outcomes** Starfish's work often results in high client satisfaction and positive outcomes. Many clients report significant improvements in brand awareness, engagement, and conversion rates, attributing these successes to Starfish's strategic insights and creative solutions. **Successful Brand Repositioning and Launches** Starfish has successfully assisted several clients with brand repositioning and launches. Their strategic approach and creative execution lead to increased market presence and consumer engagement, often exceeding client expectations. ### Starfish Reviews #### Branding & Pitch Deck Design for Digital Health Company (Featured Review) **The Project** - Services: Branding, Content Marketing, Graphic Design, Web Design - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Aug. - Oct. 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided branding services for a digital health company. The team helped the client develop their brand identity and design their pre-seed and Series A pitch decks. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Co-Founder & COO, Egg Healthy Pregnancy - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 11, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: As a result of this collaboration, the client managed to secure pre-seed funders. Starfish worked very efficiently, delivering reliable services ahead of schedule without compromising quality. The team was also always ready and available to lend a helping hand. ""The Starfish team delivered our project ahead of schedule, and they were always available to answer questions."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Co-Founder, COO of Egg Healthy PregnancyDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Egg Healthy Pregnancy is an AI platform designed to help expectant and new mothers better understand their pregnancy and postpartum health through access to state-of-the-art tools, tests, and technologies used in partnership with their health providers. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Pre-Seed Pitch Deck DesignSeries A Pitch Deck DesignBrand Identity **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsPricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?6-10 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.The scope of work included the design and build of Pre-Seed and Series A pitch decks, Brand Identity, Market Competition Overview, **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Egg Healthy Pregnancy was able to secure pre-seed funders.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?The Starfish team delivered our project ahead of schedule and they were always available to answer questions.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Their unwavering partnership.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?None. --- #### Marketing Strategy & Video Prod for Tourism Marketing Agency **The Project** - Services: Marketing Strategy, Video Production - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Dec. 2023 - Sep. 2024 **Project Summary**: Starfish developed a marketing strategy for a tourism marketing agency. The team created a new campaign concept, tagline, messaging, produced a brand video, and conducted a lifestyle photoshoot. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** CSMO, Visit Greater Palm Springs - Industry: Hospitality & leisure - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Mar 25, 2026 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish's campaign helped the client increase awareness in key markets and outperform industry averages, and their ROI was nearly twice as efficient. The team's project management was impressive. Starfish maintained effective communication through virtual meetings throughout the engagement. ""Their creative proposal, pitch, and project management were impressive."" **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there.I’m the CSMO of Visit Greater Palm Springs (VGPS), the official tourism marketing agency for the Coachella Valley, which comprises nine cities and unincorporated areas of Riverside County. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish?We asked for proposals to launch an updated brand campaign in 2024 to highlight the destination’s unique and diverse attributes, including partner hotels, vacation rentals, and attractions, including the brand pillars that support our “Find Your Oasis” brand. This campaign should raise awareness and inspire visitation to Greater Palm Springs by highlighting these pillars, including outdoor adventure, health & wellness, unique culinary experiences, arts & culture, signature events, and LGBTQ+. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement?Starfish provided campaign development, including a new campaign concept, tagline, messaging, copy, and headlines. They also recommended imagery and examples for digital, print, and social applications. The team handled brand video production, including concepting, storyboarding, and scripting new brand commercials. They also handled location and tech scouting, talent scouting and coordination, and all production functions, including schedules, equipment rental, and hiring crew. Starfish also provided an on-set producer and director, a production crew and equipment, and production insurance. The team also handled editorial, color correction, sound design, and mix. They also provided a graphic treatment package, including VFX and compositing, voiceover talent, and hard drive delivery of all assets.Moreover, Starfish handled a lifestyle photoshoot to capture additional photography assets for VGPS ownership, VGPS DAM usage, and usage by participating/featured VGPS partners, with any applicable talent rights in perpetuity. The images featured all our leisure traveler segments, including families, couples, friends getaways, and LGBTQ+.What is the team composition?We worked with 5-10 teammates from Starfish.How did you come to work with Starfish?We found them through a connection I made on LinkedIn. We chose them because our company values aligned, and they had a great proposal and pitch.What is the status of this engagement?We worked together from December 2023–September 2024 and then again on a summer campaign in 2025. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?Starfish’s updated creative was used to increase awareness in key drive, fly, and international markets, driving visitation to Greater Palm Springs. Overall, the fall and winter campaign outperformed industry averages, generating a return on investment (ROI) that was nearly three times higher than the industry average and was nearly twice as efficient at reaching targeted consumers than average. The ROI was $1,004 compared to the industry average of $379.How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint?Starfish’s project management was impressive. We communicated via virtual meetings.What did you find most impressive about them?Their creative proposal, pitch, and project management were impressive.Are there any areas they could improve?Next time I would be more involved in selection of video production company. --- #### Employer Branding & Marketing & Web Dev for Aviation Company **The Project** - Services: Branding, Marketing Strategy, Web Development - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Jan. 2020 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish provides employer branding and marketing for an aviation company. The team has developed campaigns and a recruitment media strategy, has built and maintained a website, and provides media support. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Senior Director, Talent Acquisition, Atlas Air - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 1,001-5,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 20, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: The client is happy with Starfish's work, which is measured based on the number of website visitors and qualified applicants and on employee engagement metrics. Starfish provides weekly reports and is engaged, proactive, and responsive. Their understanding of the client's objective stands out. ""They combine the ability to understand the big-picture brand strategy and translate that into effective campaigns."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Senior Director, Talent Acquisition of Atlas AirDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Cargo and passenger aviation **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Attract qualified applicants to apply for relevant jobs via our careers websiteDevelop compelling employer brand marketing materialsHelp us develop professional internal and external employee related digital campaigns and other materials **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Word of MouthWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsClose to my geographic locationPricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitReferred to meHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Starfish is our partner to develop a comprehensive employer branding, engagement and recruiting marketing platform. Starfish provides: creative developmentmessagingcampaign developmentrecruitment media strategywebsite development and maintenance supports us with a variety of media from digital advertising to video creation. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Number of career website visitors Total number of applicants Number of qualified applicants Employee engagement metricsDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?The Starfish team is excellent at project management. They provide a weekly report, but remain engaged throughout to meet any needs that arise on a daily basis. They are always proactive and responsive to meet the needs of the brief.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Starfish is a full service agency that always strives to meet all our needs. They take the time to really understand our business and objectives, and are really an extension of our in-house team. They combine the ability to understand the big-picture brand strategy and translate that into effective campaigns that drive tangible and measurable results.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?Starfish is doing a great job. --- #### Branding & Graphic Design for Safety Science Organization **The Project** - Services: Branding, Graphic Design, Web Design - Project size: Confidential - Project length: June 2022 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: A safety science organization has hired Starfish for their branding services. The team handles internal graphic design projects and conducts brand reviews on design submissions from various contributors.  **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Brand Lead, Safety Science Organization - Industry: Non-profit - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 19, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: With Starfish's help, the client has streamlined their workflow, resulting in a faster fulfillment rate; the quality of their outputs has also improved. The team manages the project very well — they consistently deliver high-quality work on time while promptly addressing ad hoc tasks along the way. ""Starfish maintains a professional yet amicable demeanor, fostering a positive working relationship."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Brand Lead of a non-profit company Describe what your company does in a single sentence.We're a leading independent safety science organization with global reach. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Graphic DesignBranding compliance **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsGreat culture fitCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Starfish has been strategically integrated into our operational framework to address design requisitions originating from internal teams. Additionally, they play a pivotal role in conducting comprehensive brand reviews on design submissions sourced from diverse contributors. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?The measurable outcomes from the Starfish project include an accelerated design request fulfillment rate for internal teams, leading to a more streamlined workflow.Furthermore, the implementation of brand reviews has significantly enhanced the overall quality and coherence of design submissions from various contributors, thereby demonstrating tangible progress and success in project objectives.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Starfish demonstrates exemplary organizational proficiency, engaging in regular, methodical project reviews to assess progress meticulously. Their commitment to timely and high-quality project delivery is noteworthy. Additionally, their responsiveness to our requirements is consistently swift and conducted with a high level of professionalism.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Virtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Starfish maintains a professional yet amicable demeanor, fostering a positive working relationship. Engaging in conversations with them is not only enjoyable but also conducive to productive collaboration. Their commendable organizational skills are evident in their ability to adeptly manage and address any tasks presented, leaving a lasting impression on their capability and versatility.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?No. --- #### Web Dev, Advertising & Media Strategy for Dental Products Co **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Web Development - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Apr. 2020 - Jan. 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish developed a website, a multi-channel ad campaign, and targeted creatives for a dental products company. Moreover, the team researched the client's consumer and created a media strategy. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** CMO, Dental Products Company - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 17, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish helped the client achieve industry recognition for an outstanding product marketing launch by earning different awards. The team's timely, creative, and strategic deliveries resulted in solid brand positioning and positive consumer feedback. Starfish was highly talented and responsive. ""They delivered a solid scope of work that reflected strategic, analytical, and creative strength."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Chief Marketing Officer of a dental products company.Describe what your company does in a single sentence.We are a leading global manufacturer and distributor of innovative dental and medical product solutions for dentists, doctors, and consumers in 76 countries. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Conduct consumer insights work to inform brand positioning for new, innovative direct to consumer business.Develop robust website, multi-channel ad campaign, and targeted creative to drive awareness, consideration, and purchase.Develop robust media strategy to scale the business. **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsGreat culture fitGood value for costReferred to meCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?6-10 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Starfish served as a trusted strategic partner across the entire spectrum of a new direct to consumer product launch--from consumer insights to website development to conceiving a compelling creative campaign to an efficient and effective media strategy to drive awareness, consideration, and purchase. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Starfish helped our team launch the new brand to achieve industry recognition for an outstanding product and product marketing launch, including the GOLD Transform Award for the 'Best Strategic & Creative Development of a New Brand,' recognition from Fast Company as one of most innovative new consumer healthcare products, and Men's Health 'Best Dental System' award. The brand positioning and creative assets leveraged the strong quantitative and qualitative consumer insights work Starfish partnered with us to complete and the dynamic and compelling website and brand messaging in creative assets resonated strongly with consumers to accelerate awareness, consideration, and purchase.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?The Starfish team was highly talented and capable. They delivered a solid scope of work that reflected strategic, analytical, and creative strength and helped us masterfully keep dozens of concurrent work streams related to our product launch critical path on track and on time. They genuinely listened to client needs and challenged us in a respectful way that resulted in a true partnership and outcomes that performed in the market.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Starfish has a terrific team of experts and partners, all of whom are outstanding and can pulse in and out as the project demands evolve. They were exceptionally agile and willing to go the extra mile when we faced time crunches and still deliver compelling solutions that resonated strongly with our consumers.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?Nothing material. The team was highly responsive throughout our engagement so anything that was sub-optimal was addressed in our regular conversations and quickly resolved. --- #### Advertising, Branding & Graphic Design for Real Estate Co **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Graphic Design - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2019 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish provides branding, advertising, and graphic design services for a real estate company. Starfish has created the client's restaurant branding, including the logo, menus, and marketing assets. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Department Head, RFR Realty LLC - Industry: Real estate - Client size: 11-50 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Dec 14, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: The client is satisfied with Starfish’s work, who delivers top-notch solutions and understands the client's requirements. Starfish's team is smart and responsive to the client's requests. The team meets deadlines and communicates through weekly Zoom meetings, in-person meetings, and phone calls. ""We have a great relationship and enjoy working with Starfish."" **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there.I'm a department head at a real estate development company. We have offices in the US and Germany. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish?We needed marketing and graphic design support for our company. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement?Starfish has provided branding, advertising, and graphic design services for our company. Starfish has created the branding identity of a restaurant we work with, including the restaurant's logo, menus, and collateral marketing materials. Starfish supports our company in communication and graphic design projects since their team has the ability to create all necessary assets regarding communication and branding. What is the team composition?We work consistently with three teammates from Starfish, including an executive, an account manager, and a creative director. These teammates work with a bigger creative team, although I don't engage with them directly.How did you come to work with Starfish?Our leasing agent recommended Starfish to us, and we liked their smart and talented team. We also liked the Starfish team's personality.How much have you invested with them?We've spent around $500,000 with Starfish.What is the status of this engagement?We started working with Starfish in January 2019, and our engagement is ongoing. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?I’m satisfied with Starfish's work that meets our business objectives.How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint?Starfish is very responsive to our requests and to urgent tasks. We've requested work for the next day, and Starfish has stayed up all night to deliver work. The team goes above and beyond to satisfy our requests. We communicate via weekly Zoom meetings, in-person meetings, and phone calls.What did you find most impressive about them?I'm mostly impressed with Starfish's dedicated team that understands our requirements. The team is smart and propositive, delivering top-notch solutions. We have a great relationship and enjoy working with Starfish.Are there any areas they could improve?I can't think of anything for Starfish to improve.Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?Starfish is able to work and satisfy any client, but clients have to be creative, too. I recommend potential clients have a clear idea of what they want to accomplish with their project, and Starfish will help any client regardless of their situation. --- #### Branding, UI/UX Design & Web Dev for Healthcare Company **The Project** - Services: Branding, UX/UI Design, Web Development - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Aug. 2021 - Feb. 2022 **Project Summary**: A healthcare provider hired Starfish to rebrand, redesign, and merge three organizations' sites into one. The team's tasks included an SEO and SEM audit, template creation, content migration, testing, and QA. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Former Senior Director of Marketing, Optum Tri-State - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 10,001+ Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 12, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Thanks to Starfish's work, the client has seen a traffic increase and current and new patient engagement on the new site. The team delivered items on time and was responsive to the client's changing needs. Their marketing and branding expertise, combined with great customer service, stood out. ""They understand the full marketing function and are masters at branding."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the former Sr. Director of Marketing of Optum Tri-StateDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Healthcare services provider of care delivery organizations and pharmacy care services (including a pharmacy benefit manager). **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Rebrand, Transform and redesign 3 separate and vastly different care delivery organizations (ProHealth, Riverside Medical Group, Caremount) static websites where information is hard to find and engagement with service providers into one (Optum Tri-State).Create a newly imaged website that is easy to navigate, find providers across the tri-state area, make an appointments, find information about health services and information across care continuum, and be able to log into Epic, the patient provider engagement health portal.Attract potential new providers to want to join our organization.The site needs to be relevant, engaging, informative and measureable in terms of visitors and conversion of those visitors. **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsPricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitCompany values alignedPrior Experience with themHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.The project scope included the development of one website that rolled three care delivery organizations into one branded, engagement-oriented site to match the corporate entity's brand (Optum): Situational Assessment - Refine project goals, gather insight from key stakeholders to understand the landscape, the brand, the target, and the technical requirements as well as evaluate and select appropriate CMS and other technologies with an internal and external audit, CMS Exploration & Identification, Technology Selection Process , Technology Capabilities Website Development - Designed and built a new website and user experience including:Messaging and Content AuditNew Site MappingManuscript DevelopmentSEO/SEM AuditWireframingTemplate CreationCopy Migration/RefinementProgrammingProduction & DeploymentWebsite & CMS Environment Coding/BuildContent MigrationCMS Training for marketing staffTesting & QADeployment of new site and launch & go-live ongoing support. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Overall visits increased significantly along with specific Current and New Patient engagement as measured by webs tools, EMR usage, etc.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Starfish delivered on time and were highly responsive to the team especially given the changing needs of the assignment.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?They understand the full marketing function and are masters at branding, know how to get it done and how to activate it all. All with a the smarts and great customer service!Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfishbb could have done differently?None. --- #### Marketing & Advertising for Telecommunications Manufacturer **The Project** - Services: Advertising - Project size: $10,000 to $49,999 - Project length: Feb. - Apr. 2021 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided marketing and advertising services for a communication equipment manufacturer. They worked on the messaging and positioning of a new product to attract high-tech early adopters. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Senior Director of Marketing, CommScope - Industry: Telecommunications - Client size: 10,001+ Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Apr 15, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish understood the audience perfectly and delivered a successful strategy. The client was impressed with their ability to translate their products into meaningful advertising messages. Overall, they led the project with ease and communicated well via phone, Zoom calls, and emails. "“We were 100% satisfied with their work, and they exceeded our expectations.”" **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the senior director of marketing for CommScope, a consumer products group. We’re a manufacturer of electronic communication equipment. I oversee the marketing for all the retail segment, which is marketed under another brand name. We make a line of surfboard and cable modems and surfboard max mesh Wi-Fi systems. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We needed help with marketing and advertising. The work was aimed explicitly at messaging and positioning a new product for our mesh Wi-Fi system. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? We initially had a briefing meeting with Starfish; they talked to one of our marketing people. We gave them the background on how we would position the product to customers, some of the key message points we wanted to highlight, the audience we were targeting, and the distribution channels. They went back and made changes. Then, we reviewed it with our product team. They created content for us and put together a whole messaging and positioning strategy targeted at high-tech early adopters. Starfish developed all the creative elements for the advertising campaign. What is the team composition? David (Founder & CEO) was very involved. Additionally, there were two creative people on the project. How did you come to work with Starfish? I worked with Starfish at a previous company. They did similar work, and I’ve known David for years. We’ve worked together on several projects. How much have you invested with them? The project cost was between $15,000–$20,000. What is the status of this engagement? We worked together from February–April 2021. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? They understood the product and audience very well. They built our messaging strategy across different media, which was very effective. The sales for the product have been good, although they’ve been slower than what we’d like. However, I don’t think it had to do with the messaging; there were a lot of other factors involved. Overall, we were 100% satisfied with their work, and they exceeded our expectations. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? Project management was excellent. We didn’t use any project management tool; we communicated via phone, Zoom calls, and emails. What did you find most impressive about them? Their key strength was their ability to understand our technical products and translate them into consumer language that is meaningful to consumers. Are there any areas they could improve? We worked with them on a subsequent project, and they were a bit slower to respond on that one. They could improve on their time management. Do you have any advice for potential customers? Whether in-person or via video conference call, be thorough on your brief and fully engage them when you meet with them. When we got our first review back, we didn’t have to go through multiple rounds of edits. --- #### Branding & Marketing for Beverage Manufacturing Company **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Content Marketing, Social Media Marketing - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2013 - Jan. 2015 **Project Summary**: A beverage manufacturing company hired Starfish for branding and marketing services. Their responsibilities included developing policy statements, organizing marketing strategies, and conducting a launch event. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Former Sales Director, Beverage Manufacturing Company - Industry: Other industries - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Apr 8, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish was able to accomplish high-quality deliverables thanks to their versatile services and boundless marketing experience. They helped the client win a trade show award, responded consistently as needed, and were highly involved in the day-to-day activities to improve the product's reach. ""They provided the talents of a large agency at the scale, budget, and attention of a smaller one."" **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I was the former sales director of a beverage manufacturing company. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We needed someone to help us market and advertise our new product in the US. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? Starfish provided us with general branding and marketing services. Their deliverables included establishing the positioning of our brand, developing policy statements, creating a brand manifesto, and creating tag lines, as well as other creative initiatives associated with the core elements of the positioning statement. Apart from that, they organized the customer journey strategy from a deliverable standpoint that we were able to leverage for OOH and local trade magazines.  Lastly, they provided us with day-to-day services as an outsourced sales and marketing agency, as an extension of our brand. They gave us a full 360 program, which culminated in a launch party event where we were able to garner many of the key influencers within the industry and secure a number of key distributors in several markets, as well as some key retail distribution opportunities. What is the team composition? We communicated regularly with the CEO and about three other people from their creative team. How did you come to work with Starfish? We found them through my network of industry contacts. We hired them because we thought they would be a good fit, as they provided the talents of a large agency at the scale, budget, and attention of a smaller one. How much have you invested with them? We probably spent about $500,000. What is the status of this engagement? I worked with them from January 2013–January 2015, as I left the organization in 2015. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? They helped us win the hottest new brand award at one of the industry’s largest trade shows thanks to the exhibition display they put together. That alone reinforced the value of their work, and it gave our brand credibility to have discussions with potential customers. We were able to present our brand in a professional and strategic manner, which helped us gain distribution points with respect to our in-store tasting campaigns — because of that, we increased our conversion rates to higher levels than we expected. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They managed the project and implemented tools internally, so I wasn’t aware of how they did it. They had a more entrepreneurial style of working, and we mainly communicated through email and phone. What did you find most impressive about them? Their ability to scale their business for large and small clients is really impressive. They have the talents of a large-scale company, but they also provide a greater degree of attention and flexibility in working with startups or companies that are trying to enter the marketplace. Are there any areas they could improve? They accomplished all their deliverables, responded consistently, and were honest about some of our feedback, so there’s nothing they could’ve done better. It was a good relationship and I was very happy with what they did. Do you have any advice for potential customers? I advise you to do your due diligence and speak to different agencies so you can understand what you really want out of the partnership. Don’t limit your search, but also don’t discount Starfish just because they don’t have the global reach that some other larger agencies do — they will provide you with the same, if not, better service. --- #### Marketing Strategy for Business Process Management Company **The Project** - Services: Market Research, Other Digital Marketing - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Nov. 2021 - Mar. 2022 **Project Summary**: Starfish was hired for marketing strategy services by a business process management company. They created the approach including the narratives, brand values, value proposition, messaging hierarchy, and more. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 4.5 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP of Marketing, Business Process Management Company - Industry: Business services - Client size: 10,001+ Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Mar 25, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: Thanks to Starfish, the approach was rolled out to the client's internal stakeholders. The team mainly used email and video calls to discuss project updates during the engagement. Overall, the client is satisfied with the collaboration's outcome, which was aligned with their vision. ""Starfish created messaging that blended the technical and emotional benefits in a high impact way."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and your position there. I am the US Marketing VP. Firstsource is a business process management company, providing solutions to more than 100 global businesses in the Banking and Financial Services, Healthcare, Communications, Media and Technology, and diversified industries. A publicly traded company on the Indian Stock Exchange, NSE: FSL, Firstsource employs over 28,000 people across the US, UK, India and Philippines. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** For what projects/services did your company hire Starfish, and what were your goals? We had not developed a messaging platform for our healthcare business units. We were bringing together our Provider and Health Plans/Health Services business units under one umbrella, so we needed a messaging platform that covered this new expanded area. **SOLUTION** How did you select this vendor? I worked with some of their team members when I was at a previous company, so I knew the quality of the work and the people. Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables. The Starfish team interviewed key members of our HC business. across several levels. They then interviewed clients in both the provider and payer businesses. They also did extensive competitive research. Once they had a solid understanding of the brand, they resented their findings and identified the gaps between how we currently communicate and what our desired state was. They then created a completed messaging approach: narratives, brand values, value proposition, messaging hierarchy and creative samples. How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions? There were multiple people on the team: Founder and CEO client engagement officer creative director writer project manager account supervisor **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success? We just finished the project and are rolling it out to our teams now. The internal reception has been very strong from our BU leaders - they were activity involved in providing input and they are thrilled with the outcome. More to come as we roll it out. Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness. They had a person devoted to scheduling calls and follow up on action items. We had bi-weekly calls to talk about status and creative direction. We primarily used email and video calls to communicate. Part of each call was a tight agenda and reminder of where we were on the timeline. What did you find most impressive or unique about this company? The final product is wonderful. Their ability to synthesize what they hear from team members and turn that into conversational and impactful language was top notch. Our language was always technically accurate, but had no emotion. Starfish created messaging that blended the technical and emotional benefits in a high impact way. Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently? The project could have moved a bit faster, but the schedule was communicated. --- #### Marketing & Advertising for a Legal Industry Company **The Project** - Services: Marketing Strategy, Other Digital Marketing - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Sep. 2021 - Feb. 2022 **Project Summary**: Starfish developed a communication style guide and look and feel for a law firm. They listened to the client's goals and then integrated those points into the delivered messaging.  **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** CMO, Winston & Strawn LLP - Industry: Legal - Client size: 1,001-5,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Mar 24, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: Working from an existing style guide, Starfish delivered a high-quality final product that pleased the client. Their communication was fast and easy to access. Clients can expect executive involvement that gets to the heart of their business, industry, and goals for the engagement.  ""David and their project leader asked a lot of questions, showing a true understanding of our business and our goals. "" **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the chief marketing officer of a law firm. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? A lot of our marketing content and communications were created with an out of date style guide, so we wanted a more consistent look and feel to our marketing communications. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? Their graphics team reviewed our portfolio and made suggestions, which we then implemented. Afterward, they designed our communication style and messaging. We gave them an older version of our style guide at the outset, as well as our goals, objectives, and visions moving forward. What is the team composition? We worked with less than 10 people. How did you come to work with Starfish? I worked with Starfish at my previous job and met David (Chairman). We issued an RFP when we selected a vendor for this project. How much have you invested with them? We’ve spent $77,000. What is the status of this engagement? We worked together from September 2021–February 2022. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?  The quality of their service was very high. The final product was very well done. We were very pleased. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They performed very well in project management. They were accessible and responsive. Communication happened over Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Telephone calls and email also supported the project. What did you find most impressive about them? They had a deep understanding of our mission. David and their project leader asked a lot of questions, showing a true understanding of our business and our goals. Are there any areas they could improve? I can’t think of anything they could have done better on this particular project. Do you have any advice for potential customers? Clarify your vision and goals and what you’re trying to accomplish. --- #### Branding Services for Medical Technology Company **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $1,000,000 to $9,999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2021 - Mar. 2022 **Project Summary**: Starfish helped with the branding of a medical technology company's new product. They established globally relevant and unique brand equity attributes and generated awareness for the product. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP Worldwide Marketing, Medical Technology Company - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Mar 22, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish provided excellent help in branding the company's product. The client highly commended the collected data for having the most significant impact on human health that they ever worked on. Their team creativity was a huge plus. ""They were filled with smart creative people with a strong bias for action and passion to win."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and your position there. I am the VP of Worldwide Marketing at an innovative medical technology company focused on improving women's health globally. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** For what projects/services did your company hire Starfish, and what were your goals? Our business created a brand new product. The largest women's health survey in the World covering 93% of the world population. We needed to brand the new product, establish globally relevant and unique brand equity attributes and generate awareness for the product. **SOLUTION** How did you select this vendor? Four companies competed based on a standard creative brief. A panel of five senior leaders unanimously selected Starfish based on strategic alignment, broad capabilities and creative excellence. Once Starfish clearly demonstrated superiority we negotiated a formal Statement of Work and annual Marketing Plan. Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables. Starfish met with and interviewed senior leaders, key internal and external stakeholders as well as external partners. Based on the interviews they modified their recommended plans, gained alignment with global women's health index leaders, finalized a Statement of Work covering all elements of brand creation including but not limited to brand design, benefit visualization, messaging, target audience, Personality, tone and brand character. How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions? Between 6 - 10 depending on the needs and stage of the project. Very flexible to meet the new product needs. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success? Yes. Our CEO and Charmian is publicly quoted multiple times in global venues saying the following, "For all the products we've made over our company's lifetime (35 years) ... The data we get from the Global Women's Health Index may turn out to have the biggest impact on human health of anything we've ever done." Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness. We used weekly 1-hour team meetings to insure the entire team of internal and external partners were aligned. What did you find most impressive or unique about this company? Speed. They were filled with smart creative people with a strong bias for action and passion to win. Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently? As with all new product launches there are always opportunities for improvement. Starfish is a strong collaborative parntner. --- #### Branding Services for Financial Services Company **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Nov. 2019 - Dec. 2020 **Project Summary**: A financial services company hired Starfish to support their brand strategy relaunch. They conducted internal research and interviews and translated the new strategy into a brand book and brand guidelines. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Head of Global Brand Marketing, Principal Financial Group - Industry: Financial services - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Mar 17, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish's work improved the client's awareness, favourability, consideration, and brand attributes. Showcasing steadfast expertise and a strategic mindset, the collaborative team brought innovative ideas to the table and delivered cohesive branding materials, further elevating the client's brand. "“I’m really impressed with Starfish’s leadership skills, strategic mindset, and business expertise.”" **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the head of global brand marketing for Principal Financial Group, a financial services company. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We were in need of a brand strategy relaunch. The last time that we relaunched our brand was in 2015, and we needed to make sure our brand was still representative of what was happening on the outside, but also reflected how we have advanced and moved forward as an organization. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? We hired Starfish to help us navigate through the whole process of relaunching our brand positioning, which entailed both internal and external research, stakeholder interviews, competitive analysis, and preview and insight analyses. The work we did with them was critical for us to then set the stage for other critical initiatives strategies (e.g. CX, Though Leadership, Creative Strategy). Aside from that, they also assisted us in making sure that we had a clear brand promise and brand personality by helping us sharpen our brand position as well as the pillars supporting that promise. Starfish also took the job of translating our strategy into our brand book, brand guidelines, visual identity, tone, and voice. The work that they delivered was paramount to the creation of our other branding materials. What is the team composition? We worked with David (Founder & CEO) and Rachel (Account Executive). How did you come to work with Starfish? They had previously worked with the CMO in other projects, so they were already assigned to this task when I joined the organization in 2020. How much have you invested with them? We spent somewhere around $500,000 on this project. What is the status of this engagement? We worked together on this project from November 2019-December 2020. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? We track our advertising through another data analytics company, and we have definitely seen some improvements in our awareness, favourability, consideration, metrics, and also brand attributes as a result of our new brand strategy and positioning. In terms of the quality of Starfish’s work, I’d say that I see an improvement in the consistency across all the different messages that we're bringing to life, not only through advertising but also through corporate communications. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? Starfish performed very well in terms of project management. I’ve never worked with such a committed partner like they were. The way they worked was very personal — even their CEO was always available whenever we needed them.  I also appreciated how thorough they were — they made sure to cross all their t’s and dot all their i’s before handing the final products over to us. They really are the kind of partner that will go above and beyond to make sure that they deliver the best possible solution for their clients. We typically communicated through phone calls, emails, and video conferences, and we used Excel to manage the timelines of our deliverables. What did you find most impressive about them? I’m really impressed with Starfish’s leadership skills, strategic mindset, and business expertise. The breadth of their experience in different verticals within and outside the industry really stood out.  They helped us connect all the different dots and understand how customer consumer insights would help us better articulate and put together our different proposals. They asked the right questions and challenged every word we put into our brand pyramid to make sure that it reflected who we are today and what our aspirations for the future are. They always made sure that we were not losing track of our goals and that we had considered every possibility that was out there. They brought a fresh, external perspective, yet they managed to keep us really focused on the outcome that we needed to deliver in the first place. Do you have any advice for potential customers? Make sure to give them as much information as possible and to bring them to your decision-making meetings. Treat them as a business partner and not just a vendor, and make sure they are involved every step of the way. --- #### Market Research & Brand Services for Fitness Company **The Project** - Services: Branding, Market Research - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: May - Sep. 2021 **Project Summary**: Starfish did market research for a fitness company to help them with their strategic transformation. They also provided a clear roadmap for such transformation and helped them with a brand campaign. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Former Head of Communication, Fitness Company - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 11-50 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Mar 14, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: The research done by Starfish was very accurate, as well as very helpful for the client. The team was very communicative and timely. Additionally, their flexibility and patience were instrumental in working with a constantly changing business. "“They were very communicative and timely, and their work was really well done.”" **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I was the head of communications and marketing for a fitness company. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We needed help to re-envision our brand, as well as with our strategic transformation. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? Starfish helped us with our strategic transformation, so their work involved qualitative and quantitative research. They also provided us with a roadmap for transforming our brand experience in the club and helped us with a brand campaign for the new year. What is the team composition? We worked with five people from Starfish on an ongoing basis. Their team included the president, the creative director, a program coordinator, and a copywriter. How did you come to work with Starfish? Starfish was recommended by a board director who had worked with them before. How much have you invested with them? We spent around $100,000. What is the status of this engagement? We started working together in mid-2021, and we stopped collaborating when the Omicron wave of the pandemic hit around September 2021. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?  The research that Starfish did for us was on point and very helpful. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? Starfish’s project management was great. They were very communicative and timely, and their work was really well done. We communicated via email and Zoom meetings. What did you find most impressive about them? Starfish did a great job. We were a complicated client because our business was in constant flux, but they were very patient and flexible, which we really appreciated. Are there any areas they could improve? No. Do you have any advice for potential customers? Be crystal clear on what you want them to accomplish. --- #### Branding, PR, and Video Work for Government Agency **The Project** - Services: Advertising - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2016 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: After developing a strategic plan for internal communications and perception, Starfish has stayed on as a video production partner to help raise awareness of their client’s services and clientele. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Advisor, Government Agency - Industry: Government - Client size: 501-1,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Nov 6, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: The videos have seen significant engagement with the public, as well as garnered positive internal feedback. Starfish has been a responsive team, able to manage multiple productions at once and preserve on-time deliveries. Customers can expect a consistently high production value. ""They knew our deadlines and told us what we needed to do to hit them." " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m an advisor to a government agency. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We were faced with public perception issues perpetuated by media stereotypes of our clientele and the reasons behind their situations. It affected our external communications, as well as the perception of our work by our internal staff. Starfish was initially brought in to help with our internal marketing (build our optimism for the work) by building a strategic plan involving an overarching document, video, and internal/external collateral. Now, they’re doing ongoing video work for us. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? Primarily, they’ve created digital video for us for our social media and website, as well as other platforms like taxi televisions and kiosks. After one of our main public-facing services was assigned to a different agency, we were left with a question as to what we were selling and what our call to action should be as an agency. The projects since then have run from general awareness and learning campaigns that drive people to our website to sharing opportunities for volunteer participation and partnering with other agencies. There was also a public-facing project that informed local residents to call 311 or connect with our team through our app if they saw someone on the streets that was in need of our services. What is the team composition? We’ve worked with around 10–12 people in total. I mainly work with our project manager and their associate, but there have also been editors, subcontractors, who did the actual video work, and writers. How did you come to work with Starfish? I came on in the middle of our initial internal branding project. The person in charge of our communications team had done some work with Starfish previously or knew someone who’d worked with them before, I believe. When I had these other projects in mind, I thought of Starfish again. Part of the initial strategic plan was a video, so we knew what their video work was like. How much have you invested with them? We’ve spent close to $1,000,000 so far with them. What is the status of this engagement? We’ve been working together since 2016. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?  We see a lot of response when we put pieces up on social media, as well as a lot of impressions. It drives an increase in our web traffic too. Internally, people love our videos and think they’re very moving. Starfish seems to get what we’re after from virtue of knowing well what we’re working on. They’re great at bringing that to life. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They’re somewhere between hands-off and hands-on. They’re good at sticking to deadlines but are also able to shift priorities when we have several ongoing priorities, as we sometimes do toward the end of the fiscal year. I didn’t use any project management tools. They knew our deadlines and told us what we needed to do to hit them. We communicate mainly over email and phone. What did you find most impressive about them? They’re a great team, and it’s always good to work with them. They’re professionals dedicated to their work, and they’ve worked for similar agencies to ours in the past. Are there any areas they could improve? We wouldn’t have them do things any other way because the production value is so high. Anything else would be counterproductive. Do you have any advice for potential customers? In our environment, which has a lot of internal stakeholder opinions and requests, I try to defer to Starfish. They listen to us and accommodate our specific requests, but we try to let them do their thing since I trust their expertise. --- #### Visual Identity Overhaul & Web Design for Law Firm **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Sep. 2017 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish completed a complete visual design overhaul for a New Jersey-based law firm. Their work included a website redesign and maintenance, logo design, and brand integrations across digital and print media. **Review Rating**: 4.5 - Quality: 4.5 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Chief Marketing Officer, Law Firm - Industry: Legal - Client size: 501-1,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Nov 6, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: The new designs and website improvements helped improve online traffic and engagement increase significantly. The honesty, attention to detail, and professionalism of the Starfish team were critical in building the level of trust in the relationship necessary for their client to be successful. "“They are very accessible and very proactive about staying in contact.” " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I was the chief marketing officer for a law firm operating out of New Jersey. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? Simply stated, we wanted to build our brand, raise the firm’s profile and position it more strongly in the market. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? The overarching goal of the project was establishing a visual identity, which essentially consisted of a new logo and accompanying design integrations across the entire firm. That plays out in digital and traditional media, so our website and digital properties as well as stationery and print media. We did two major redesigns of the website, and they were in charge of the whole design process, from UI/UX planning to the actual execution in development. Beyond that, they provide us with marketing assets and then we use them to elevate the company profile. What is the team composition? I was consistently in contact with the owner and our primary project manager throughout the project, but I believe there were about five people working on the project in total. How did you come to work with Starfish? They were already engaged in work for the firm when I joined, so I think what I did was continue and grow the relationship. What is the status of this engagement? We first started working with them in September 2017, and I left the company about nine months ago, but the two firms are continuing to work together. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? As we implemented the redesigns of our website, we saw very clear improvements in our engagement metrics. I’m not familiar with the exact numbers, but we were definitely seeing healthy double-digit increases in traffic and click-through rates and things like that. They are really good at coming up with not just creative ideas, but also effective design solutions, if you will. It can be very difficult to develop highly targeted brand messaging while also satisfying the wide range of requirements and personalities that you find in the legal services and consulting part of the business community, and yet they continue to exceed expectations on all fronts. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They are very accessible and very proactive about staying in contact. Their team stays on top of all deadlines and communicates very openly. Throughout the project, it was always very clear that we were being taken seriously and that we were important clients to them, which we really appreciated. What did you find most impressive about them? They’ve got a wide range of abilities in their personnel, but they are also very accurately aware of what they can and can’t do. It’s clearly important to them to deliver on everything they promise, so they are very careful about turning down anything they feel they might not be able to complete with their standard of quality. Their integrity in that respect was really valuable. Are there any areas they could improve? I don’t have a recollection of anything I wished they would improve in working with them. Do you have any advice for potential customers? Be open with them, not only about your requirements and what you want them to do, but also about what it’s going to be like working with you. At some points in our project, I had to tell them that it was going to get messy because of all the hoops we had to jump through, and preparing them for that made everything go much more smoothly than it would have otherwise. --- #### Branding & Web Redesign for Law Firm **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $1,000,000 to $9,999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2015 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish provides full-stack web development and advertising services to a national law firm. Their projects range from home page overhaul to branding guideline creation, to video and ad creation. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Director of Marketing Communications, Law Firm - Industry: Legal - Client size: 501-1,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Oct 24, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: The services provided by the Starfish team consistently exceed the expectations of all project stakeholders, satisfying granular project requirements and providing guidance to company leadership on more overarching brand decisions. Their team is a rare combination of smart, talented, and honest. "“With David and his team, it’s clear that they’ve been around the block.” " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I am the director of marketing and communications for a law firm of about 350 lawyers across the country. We specialize in Life sciences and technology investment funds, and I oversee all of our advertising, our website, and our social media and public relations. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We’ve had lots of challenges that Starfish has addressed with us. One of the largest ones was a complete overhaul of our website's home page and a refresh of all of our internal pages, which they worked closely with us over a period of months to complete. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? Their team started by coming up with design concepts for the home page and taking that all the way through our internal approval processes, which can take a lot of time at a law firm. From there, they designed our internal pages, helping to refresh our branding guidelines and producing content. Starfish manages all of our advertising, including prominent videos on our site and about 70–80 print and digital ads over the course of the year. They handle everything from color palette, typography, and placement of graphic elements, to advocating for content and investment decisions with the partners at our firm. What is the team composition? We have a couple of primary contacts on their team, primarily David (CEO, Starfish), Dayna (Account Director, Starfish), and Elizabeth (Assistant Account Executive, Starfish). How did you come to work with Starfish? We started working with Starfish before I joined the firm, but I’m sure it was a competitive pitching process. Since then, it has been a really easy decision to stick with them because of the quality that they deliver. How much have you invested with them? I’m not sure how much we’ve spent in total on the account, but it is certainly upwards of $1,000,000. What is the status of this engagement? We began working together in 2015, and we continue to rely on them for all of our advertising and website needs. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? The feedback from within the firm, which is one of our most important factors, has been extremely positive. Leadership loves the new home page and the way the whole web site works.  People feel that it is clean, efficient, attractive, and gets the right message across. They managed to strike the right balance so that design doesn’t get in the way of content. In terms of metrics, our website gets many more eyeballs than it used to on our old site. Page views are up. Our headlines get more attention, and people stay longer on given pages. Their whole team has just been incredibly helpful and really efficient. They never sacrifice quality for the sake of expedience, which is really important to us. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They’re super organized and always start with a consultative approach, which I think is the right way to go. They ask lots of questions and get feedback, and they know who to go to for approval on different things in order to start work. Then, they come back with concepts and ideas and walk us through the whole design review process. When it’s time to execute, they do that in a very organized, calendar-driven way, which is really helpful. We have weekly project status calls, but the majority of our communication is via email. We use phone and schedule in-person meetings, but those are much harder to arrange, just logistically speaking. What did you find most impressive about them? They’re incredibly smart. Lots of places can do good design or provide good copywriting. With David and his team, it’s clear that they’ve been around the block. I came up in advertising as well, and it’s obvious to me that David has been in advertising for decades and really knows what he’s talking about. Are there any areas they could improve? Unless they wanted to give us things for free, I really don’t have any criticisms. Do you have any advice for potential customers? The most important thing as a client is to do some of your own thinking. Price matters, but you have to think about what your goals are. Be ready to come to the meeting prepared, because their team is great at making those kinds of decisions, but it has to be a two-way street. --- #### Re-Branding Effort for Anti-Hate NPO **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: June 2017 - Dec. 2018 **Project Summary**: Starfish managed the organizational rebranding of a 100-year-old advocacy nonprofit with the goal of increasing awareness and engagement. They conducted extensive research before making recommendations. **Review Rating**: 4.5 - Quality: 4.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Vice President, NPO - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Oct 21, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: The rebranding services provided by Starfish pleased project stakeholders and allowed them to successfully transition their logo and brand positioning to one they felt was more effective for the challenges of the modern world. Their team tackled problems creatively and thoroughly at all times. "“They are able to really dig in and understand their client’s problems and challenges.” " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I work for an anti-discrimination non-profit organization, and I’m the vice president of branding and marketing. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We were trying to rebrand the organization to become closer to our changing constituents. Our organization has been around for 100 years and we brought Starfish in after the hundredth year of our existence, so our audience and the needs of that audience have significantly started since we got started. Our new leadership wanted to make sure that we were presenting ourselves in the most compelling and current ways. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? The first step was to conduct a lot of interviews to help Starfish form a really deep understanding of the organization and the challenges that we were facing. They spoke with leadership, long-term and new staff, and donors to really get a sense of what people need from our organization. That set the stage for a very broad research study that we did about awareness and segmentation. From there, the challenge was to segment the market and determine where we should be focusing our publicity efforts and how we should be positioning our brand to encourage people to get engaged. What is the team composition? We worked with David (Owner, Starfish) as well as two account leads and several designers. They also partnered with a research agency for the study. How did you come to work with Starfish? I had met David several years earlier and was really impressed with his diligence and customer service, so when this job came up, he came to my mind first. Since I wasn’t the only decision-maker, they had to present and impress out of about 14 other organizations through three levels of review by my colleagues. In the end, they were the group we decided to go with.   How much have you invested with them? All in all, we spent somewhere between $250,000–$500,000. What is the status of this engagement? We worked with them from May 2017–December 2018. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? They really helped us come up with a new positioning for our work which centered around a great tagline that we were able to settle on after many, many rounds of trying to figure out the perfect one. We are extremely pleased with their copywriter’s skills and the result they were eventually able to produce for us. The new brand is extremely sharp, flexible, and fresh. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? I think they are a little stronger creatively and strategically than they are with project management, but they hit all of our changing deadlines and worked well with my colleagues. We took a long time to make decisions and considering that, they worked at a very high level. What did you find most impressive about them? They are able to really dig in and understand their client’s problems and challenges. They take the core issues to heart and figure out how they can really solve the most underlying problems. We were very impressed with their creativity as a group. Are there any areas they could improve? They have some room for improvement at the mid-level of project management. They were great with the overall planning and the granular detail-oriented stuff, but some of the day to day gets a little bit lost in the process. I do have to add that they had some staff turnover issues that may have contributed to that as well. --- #### Branding & Design for Commercial Electronics Manufacturer **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $1,000,000 to $9,999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2018 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish handled end-to-end brand strategy and design services for an appliance manufacturing firm, developing principles and applying them to packaging, web presentation, and print materials for dealers. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** President, Haier America - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Oct 17, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: The branding principles and design work provided by Starfish has received highly positive feedback from partners and consumers alike, helping their client’s products to stand out. Their team is enthusiastic and communicative, prioritizing close collaboration to tackle challenges and stay on budget. "“When it comes to their attention to detail, my experience there has been second to none.” " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. At the time of the project, I was president of Haier America, a consumer appliance and electronics manufacturing company. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? They were responsible for pretty much everything regarding our brand design, so they were helping us with web and packaging design, as well as in-store displays and numerous other side projects. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? From planning to implementation, they were really essential partners for us. They helped develop a brand strategy for Hair around television products to establish us more firmly in that market. From there, they delivered a go-to-market strategy around display and packaging for our products. Their team also completely managed our web design from start to finish. At the time we were working with Google on an Android platform for our newest product and Starfish was right there with us through discussions between Google and our product people. Thanks to their work, we were able to communicate our proposition to the marketplace and our dealer partners as well. What is the team composition? We worked very closely with their president and one of the senior partners at Starfish that was responsible for our account, as well as with several staff members at their headquarters who were more behind the scenes. How did you come to work with Starfish? One of the main reasons that I reached out to Starfish when I got into the role was that it was clear to me that we needed somebody who fully understood the electronics business who could be a real partner with us. They are more of a boutique agency and demonstrated pretty early on that they had the ability to really provide support at any given moment, regardless of timing. That convinced me that they could be the essential partner that we needed. How much have you invested with them? The budget for the whole project was in excess of $1,000,000 for that period. What is the status of this engagement? We started working with them in January 2018, and that team is continuing to work together on the web design and subsequent product launches. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? From an external standpoint, I think the fact that our dealer partners receive the information that we provide to them very favorably says a lot. Package design is a huge challenge in the television space because there’s such a highly competitive market. Starfish really played a strong role with us making sure that our packaging stood out on the floor. We also received a lot of comments from our retail partners on our web design basically thanking us for being able to provide a good tool, not only for them to be able to research information on the product, but also for consumers that want to learn about the products that are in their stores. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? We communicated very regularly with their senior management, which I really appreciated. When it comes to their attention to detail, my experience there has been second to none. It was also very common for them to jump in a car and come meet with us after-hours to discuss whatever particular issue we were having at the time. No matter what the time or budget restrictions there were, they were always willing to work with us to make it happen. What did you find most impressive about them? I think the enthusiasm about the brand that they would bring to the project, along with their creativity and willingness to explore new opportunities on how to present the brand, makes for a really enjoyable partnership. They became a strong partner that I hope to and plan to work with in the future. Are there any areas they could improve? Quite frankly, I really can’t think of anything that they could have done better. Do you have any advice for potential customers? Have a really good sense of who you are, what your brand stands for, and be specific in translating that to goals that you want Starfish to achieve. If you can communicate that clearly to them, they can take the ball and run with it and come back with some really great ideas. --- #### Development for Voice Shopping Assistant **The Project** - Services: IoT Development - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Dec. 2018 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish is developing a voice shopping assistant for an organic grocery store chain. Emphasizing UX, this project includes consumer research and strategic development. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Chief Marketing Officer, Natural Grocers - Industry: Retail - Client size: 1,001-5,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Oct 16, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: The project is ongoing but is expected to drive growth. So far, everything has been delivered on time and in budget, pointing to strong and effective project management. Starfish’s team provides excellent customer service and has gone above and beyond to deliver a quality product.  ""They're totally focused on the client and service." " **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and your position there. We are a multi-unit Natural and Organic Grocery store chain with 155 stores located in 20 states, primarily west of the Mississippi river. My position is Chief Marketing Officer. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** For what projects/services did your company hire Starfish ? To develop the persona of a voice shopping assistant as well as the consumer journey and user experience when interacting with the voice assistant. What were your goals for this project? Develop a world class voice shopping assistant that would be uniquely differentiated in the marketplace and that would drive brand reach, awareness, engagement and store traffic. **SOLUTION** How did you select this vendor? We interviewed several brand experience/brand journey agencies via a traditional RFP process. They provided the best knowledge and insight into the assignment and were best able to demonstrate their strategic process and approach to developing the solutions and outcomes we were seeking. Describe the project and the services they provided in detail. Strategic development, consumer research development, insights and findings. Project management of the software developer. Vision. What was the team composition? Hands on accountability and involvement with CEO David Kessler, Account Director Grant Wood and Project Managers ran day to day. Their design teams and other support teams provided services when needed. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business? Project is still ongoing but we have very high expectations regarding the long and short term impact of this project to drive top and bottom line growth. How was project management arranged and how effective was it? Hands on accountability and involvement with CEO David Kessler, Account Director Grant Wood and Project Managers ran day to day. Their design teams and other support teams provided services when needed. This has beeen a very effective structure and has achieved all phases of the development process on time and on budget while exceeding goals and expectations at each phase of the development. What did you find most impressive about this company? Strategic vision and leadership. World class service. They're totally focused on the client and service. Commitment to quality. Committment to the purpose. Willingness to go above and beyond. Fearless recommendations and advice. Are there any areas for improvement? So far so good! --- #### Internal Advertising Campaign for Management Consulting Firm **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Mar. - Sep. 2019 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided visual development (both print and digital) for an internal awareness initiative. Based on a strategic brief, they provided several possible campaigns and worked to refine their concept. **Review Rating**: 4.5 - Quality: 4.5 - Schedule: 4.0 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** CMO, Management Consulting Firm - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Oct 16, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: Internal stakeholders are pleased with the anecdotal feedback they’ve received, as well as with Starfish’s ability to work creatively while staying within timeline and budget. Their hands-on executive management was notable, as well as their commitment to learning about their client’s space. ""The aesthetics, design, and copywriting were really good creatively."  " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the CMO of a management consulting firm. We provide services to public and private companies. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? Our most recent work was an internal communications program, but we’ve also expanded it into our social media and recruiting materials. This program had two goals: create positive feelings about working here and provide employees with a better understanding of the work of our different business units. Not that working here was bad, but we wanted people to feel proud and engaged and help them to know more about what’s happening outside their aspect of the business. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? They developed an ad campaign that was manifested with posters, visuals, and copy that went up in our offices. They also appeared as digital wallpaper and digital images, like social media posts, on our employee intranet. It was a very collaborative process. We gave them a strategic concept, but we didn’t have any executional guidance. We told them about communications channels with employees and that we needed ideas on how to get employees to be proud and feel good about the firm. From that brief, they built five campaigns that we narrowed to 2–3, made refinements to, and shared with our CEO. We then executed one of them. After the campaign, they interviewed employees and published their stories, handling the copy, photography, art direction, and layout. What is the team composition? We worked with five people I can think of, but I’m not sure how many behind the scenes there were. How did you come to work with Starfish? We were introduced to their president several years ago by a peer in marketing at a law firm. Then, we attended one of their roundtables for marketing people in professional services like us. Over time, they gave us confidence that they understood our industry because selling consulting services isn’t like selling gum or shoes. When this project came up, I called them for a proposal. We didn’t go to bid or interview multiple firms because we knew they’d done similar concepts for other firms before. How much have you invested with them? We spent between $100,000–$250,000 with them. What is the status of this engagement? The first phase ran during spring 2019, and the employee interviews were in the fall of the same year.   **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?  The aesthetics, design, and copywriting were really good creatively. They also did a good job of including insights from people they interviewed about the work they do and how they feel about it. The bottom line is, they did quality work on time and budget. Additionally, there’s been a lot of internal buzz and anecdotal comments posted on our internal sharing tool. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? I would say they were good but not great on the really little details. We’ll forgive the business details because the work was pretty good. What did you find most impressive about them? One, they demonstrated that they understood our business and industry very well. Second, we got to work with their founder and CEO. Even though he didn’t do all the work himself, we weren’t simply handed off to a copywriter and an art director. Are there any areas they could improve? Other than the dotting I’s and crossing T’s of project management I can’t think of anything. --- #### Communications for Aviation Outsourcing Firm **The Project** - Services: Advertising - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Nov. 2018 - Apr. 2019 **Project Summary**: Starfish created a digital marketing strategy and employee value proposition for a cargo airline’s pilot recruitment efforts. They led photo shoots and created a WordPress website as well.  **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Consultant, Aviation Outsourcing Firm - Industry: Manufacturing - Client size: 1,001-5,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Oct 15, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: The strategy received executive approval within five months and increased recruitment success by 35%. Starfish delivered that success thanks to their top-notch expertise and ability to address challenges against extremely short deadlines. Their thoughtfulness, responsiveness, and agility stood out. ""…they’re incredibly proactive and frequently delivered the best possible result within a very tight timeline." " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m a consultant for a large outsourced cargo airline. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We had an urgent need to recruit pilots for our company. We needed help to reform our marketing efforts to hire pilots and retain existing employees so we can continue our growth and galvanize our team during a time of significant change. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? I called Starfish in for an RFP on very short notice. They had only 18 hours notice and still turned it around in time. Within a week of signing our contract, we hit the ground running to develop a digital marketing strategy to market the pilot job. At the same time, Starfish prepared an employee value proposition for us. They also built a WordPress website for us. What is the team composition? We worked closely with David (Founder & CEO, Starfish), a dedicated project manager, and a dedicated account manager. I know that our team worked with other projects, but they were so responsive in working closely with us that it felt like a dedicated team. How did you come to work with Starfish? At a previous company, I was a stakeholder during a design project that Starfish ran. I thought they were smart people that thought strategically and had in-depth knowledge of the business. I also enjoyed their working style and believed that they would deliver what we needed.  In the RFP process, we considered 3–5 companies. While the other vendors mostly talked about themselves, Starfish spoke about our company, showing that they had worked to understand our business and the environment we were dealing with. They added value right from the pitch presentation, which helped them stand out. How much have you invested with them? We spent about $350,000. What is the status of this engagement? The project ran from November 2018 until April 2019. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? Before Starfish came on board, we were facing a restrictive, competitive market for pilots and seeing a long decline in our ability to hire them. This year, we achieved a 35% increase in our success rate. Starfish also convinced our executive team to approve the employee brand strategy within five months. This incredibly fast turnaround rate speaks to their proactiveness and strategic nature. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? We were dealing with high-pressure tasks and deadlines, and Starfish remained nimble throughout the process. If we called them up and asked for a job to be done by tomorrow, they usually said yes. We could also challenge them to work creatively around our constraints. For example, one of the central components of our pilot recruitment campaign was stand-out photography. However, I didn’t have the budget to staff and run a full photoshoot.  Starfish and I put our heads together, and we ended up running the photoshoot virtually. We had a photographer on set and the creative director over the phone, and they’d coordinate on shots through quick iPhone pictures. It ended up working well without going over my budget. What did you find most impressive about them? Starfish invested heavily in understanding our business. I felt like David and Grant (Management Supervisor, Starfish) knew more about the business than I did. They were an extension of our team and a frequent thought partner on not just the project but also on our entire strategic challenge. Are there any areas they could improve? On occasion, I’ve had to chase Starfish down for a deadline. This is only really because they’re incredibly proactive and frequently delivered the best possible result within a very tight timeline. Starfish often came to me with suggestions to improve on our request and strive for excellence, which I appreciated.  Any advice for potential customers? Invest in the time to brief Starfish’s team thoroughly on the strategic challenges you’re facing so that they have the full picture. Don’t treat them as a tactical partner and give them only pieces of the story. Starfish will add more value having the whole context. --- #### Marketing Campaign for Real Estate Company **The Project** - Services: Other Digital Marketing - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Feb. - June 2018 **Project Summary**: Starfish created a marketing approach that included props for a marketing center, direct mail pieces for a brokerage community, print ads in NYC publications, and digital ads. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Senior Vice President- Director of Leasing , Global Holdings Management - Industry: Real estate - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Oct 14, 2019 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish's efforts were met with positive acclaim. Their innovative ideas and open communication fueled the project's success. Customers can expect professionals that meet expectations every step of the way.  ""They were an integral part of the process and our success." " **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and your position there. Global Holdings is an Owner of Commercial Real Estate, I am Senior Vice President and Director of Leasing for the company which means I am responsible for among other things the Marketing and repositioning of our assets **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** For what projects/services did your company hire Starfish ? We were looking to reintroduce 875 third Avenue to the brokerage community and highlight that we have 350,000 square feet becoming vacant. We hired Starfish to put together a marketing concept to compliment our marketing center and also provide direct mail concepts to the brokerage community. What were your goals for this project? The goals for the project was to create awareness for 875 Third Avenue, make sure the brokerage community knew about the upcoming availability and have a little fun with the project too. **SOLUTION** How did you select this vendor? I had worked with Starfish briefly when I was at another company and we gave them the opportunity based on that . Describe the scope of their work in detail. The scope was for Starfish to come up with a comprehensive marketing approach for 875 Third avenue that would include, props for the marketing center, direct mail pieces for the brokerage community, print ads in NYC publications such as Crains, NY Observer and NY Post, and digital ads . What was the team composition? Jeff Negrin led the team. He is a senior partner there and was involved in the whole process. He added to the team as necessary and everyone involved in the project was knowledgable about the project and the process. The entire team worked very well with both our leasing agent and us. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success? The results were as follows: we created a great marketing campaign that included 3 mailers to brokerage community with various little"gifts" that were designed to stay on the brokers desks and keep 875 in their minds as well as creating a marketing center that made the tour of the building very clear and highlighted the space coming available, building amenities, etc. We leased the entire block of 350,000 square ft to 5 separate tenants in under 12 months, which was likely 6-9 months faster than we had anticipated. During tours we were routinely complimented about the marketing center for its creativity and cool props that we had outfitted the space with at Starfish direction . They were an integral part of the process and our success. How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs? they were great throughout the whole process. Jeff and his team took direction well and got the concept of what we were trying to do right away. It was great working with them . Never had issue thru the entire process. What did you find most impressive about this company? They were always prepared, had ideas that were relevant, but not afraid to reach for something different. We never had a bad meeting with them , all deadlines were met on time and the work product was always top-notch. We will definitely use them again should we have another big project. Are there any areas for improvement? I thought they were great. --- #### Consumer Insight & Branding for Global Wellness Organization **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2015 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish created a detailed consumer journey map that detailed opportunities to keep customers engaged with their wellness. They then conducted extensive research to determine new prospective audiences. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** SVP of Insight & Community Impact, Weight Watchers - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Jul 25, 2018 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish’s insights and strategic suggestions have helped skyrocket both retention and recruitment rates. Though they’re a small team, they’re well organized and produce exceptional results that rival larger firms. Their strong project management and humble approach ensure smooth collaboration. "“They deliver as well as the most prestigious strategic partners but engage us like next-door neighbors.” " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the SVP of insights and community impact for Weight Watchers. In my role, I oversee insights related to reimagining our brand (e.g., advertising, positioning, vision, packaging). I also look for ways to democratize wellness, bringing access to healthy habits and education to all communities. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? About four years ago, we were going through a period where we wondered if we’d become irrelevant in the wellness world. As a result, we initiated a four-year turnaround strategy to reimagine our brand, working with numerous partners, including Starfish, to support our ventures. We needed resources to help us retain our existing customers while recruiting more leads. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? One of the main projects involved creating a consumer journey map to identify opportunities to keep customers engaged. They conducted a full assessment, outlining a clear map of the different points where people faltered in their wellness journey. They then suggested different ways to move forward depending on the journey. In another project, they did a deep dive into potential target consumers. We’d identified a number of demographics that faced wellness challenges, including men, new mothers, and newlyweds. They helped us figure out the strongest targets to pursue and came up with activation ideas for them. Since then, we’ve continued to reach out to Starfish for various assignments, the most recent being a naming project. What is the team composition? At my level, I worked directly with their CEO, but my team primarily worked with their senior brand strategist. How did you come to work with Starfish? Our SVP of marketing had worked with them previously for several design projects. He knew that they had expertise in the insight area as well, so he introduced me to them. Upon meeting the team, I was impressed by their quality of work. They delivered strong results like bigger companies while still providing a mid-tier price structure. I also appreciated their humility and how well their culture aligned with ours. How much have you invested with them? For the insight projects alone, we’ve spent between $150,000–$200,000 thus far. What is the status of this engagement? Their work began in 2015 and is ongoing. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? Our retention rate grew considerably thanks to the insights from their journey analysis. Not only did they provide in-depth assessments, but they presented the content wonderfully in a clear, visual manner. It was so comprehensive that I could easily share it with our CEO. While our recruitment has significantly increased since last year, it’s hard to say which of our many initiatives drove those conversions. Nevertheless, we’ve implemented several of their identified sub-targets and are confident that they’ve contributed to our higher recruitment volume. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? Because they have small teams, they’re really able to get to know us. They’re responsive, organized, and well managed. In terms of timeliness, they always meet their deadlines and often outpace them. What did you find most impressive about them? I appreciate their capacity to produce high-quality work while still providing a small-firm experience. They deliver as well as the most prestigious strategic partners but engage us like next-door neighbors. Are there any areas they could improve? No, nothing comes to mind. They’re a perfect fit for our company thanks to our similar cultures. --- #### Brand Strategy for Large Consulting & Auditing Company **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $10,000,000 + - Project length: Jan. 2004 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish has provided high-end brand and marketing strategy services for over 15 years, working on a wide range of internal and external brand/marketing projects ranging from employer branding, recruiting, advertising, events and more. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 4.5 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** US Brand Leader, Large Auditing Company - Industry: Business services - Client size: 10,001+ Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Jul 16, 2018 **Feedback Summary**: The long-term nature of the relationship highlights how successful Starfish has been over the years meeting needs and demands. They have proven their capabilities and willingness to do what it takes to get the job done right at a good price and under tough client conditions. ""They're an agency that is client focused, very creative and consistently delivers a quality product." " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. PwC is a professional services firm that focuses on audit and assurance, tax and consulting. PwC helps resolve complex client issues and identifies opportunities across a multitude of industries. Over my tenure, my roles included marketing and communications leader for the consulting practice, U.S. brand leader and signature services leader. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We used Starfish to help us build a stronger employer brand and to help embed our brand and value proposition inwardly at key employee touchpoints throughout their career at our organization (from onboarding to retirement or when they exit the firm). **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? They developed a proprietary model for understanding and identifying key brand touchpoints within our organization, in terms of where the brand intersects with employees and clients. Starfish developed a strategy for us to map out these brand identity spots or touchpoints. We were able to classify them and figure out a strategy behind each one so that the impact would be meaningful for our employees. Together with Starfish, we developed a communication strategy that included design elements, messaging, visual expression and videos, etc. for the 10th-anniversary celebration of our merger. On another occasion, we created a campaign around PwC's rebranding efforts. It included creating physical installations in over 80 U.S. offices to allow our people to interact and learn about all the elements of the brand. Both of these efforts created a unique brand experience for our people making them feel pride in the firm. Starfish helped us to develop a full recruiting campaign for college campuses, from the creative, to the messaging, to the strategy, to the full installation and the research behind it. This helped candidates associate a sense of purpose, opportunity and satisfaction with the type of work they could be doing for us. Finally, they helped us make sure that the content on our website reflected our new language and positioning, as well as updating our sales tools and collateral material. In some cases, our collateral material needed customization (a unique look and feel) in order to differentiate it from the competition and to set it apart from other existing service offerings. Starfish accomplished this many times using their knowledge of our brand and visual guidelines. Many of these assignments were to help support a new service offering we were launching or to refresh an existing service offering for relaunch. What is the team composition? I've worked with a number of people from their team, including Grant (Management Supervisor, Starfish). I typically worked with David (CEO, Starfish) at a more senior level, but my direct reports worked closely with many of the Starfish management and staff and always found them very responsive and professional. How did you come to work with Starfish? I’ve been working with Starfish for 15 years. I started the collaboration when I was the advisory marketing leader, then the U.S. brand leader, and, lastly, the U.S. signature services leader. How much have you invested with them? Across 15 years, we’ve spent $8–$12 million with them. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? We’ve made a strong effort to increase awareness of our company on campuses and to hopefully become an employer of choice. There is an outside ranking organization that surveys students to determine the top "employer of choice" on US campuses. PwC was ranked somewhere in the top 15 to 20 companies prior to engaging Starfish. After which PwC was ranked in the top 5 and eventually number 1. Campus recruitment has been a definite win. We've been able to raise our specific metrics such as increasing readership on our website and other materials, as well as increasing awareness with the industry analyst program. The creative work and its alignment with our brand have delivered a strong and clear message that has had a huge impact. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? This is an area of strength for Starfish. Their project management team is exceptional from listening, updating timelines, maintaining budget and troubleshooting roadblocks. This, along with interpersonal skill, is one of the reasons why Starfish has been with me for 15 years, PwC is a tough and demanding client. In order for any agency to operate in it for any length of time, it has to be at the top of its game, continually demonstrating added value for fees. What did you find most impressive about them? I’ve worked with boutiques before and found many of them to be overly inflated. At the end of the day, the value Starfish brought exceeded our expectations and was priced fairly. All of my internal clients had positive things to say about them and were often repeat clients. Are there any areas they could improve? Starfish is headquartered in New York and a good number of their clients are naturally on the East Coast. At some point, it could be advantageous for them to set up a few small satellite offices in other large cities outside NY as their customer base reaches critical mass and requires a physical presence (more day to day interaction). --- #### Rebranding for Medical Diagnostics Firm **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Nov. 2017 - May 2018 **Project Summary**: Starfish led rebranding efforts for a company within a medical diagnostics firm. After research and discovery, they renamed the brand, integrated it into existing architecture and updated its visual identity. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 4.5 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP of Global Marketing, Medical Diagnostics Firm - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Jul 13, 2018 **Feedback Summary**: Internal and external feedback on the changes are both positive. Starfish moved quickly through the process and took time to understand the culture of the business and userbase. They were communicative and managed the budget well. "“They integrated the new brand into our existing structure and were sensitive to our internal historical variables.” " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I am a former vice president of global marketing for a medical diagnostics firm focused on immunology diagnostics. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We purchased a tick-borne disease business that needed rebranding to fit within our corporate umbrella. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? They laid out a well-defined process, beginning with a discovery phase through internal and external interviews. They then developed the brand idea based upon the attributes they collected from their research. Once we agreed on the idea, they took us through a naming process. Then, they helped us integrate the name into our brand architecture and develop a visual identity for the new branding, including a new logo. What is the team composition? We worked with a team lead, a day-to-day account manager, and another member of their staff. How did you come to work with Starfish? I found them by networking with my contacts. We wanted an agency that was strong, preferably with experience in healthcare and diagnostics. I spoke with several agencies and received proposals from four. Starfish offered the best combination of creative strategy people and price. How much have you invested with them? We spent about $80,000. What is the status of this engagement? We started the project in November 2017 and completed it in May 2018. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? Qualitatively, we received very positive internal feedback throughout the review process on both the brand name and the brand idea. Early external reactions are also very favorable. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They did well. They put together a good project plan and stuck to it. They were good communicators and managed the budget well. We had no surprises along the way. What did you find most impressive about them? They took time to understand our business and the way our customers viewed the new company. They integrated the new brand into our existing structure and were sensitive to our internal historical variables. They balanced all the considerations well while moving quickly through the process. Are there any areas they could improve? Our company liked to look over a pre-read before each presentation. It would be helpful for them to send that sort of documentation a day or two ahead of time to make presentations and discussions more productive. --- #### Branding & Communications for Global Technology Company **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Apr. 2017 - Mar. 2018 **Project Summary**: Building off of existing white papers, Starfish created a 38-page HR strategy book and a shorter executive summary. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 4.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Director of Project Management, HP - Industry: Information technology - Client size: 10,001+ Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Jul 12, 2018 **Feedback Summary**: The book Starfish created has been well-received. While communication could be improved around deadlines, the quality of work generally won the day. Their consistent communication, responsiveness, and client-focused approach justify the investment and made them a valuable partner. ""They put a lot of thought into what the end user is going to say, feel, and do." " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the director of project management and production for Human Resources at HP. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? Two and a half years ago, HP split from a larger company into two smaller companies. We needed to develop a new people strategy that could be articulated to all employees. Our employees have varied job roles, from marketing and customer support to scientists, developers, and engineers. The people strategy needs to make sense and be relatable to everyone. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? HP asked five workstreams to develop white papers based on various aspects of our people strategy: Talent Acquisition, Talent and Learning, Our Culture, Rewards and Recognition, and The Future of Work. We provided the white papers to Starfish and they developed a cohesive format that made each workstream make sense within the broader strategy. Starfish boiled down the white papers to an articulation of the role of each workstream and their goals for the future. They had access to the leaders of each of the workstreams so they could ask questions and get clarification as needed. Starfish produced two versions of what we call the HR strategy book. One is a 38-page printed and digital version that went to all of HR. The second is an eight-page executive version that was created for all HP employees. They developed the branding and brand strategy for both books. What is the team composition? We worked with two members of the Starfish team. How did you come to work with Starfish? I’d worked with Starfish when I was at another company. I had a good experience working with them previously, so it was my choice to connect with them on this project. How much have you invested with them? We spent about $80,000. What is the status of this engagement? The project took place from April 2017–March 2018. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? Over 700 of the books were delivered to our HR professionals around the globe. We also created PowerPoint presentations based on the creative approach that Starfish developed for the new people strategy. HR executives are using the presentations to share the new strategy with their executive stakeholders around the globe. They produced exactly what we needed. We will be collecting metrics but unfortunately don’t have any yet. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? The team was excellent. They were very responsive and always available. They had to quickly get up to speed on our voice and tone in order to write the book. They understood the project from the inception so there was no lag time. What did you find most impressive about them? They’re a brand experience company so they really try to understand the psychology of our brand. They put a lot of thought into what the end user is going to say, feel, and do. It’s more than just a deliverable on a checklist. They're very conscious that our external brand also needs to resonate internally. A lot of companies focus entirely on the customer. Starfish focuses on creating internal brand ambassadors. Are there any areas they could improve? We’d originally set a six-week timeline to get this done and it went on for about a year. That wasn’t their fault, because we had to go through several review cycles. However, it would have been helpful if they’d built a contingency into their Statement of Work. Given that delays are not unexpected, it would have been nice to know upfront what impact a delay has on the timeline and budget. They could build in some padding in case the project takes longer than intended. They could also give clients an alert before things get off track. --- #### Branding & Advertising for Consumer Electronics Company **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $1,000,000 to $9,999,999 - Project length: Sep. 2015 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish coordinated a series of branding and advertising campaigns to increase the visibility of certain products. Projects included logo design, website development, packaging design, and content creation. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP of Marketing, Hisense USA - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Jul 12, 2018 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish consistently delivers high-quality creative content, leading to successful campaigns that have spanned a lengthy engagement. They are unfazed by strict turnaround guidelines. They oftentimes are given very little direction but manage to produce imaginative finished products. ""We required quick turnaround times on several projects, and they were nimble enough to deliver on time." " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I am the vice president of marketing for Hisense. We sell consumer electronics and appliances. I also have experience working with Starfish from my years at Sharp Corporation. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? At Hisense, we’ve worked with them on various branding and digital projects. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? They produced a complete style guide for us. Part of that process involved meeting with our marketing team and our senior leadership. That project took several months, and upon its completion, we could then address other needs. They have since produced a number of logos and developed a new website for us. We currently utilize their services for advertisement creation and packaging design. What is the team composition? I work closely with the CEO, a senior brand strategist, and a management supervisor. How did you come to work with Starfish? I was familiar with the CEO during his time with another agency. I knew his work was great and would match our needs. How much have you invested with them? Including my time at Sharp and my time at Hisense, my companies have spent more than $3 million. What is the status of this engagement? At Hisense, we started working together in September 2015. We have a number of ongoing projects. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? We have several advertising campaigns operating at one time, but a recent one for a large hardware supplier was very successful. They touted it as one of the most successful campaigns in their history with a specific brand. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? I’ve never known them to be late. They were always on time, and that was challenging because we were not always clear on what we were looking for. But they were very patient with us. What did you find most impressive about them? We required quick turnaround times on several projects, and they were nimble enough to deliver on time. Are there any areas they could improve? No. I’ve seen steady improvement over the years in terms of their creative. They’re as good as some of the bigger agencies we work with. --- #### Educational Campaign for Life Insurance Company **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Sep. 2017 - Apr. 2018 **Project Summary**: Starfish managed an educational campaign based on pre-existing research and their own fact-finding efforts. After developing a strategy and creative briefs, they generated both digital and physical assets. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Chief Marketing Officer, Guardian Life - Industry: Financial services - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Jul 11, 2018 **Feedback Summary**: Engagement increased ten-fold over previous campaigns and Starfish modeled effective handling of customer experience. Their pro-active work style pushed them to follow-up without being asked and ensured an energetic kick-off. Their diligence and thoughtfulness made them stand out in the industry. ""They take a personal interest in understanding your business and helping you deliver your stated objectives."  " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the CMO of Guardian Life, a Fortune 250 life insurance company. We sell life and disability insurance in addition to wealth management products and services. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We were trying to build an education campaign around retirement to help people understand the challenges and options they face in retirement. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? They started with a fact-finding stage and spent a fair amount of time with us and our research trying to derive any insights they could. Then they helped us build out the creative briefs and the business strategy around the campaign, as well as how it would produce. They proceeded to build the digital and physical assets that went along with the campaign and spoke to two different audiences: our intermediaries and agents and our customers. What is the team composition? We primarily worked with their CEO and an account director. How did you come to work with Starfish? I stumbled onto Starfish when I was at a marketing conference during a speed dating scenario that they do for CMOs. I chose them because their CEO was transparent and their process was very thoughtful. I was able to see some of the work that they had done in the past and their focus on breaking client experience down into manageable bites of information appealed to me. How much have you invested with them? We spent between $60,000-$75,000. What is the status of this engagement? We worked together from September 2017 until April 2018. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? Typically, 2% of our advisors will click through and engage with our content, but right now we’re in the high 20s. Although the campaign only launched three months ago, the engagement from our field partners has also been unbelievable. We typically don’t get a lot of engagement from them because they like their own voice and content. We’ve always struggled with client experience – trying to tackle it as one big effort and it never gets off the ground. They were able to help us see a different way to think about the work. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They’re very diligent so I didn’t have to call and follow-up. They pushed me and they’re very systematic in their approach, following a project plan and a very clear statement of work. This helped keep me on task. What did you find most impressive about them? They take a personal interest in understanding your business and helping you deliver your stated objectives. Their CEO gets involved in the early stages to make sure that things get kicked off on the right foot. He’s not absentee at the agency. He actively ensures that his teams deliver what he expects them to. Are there any areas they could improve? The only thing I’d like to see from them is more options and alternatives early in a project, other creative avenues and scenarios we could explore. It’s possible that they did do that but it just didn’t get to my level. --- #### Branding & Market Research for Women's Health Organization **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $10,000 to $49,999 - Project length: **Project Summary**: Starfish initiated a market research and SEO initiative to identify knowledge gaps. The partnership ended after phase one when the internal focus pivoted. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 3.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Director of Market Research, Women's Health Organization - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Phone Interview - Verified **The Review** — Jul 11, 2018 **Feedback Summary**: The team presented thorough and insightful analysis. The team had a strategic and action-oriented approach that produced on-time deliveries. ""They are fun, strategic, and very responsive." " **BACKGROUND** Introduce your business and what you do there. I’m the director of market research at a women’s health organization. We’re currently working in the hormonal menopause space. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What challenge were you trying to address with Starfish? We needed branding and market research services. We engaged Starfish for their expertise in identifying—from a specific viewpoint—the things women experience and need as they age. **SOLUTION** What was the scope of their involvement? Starfish examined our existing market research and identified knowledge gaps. What is the team composition? We worked with the CEO. How did you come to work with Starfish? A colleague knew the CEO and recommended Starfish. I didn’t consider other providers because I already had prior experience with a member of Starfish’s leadership team at another organization. How much have you invested with them? We spent less than $40,000. What is the status of this engagement? We worked together for three months and then put the relationship on pause. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? No, because we only completed phase one before discontinuing the partnership. As an organization, we changed course and direction, so we didn't need the information anymore. How did Starfish perform from a project management standpoint? They're excellent, professional, and organized. They're detail-oriented, insightful, and strategic. What did you find most impressive about them? Starfish’s level of detail and granularity distinguishes them. The team had an action-oriented approach to meeting client needs. Any advice for potential customers? Share as much as possible with Starfish. Even if the information doesn’t feel relevant, it will them do their job. --- #### Research & Branding for Automotive Services Company **The Project** - Services: Branding, Market Research, Web Design - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Nov. 2019 - Mar. 2022 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided branding and research services for an automotive services company. The team helped with the brand's strategic direction, rebranding, execution, and launch. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP of Marketing, Holman - Industry: Automotive - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Jan 12, 2024 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish's efforts were instrumental in launching the client's new brand. They listened attentively to the client, developed a strategy, and worked collaboratively. Communication was efficient via in-person meetings and email. Starfish's deliverables resulted in a successful project. ""Starfish continually went above and beyond to ensure a successful project."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the VP of Marketing of HolmanDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Holman is an integrated global automotive services company **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Provide research and strategic direction for potential brand changesSupport execution of Holman's rebranding process and launch **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchWhy did you select Starfish over others?Great culture fitGood value for costStrategic ExpertiseHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Holman partnered with Starfish to manage our branding project, from research to strategy to execution and launch, taking us from a house of brands to a single Holman brand, including a complete rebuild and consolidation of our corporate web properties. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Launching our new Holman brand in March 2022Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Jeff and the entire Starfish team were unbelievable partners to work alongside throughout our rebranding journey. They listened, they provided insight, developed a strategy and worked with us closely to ensure a successful launch.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?The people. Jeff and team were so amazing to work with and the product they delivered was crucial for a successful project and launch of our new brand.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?Starfish continually went above and beyond to ensure a successful project. --- #### Branding Services for Renewable Energy Company **The Project** - Services: Branding - Project size: $10,000,000 + - Project length: Mar. - Dec. 2021 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided branding services for a renewable energy firm. The team was tasked with establishing the client's brand identity, including their company name, brand strategy, mission statement, and image. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** CEO, SquareOne - Industry: Energy & natural resources - Client size: 11-50 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Jan 8, 2024 **Feedback Summary**: Thanks to Starfish's help, the client managed to develop a cohesive brand identity. The team ensured a seamless customer experience by being punctual and highly responsive to the client's needs. Overall, the team handled the entire project very well. ""They did a perfect job."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the CEO of SquareOneDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.We recycle wasted hydrocarbons into clean fuels. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Name companyMission statementBrand **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?Great culture fitReferred to meCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Namebrandingimagestrategy **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Cohesive message and feel through the entire brandingDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Extremely responsive and kept to a timeline.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Personalized and tailored approachAre there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?They did a perfect job. --- #### PR & Marketing for Government Department **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Graphic Design - Project size: Confidential - Project length: May 2017 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: A government department has hired Starfish for PR and marketing. The team manages the client's major media campaigns and messaging. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 4.5 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 4.5 - Willing to Refer: 4.5 **The Reviewer** Director of Mktg and Market Research, Government Department - Industry: Government - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 20, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish provides solid campaigns for the client's public messaging. Starfish's team is punctual and responsive via virtual and in-person meetings. The client also praises the team's swift work and commitment to take on challenges. ""They have never turned down a challenge."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Director of Marketing and Market Research of a government company Describe what your company does in a single sentence.Government **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Public Health MessagingPublic Health EducationPublic Health Multimedia campaign development **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?RFPWhy did you select Starfish over others?Pricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitGood value for costCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.We have a contract with Starfish. They develop many of our major media campaigns and are responsible for a large portion of the messaging to New Yorkers during the COVID pandemic. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?We conduct post campaign surveys.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?The Starfish team often over delivers. They are always ready to answer the call, particularly during emergencies.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?I'm most impressed by the speed in which Starfish is able to execute and deliver a final product. They have never turned down a challenge.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?Starfish is a great partner for us --- #### Repositioning & Marketing Services for Real Estate Provider **The Project** - Services: Branding, Content Marketing, Graphic Design - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Jan. - Sep. 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish helped a real estate provider with building repositioning and marketing. The scope included renaming assets, developing strategies, and implementing them. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Vice Chairman, JLL - Industry: Real estate - Client size: 10,001+ Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 15, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: The client was pleased with the results of the engagement. Starfish was very creative, punctual, and responsive. Communication was efficient via meetings and email. They listened attentively to the client's needs. ""They listened well and were very responsive."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Vice Chairman of JLLDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Global Commercial Real Estate Provider **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Assist in a building repositioning and marketing **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsGreat culture fitReferred to meHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.renaming of asset , strategy for repositioning , creative and implementation **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?good success in leasing up the assetDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?very creative, On time and on budgetWhat was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?they were extremely creative. They listened well and were very responsive.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?no , they were great --- #### Marketing & Brand Strategy for Advertising & Mktg Co **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Digital Asset Management - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Jan. - July 2022 **Project Summary**: An advertising and marketing company hired Starfish for marketing and brand strategy. The team performed quantitative research via customer interviews, market research, and data analysis. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** EVP & Chief Revenue Officer, Advertising & Mktg Co - Industry: Financial services - Client size: 11-50 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 13, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish delivered a fully executable value proposition for the client's brand strategy. Starfish's team was punctual, responsive, and collaborative. The client also praised the team's transparency and teamwork. ""They were always on time."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the EVP, Chief Revenue Officer of American GuardianDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Brand Consultancy / advertising **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Brand StrategyValue Proposition Development **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralOtherWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsGood value for costReferred to meCompany values alignedpast success working with themHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Quantitative research through customer interviews.Market research and data analysis.Leadership 1x1 interviews to develop / define value proposition. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Fully executable value proposition and brand strategy that is differentiated and proving successfulDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?They were always on time...Very responsive. Very collaborative, great listenersWhat was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Collaborative nature working together. Transparent in thought, idea generation. Excellent teamwork, with strong final product delivery.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?none --- #### Rebranding for Commercial Real Estate Company **The Project** - Services: Branding, Content Marketing, Graphic Design - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Jan. 2023 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish leads a rebranding project for a commercial real estate company. The team is in charge of rebranding and repositioning select midtown assets to change the perception of one of the client's buildings. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** EVP of Marketing, Commercial Real Estate Co - Industry: Real estate - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 13, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: The new brand identity has been approved by the client, marking the project's success. The team is very timely, flexible to the client's needs, and thorough in their responses, offering a thoughtful approach. Moreover, their leadership is closely involved in the project, collaborating in person. ""The leadership is uniquely and closely involved in each project."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the EVP, Marketing of a real estate company Describe what your company does in a single sentence.Commercial real estate **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Rebranding project **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsGreat culture fitCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Lead the rebrand and repositioning of select midtown assets to change the perception of the building within its current neighborhood. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Approval of the brand identityDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Yes always. Very thoughtful in their approach, very thorough in their responses and always on time.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?The leadership is uniquely and closely involved in each project and extremely flexible to our ever changing needs.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?No --- #### Rebranding for Programmatic Advertising Company **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Logo - Project size: Confidential - Project length: July - Nov. 2013 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided rebranding services for a programmatic advertising company. The team was responsible for the company's new name, logo, identity, website, and advertising campaign. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Former CMO, Programmatic Advertising Company - Industry: Advertising & marketing - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 13, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish launched the brand on time, and the client's industry buzz, internal buy-in, and enthusiasm increased. The team had strong project management skills, providing creative solutions and being responsive to feedback. Their creativity, positivity, and can-do attitude were remarkable. ""They have very strong project management skills."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the CMO of a programmatic advertising companyDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Programmatic advertising. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Rebrand (Naming, Positioning, Design) **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?Pricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitReferred to meHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Rebrand of the company: name, logo, identity, website, advertising campaign **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?On time launch of brand. Industry buzz. Internal buy in and enthusiasm.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?They have very strong project management skills:Delivered on time. Managed multiple personalities. Pivoted when the project shifted. Provided creative solutions. Listened to feedback from a large group of stakeholders.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Creativity, responsiveness and positive, can'-do attitude.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?No. --- #### Rebranding for Automotive Services Company **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding - Project size: $1,000,000 to $9,999,999 - Project length: Jan. 2021 - Jan. 2022 **Project Summary**: Starfish rebranded the visual identity of an automotive services company. The client had different companies operating under different names, and Starfish merged them together under one brand. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP Marketing, Holman - Industry: Automotive - Client size: 5,001-10,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 13, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish successfully rebranded and launched the client's new brand. The team was creative and informative, meeting the client's expectations. Starfish delivered the project on time and within budget, being accommodating, attentive, and responsive to the client's needs via email and meetings. ""They were very attentive and accommodating."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Vice President Marketing of HolmanDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Automotive services company **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Complete company rebrand **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchWhy did you select Starfish over others?Great culture fitGood value for costCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?6-10 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.We had & different companies operating under different names and identities. We brought them all together under one new brand and identity **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?We rebranded the entire company on time and on budget. The launch was very succesfulDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?They were very attentive and accommodating never felt like we were on the clock a true partnerWhat was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Willingness to please and very creative and informative could not have done it without themAre there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?no --- #### Branding & Digital Strategy for Telemedicine Company **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Web Design - Project size: Confidential - Project length: Oct. 2021 - Dec. 2022 **Project Summary**: A telemedicine company hired Starfish for branding and digital strategy. The team's work included product rebrand, product strategy, messaging, digital asset creation, and web development. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** COO, UpScript Health - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 13, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish's work helped the client with their conversions. Starfish's team was punctual, responsive, and adaptive to the project's needs. The client also praised the team's strategic approach and creativity. ""Starfish always met the predefined project timelines and was responsive to our needs."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Chief Operating Officer of UpScript HealthDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.UpScript is a telemedicine company that provides "digital front door" services to Pharmaceutical and Med Tech companies. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Optimize the consumer facing strategy for a pharmaceutical brandStrengthen our web and digital presence for telemedicine conversions **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Prior relationshipWhy did you select Starfish over others?Great culture fitGood value for costCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?6-10 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Completely rebrand the product.Product strategy, product messagingdigital asset creationUX optimizationWeb design and development. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Telemedicine conversions, CPADescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Starfish always met the predefined project timelines and was responsive to our needs, willing to adapt and support the evolving needs of the brand/business.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Strategy development. Starfish was able to deliver on the brand/market insights to deliver great strategy and aligned creative.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?No....I would work with Starfish on my next opportunity. --- #### Branding Services for Consumer Electronics & Home Appliance Manufacturer **The Project** - Services: Branding, Content Marketing - Project size: Confidential - Project length: May - Dec. 2018 **Project Summary**: Starfish has worked on multiple brand projects including product launches, packaging, messaging, website development, and events. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP of Product Marketing, Consumer Electronics & Home Appliance Manufacturer - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 10,001+ Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 12, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish’s work has been met with positive acclaim. The team is efficient, hardworking, and on top of the ball. ""The staff is extremely dedicated and customer-focused."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the VP of Product Marketing of Hisense USADescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Consumer Electronics and Home Appliance manufacturer **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?BrandingMessagingPackaging **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?worked with them in the pastWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsPricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitGood value for costCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?6-10 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Worked with Starfish on multiple brand projects including; product launches, packaging, messaging, website development and events. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?KPI's were measured in brand lift, product sell-thru and consumer engagment.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Starfish always delivered ON TIME, even under tough deadlines. Their project management skills are on point.They are masters at keeping the projects moving so that they stay on schedule.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?The staff is extremely dedicated and customer-focused. We had access to senior leadership whenever needed.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?none --- #### Video Production for Window Product Manufacturer **The Project** - Services: Advertising, Branding, Video Marketing - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Mar. - Aug. 2022 **Project Summary**: Starfish produced a full feature video as part of a project launch for a window products manufacturer. They also created nine video vignettes about individual product features as additional deliverables. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Head of Marketing, Window Products Manufacturer - Industry: Manufacturing - Client size: 1,001-5,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 12, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish delivered on time and within budget, and the videos brought views, interaction, and sales to the client. The team had outstanding project management keeping the client updated through weekly status calls. Their impressive commitment was crucial for the project's success. ""The principal, and everyone on the team really cared about helping us to improve the overall business."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position. I am the Head of Marketing of a manufacturing company Describe what your company does in a single sentence.We are an industry leader in manufacturing custom window covering products that homeowners and businesses across the country choose to beautify their space. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Assist in the development of foundational branding workCreation of a full feature video as part of a project launchCreation of video vignettes as additional deliverables associated with the full feature video **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsPricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitGood value for costReferred to meCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.We wished to expand our brand image and consideration among a consumer audience by promoting its robust motorization offerings via video: 1 long form features/benefits video, and 9 individual feature/benefit videos that will drive motorization sales and widen brand appeal among consumers. Videos should showcase motorization in an elevated and inspiring, yet educational, manner to excite consumers about the brand and understand impact this product could have on their lives. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Delivery on time and within budget Use across the organization (website, YouTube channel, social media, etc) Views, likes SalesDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Project management from Starfish was outstanding. We had weekly status calls, and I was kept apprised of all developments every step of the way.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Virtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?The principal, and everyone on the team really cared about helping us to improve the overall business.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?We were very satisfied with the project deliverables and the brand positioning work. --- #### Rebranding Services for Nonprofit **The Project** - Services: Branding, Digital Strategy, Graphic Design - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Sep. 2018 - Oct. 2020 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided rebranding services for a nonprofit. The team audited the client's current marketing campaigns and developed a unique positioning and branding strategy for the client.  **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** CEO, Americans for Ben-Gurion University - Industry: Non-profit - Client size: 11-50 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 12, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Thanks to Starfish, the client persuaded their board of directors to adopt a new branding and messaging strategy for the organization. The team delivered everything on time and within the agreed budget, meeting expectations. They communicated with the client through in-person and virtual meetings. ""They had a great strategy coupled with compelling creativity."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the CEO of Americans for Ben-Gurion UniversityDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.We raise awareness and financial resources for Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Re-branding Strategy **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?ReferralWhy did you select Starfish over others?Close to my geographic locationGreat culture fitReferred to meHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Audited current marketing efforts and assessed competitive landscape to develop a unique positioning and re-branding strategy for my organization. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Was able to get the board of directors to unanimously adopt a new branding and messaging strategy for the organization.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?Starfish delivered everything we expected from them (and more) on time and in budget.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Smart. They had a great strategy coupled with compelling creativity.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?None. --- #### Branding & Graphic Design for Music School **The Project** - Services: Branding, Graphic Design - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Jan. 2022 - July 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish led the rebranding efforts of a music school. They developed the client's mission statement and rationale and designed their brand lock-up, including their logo, tagline, and color scheme. **Review Rating**: 4.0 - Quality: 4.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 4.0 **The Reviewer** CEO, Music School - Industry: Education - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 11, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish successfully delivered the required outputs. Their team was iterative, responsive, and collaborative. They also pleased the client with how they acted as a partner rather than a service provider and how their values aligned with the brand's mission. Moreover, they communicated via meetings. ""The firm was extremely iterative and responsive."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the CEO of an education company.Describe what your company does in a single sentence.We provide music instruction to underserved students in under-resourced schools throughout New York City. It serves approximately 20,000 students in over 50 schools every week. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?To create a rebranding program. **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsPricing fit our budgetCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2-5 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Mission statement and rationale Logo designTaglineBranding lock up **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Creation of branding statement and rationale, branding lockup including logo and tagline, as well as color scheme.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?The firm was extremely iterative and responsive. They acted as a partner rather than as a vendor.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Virtual MeetingWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?The value alignment of the company with our mission, responsiveness, and collaboration.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?None --- #### Branding & Pitch Deck Design for Digital Health Company **The Project** - Services: Branding, Content Marketing, Graphic Design, Web Design - Project size: $200,000 to $999,999 - Project length: Aug. - Oct. 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided branding services for a digital health company. The team helped the client develop their brand identity and design their pre-seed and Series A pitch decks. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Co-Founder & COO, Egg Healthy Pregnancy - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 11, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: As a result of this collaboration, the client managed to secure pre-seed funders. Starfish worked very efficiently, delivering reliable services ahead of schedule without compromising quality. The team was also always ready and available to lend a helping hand. ""The Starfish team delivered our project ahead of schedule, and they were always available to answer questions."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Co-Founder, COO of Egg Healthy PregnancyDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Egg Healthy Pregnancy is an AI platform designed to help expectant and new mothers better understand their pregnancy and postpartum health through access to state-of-the-art tools, tests, and technologies used in partnership with their health providers. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Pre-Seed Pitch Deck DesignSeries A Pitch Deck DesignBrand Identity **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsPricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?6-10 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.The scope of work included the design and build of Pre-Seed and Series A pitch decks, Brand Identity, Market Competition Overview, **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Egg Healthy Pregnancy was able to secure pre-seed funders.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?The Starfish team delivered our project ahead of schedule and they were always available to answer questions.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?In-Person MeetingVirtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Their unwavering partnership.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?None. --- #### Web Design for Education Nonprofit **The Project** - Services: Branding, Graphic Design, Web Design - Project size: $50,000 to $199,999 - Project length: Apr. - Nov. 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided web design services for an education nonprofit. The team helped the client design and implement a state-of-the-art graphic messaging system to their website. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 4.5 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Divison President, Encoura - Industry: Education - Client size: 201-500 Employees - Review Type: Online Review - Verified **The Review** — Dec 11, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish successfully delivered quality solutions that met the client's expectations. The team did a great job of handling the project — everything was delivered on time, and they responded to the client's needs promptly. The partners interacted via virtual meetings, email, and messaging apps. ""They were a great partner."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Divison President of EncouraDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Supports students, parents, educators and higher education institutions to achieve success **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Revision of websiteImplementing state of the art graphics to communicate our message visually **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?previous clientWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsPricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitGood value for costCompany values alignedHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?6-10 EmployeesDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Design a state of the art graphic messaging system to support our digital marketing offerings, allowing that the be come a template for the entire website **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?milestones developed for each segment of the designDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?totally - they were a great partnerWhat was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Virtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?no boiler plating - solution was crafted in a bespoke manner that fulfilled and our needs and maximized resultsAre there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?none --- #### Digital Marketing for Manufacturing Company **The Project** - Services: Advertising - Project size: $10,000 to $49,999 - Project length: Feb. - June 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish provided digital marketing services for a manufacturing company. They developed a tailored digital strategy to increase brand visibility, increase market share, and create a stronger digital presence. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Managing Director, Widney Manufacturing Limited - Industry: Manufacturing - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review **The Review** — Aug 20, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish's work has substantially boosted the client's brand visibility, increasing inquiries and website traffic. Their creativity and technical precision blend sets them apart in the advertising industry. They balanced creativity with technical precision. ""Our brand visibility has significantly improved, leading to a notable increase in inquiries and website traffic."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Managing Director at Widney Manufacturing Limited of Widney Manufacturing LtdDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.We are global market leader in the design and manufacture of Vehicle windows, Vehicle sun blinds, Telescopic slides. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?our specific goals were to enhance brand visibility, increase market share, and create a stronger digital presence in the competitive landscape of vehicle windows, sun blinds, and telescopic slides. **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Online SearchWhy did you select Starfish over others?Pricing fit our budgetGreat culture fitGood value for costHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?3Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.They developed a tailored strategy that incorporated both traditional and digital channels to maximize our reach. Their scope of work encompassed designing visually captivating ad campaigns, managing our social media presence, optimizing our website for higher engagement, and creating content that effectively communicated our products' features and benefits. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?Our brand visibility has significantly improved, leading to a notable increase in inquiries and website traffic.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?They consistently delivered items on time, and their responses to our needs were prompt and thorough.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Virtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?The team unique ability to balance creativity with technical accuracy is a rare quality in the advertising world.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?No --- #### Platform Design & Dev for Product Experience Provider **The Project** - Services: Custom Software Development, UX/UI Design, Web Design, Web Development - Project size: $10,000 to $49,999 - Project length: Jan. 2022 - June 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish developed an interactive platform for product discovery for a product experience provider. Their work included UI development, backend integration, database management, and testing. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Co-Founder, The Surprize App - Industry: Business services - Client size: 1-10 Employees - Review Type: Online Review **The Review** — Aug 20, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish delivered an engaging and innovative platform that received high ratings on app stores, which was a testament to the quality and impact of their work. The team was open to feedback and quick at making changes. Moreover, their attention to detail and branding skills were excellent. ""Their attention to detail during the design phase was commendable."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the co founder of The Surprize AppDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.Reinventing the way people learn about products. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Our objective was to revolutionize the way people learn about products by creating an engaging and interactive platform. **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Clutch SiteWhy did you select Starfish over others?Pricing fit our budgetHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?3Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.user interface development, backend integration, database management, and testing. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?the app's rating on app stores was amazing a testament to its quality and impact.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?yes,they were receptive to feedback and quick to implement necessary changes.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Virtual MeetingEmail or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Their attention to detail during the design phase was commendable, 'starfish is certainly in the top tier of the world's branding firms and definitely one of the best in NYC'Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?as i mentioned earlier ,they are the best i have work so far with --- #### Mktg & Advertising Campaign for Strategic Consulting Co **The Project** - Services: Advertising - Project size: $10,000 to $49,999 - Project length: May 2022 - Aug. 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish developed and ran an advertising campaign to communicate the services of a strategy consulting firm. Their work included online ads, social media outreach, content creation, and reporting. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** VP, Health Advances - Industry: Business services - Client size: 51-200 Employees - Review Type: Online Review **The Review** — Aug 19, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: Thanks to Starfish's work, the client saw an increase in brand visibility, web traffic, and social media engagement, increasing the client's online reach by 45% and customer inquiries by 30%. Starfish was responsive to the client's needs, and their strategic skills and understanding were impressive. ""Their responsiveness to our evolving needs was impressive."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the Vice President of Health AdvancesDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.They are a strategy consulting firm that helps clients realize growth and opportunities **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?Our goal was to effectively communicate our growth opportunities and establish a strong market presence. **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Clutch SiteWhy did you select Starfish over others?Pricing fit our budgetHow many teammates from Starfish were assigned to this project?2Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.They encompassed a comprehensive advertising campaign, including targeted online advertisements, social media outreach, and content creation. The key deliverables consisted of eye-catching ad designs, engaging social media posts, and data-driven performance reports. **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?The results surpassed our expectations. Our brand visibility saw a substantial boost, with a notable increase in website traffic and social media engagement. Notably, our online reach expanded by 45%, leading to a 30% rise in client inquiries.Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?their responsiveness to our evolving needs was impressive.What was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Email or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?Their strategic prowess, punctuality, and keen understanding of our industry's intricacies undoubtedly catalyzed our growth journey.Are there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?no, they are good in what they do and i would also like to recommend them and also partner with them in future --- #### E-Book Design for Freelance Writer **The Project** - Services: Graphic Design - Project size: Confidential - Project length: June - July 2023 **Project Summary**: Starfish designed an e-book cover for a freelance writer. **Review Rating**: 5.0 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 5.0 - Willing to Refer: 5.0 **The Reviewer** Freelance Writer - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 1,001-5,000 Employees - Review Type: Online Review **The Review** — Jun 21, 2023 **Feedback Summary**: The client was satisfied with Starfish's designs. The team delivered on time and communicated effectively through email. Their 3D design expertise was evident. ""They had excellent communication skills."" **BACKGROUND** Please describe your company and position.I am the freelancer of a social networking companyDescribe what your company does in a single sentence.WE WRITE HIGH COMPELLING EBOOK **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What specific goals or objectives did you hire Starfish to accomplish?TO DESIGN MY EBOOK COVER **SOLUTION** How did you find Starfish?Clutch SiteWhy did you select Starfish over others?High ratingsDescribe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.Starfish provide outstanding design **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?i love the project and it suit my needDescribe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?yesWhat was your primary form of communication with Starfish?Email or Messaging AppWhat did you find most impressive or unique about this company?they are good enough and they had excellent communication skillsAre there any areas for improvement or something Starfish could have done differently?They are good in 3d design --- #### Graphic Design for IT Firm **The Project** - Services: Graphic Design, Other Design - Project size: Less than $10,000 - Project length: Oct. 2021 - Ongoing **Project Summary**: Starfish has been hired by an IT Firm for graphic design services. They are tasked with creating professional designs that meet the requirements for the software they are developing for their customers. **Review Rating**: 4.5 - Quality: 5.0 - Schedule: 5.0 - Cost: 4.0 - Willing to Refer: 4.5 **The Reviewer** Software Developer, IT Firm - Industry: Other industries - Client size: 11-50 Employees - Review Type: Online Review **The Review** — Jun 2, 2022 **Feedback Summary**: Starfish has developed exceptional graphics, and the client's customers are satisfied with the outcome. The client has also profited enough from the team's designs, which ensures a progressive partnership. Their design are of good quality, and the client is extremely pleased with their services. ""The graphic designs developed by our partner are so good."" **BACKGROUND** Briefly describe what your company does and your role there. I am a software developer engineer and I developed the various software with my development team. **OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE** What were your company's goals when you started looking for a partner?Our goals were to design the graphics for the software we developed for our customers. The design should be professional and also meet all the requirements. **SOLUTION** Describe the scope of your partner's work with your company. Please include a summary of any key tasks or deliverables.Our partner is a reputed company and has a lot of good partners. Each member of their design team is a professional in their work so there is no compromise in quality So the scope is Awesome.How many people does your company work with?6 - 10 peopleHow did you find this provider?ReferralWhy did you choose to work with them?Positive reviews and ratingsGreat culture fitGood value for costReferred by a trusted sourceCompany values aligned **RESULTS & FEEDBACK** What are the results or deliverables of this partnership that demonstrate progress or success?The graphic designs developed by our partner are so good and our clients happy with it and the profit is also quite enough so there is a progressive partnership between us.How does your team communicate with this service provider?Virtual MeetingsEmail or Messaging AppProject Management PlatformAre there any areas for improvement or something this service provider could have done differently?The punctuality and don't compromise with quality attitude of our partner is praiseworthy. --- ## Portfolio & Awards ### nexxen  From 2019 to 2022, Tremor Video, a global player in the CTV category, evolved into Tremor International through the strategic acquisitions of Unruly and Amobee to achieve its mission to build a data-driven, end-to-end platform that unified the buy and sell sides of video advertising. The transformation unlocked greater scale, efficiency, and value across CTV and all video devices. By 2023, however, the company operated under one parent and four subsidiary brands, creating fragmentation, poor identity, sales confusion, mixed messaging, and a broken brand architecture. Starfish was engaged to streamline the business into a single, holistic brand—nexxen—brought to life with a new name, logo, and identity. The rebrand elevated the company’s stature as a global leader in video, data, and CTV advertising. ### PwC Starfish was engaged to help PwC Tax reimagine their vision and what it means to be a modern day tax firm. The firm has arguably the most sophisticated technology in the industry, which not only changed the way they approach tax consulting, but also how they themselves approach their profession and clients.     ### Weight Watchers Upon engaging Starfish, Weight Watchers was losing market share to free apps and was seeing a sharp decline in membership. Our brand experience research revealed people’s experience was best defined as “your mother’s diet brand." In response to the market conditions, a new, holistic program called "Beyond The Scale" was developed. Starfish worked to architect a unified brand experience that delivered on the holistic nature of the new BTS program. It was recognized that a wholesale shift in culture was a prerequisite in order to successfully deliver this new consumer experience. Thus, Starfish designed a completely integrated brand experience for WW by conducting a member segmentation study, developing journey maps, creating optimization programs for three key segments, forming a cultural alignment program, and defining Weight Watcher's desired brand experience as: “A healthier, more confident version of myself.” https://www.weightwatchers.com/us/m/cms/article/introducing-beyond-scale ### Dunkin Donuts Dunkin’ was never just about donuts. Its legendary coffee was part of a power couple that dominated QSR. But with a long-running campaign focused on donuts, Dunkin’ was eclipsing its core coffee business, giving brand diehards a reason to get their caffeine fix elsewhere.  Starfish was engaged by Dunkin Donuts to assist with a transition of the organization from a donut shop back to a coffee company.  The initiatives employed surrounded cultural, product and services and a host of environmental elements.  Starfish facilitated and guided a successful rollout of a multi-faceted “America Runs on Dunkin” coffee-centric brand experience program.     ### Gallup Gallup, the world’s foremost expert in studying the human condition, needed a new approach in communicating that it is more than a polling organization, but rather a leading human capital consulting firm.Starfish reframed the market’s understanding of the Gallup master brand from service-focused, to outcome-focused through a new brand strategy that included a new identity, manifesto video, creative asset production, and media planning. ### Avis Budget Group A driving force behind the success of the AVIS brand was its legendary “We Try Harder” ad campaign. But the awareness of the brand’s relentless spirit for serving its customers continuously faded when it stopped running the advertising. In a highly competitive and heavy ad spend category, a marquis brand had lost its distinct positioning.   The challenge? Restore the AVIS brand and its key point of differentiation by demonstrating its core attribute of “trying harder.” Our team delivered a complete rebrand, with a new strategy, identity, messaging and web development; Red Stops At Nothing; a campaign fueled by the brand's legendary commitment to customer service. ### Lowenstein Sandler, LLP When Starfish began working with Lowenstein Sandler in 2015, the firm needed to position the brand in a way that was true to who they were as a firm and differentiate themselves within the national legal.  In the discovery phase, we identified the concept of “intense devotion” that carries across everything Lowenstein Sandler does. This idea provided the core that we built the brand strategy around. From there we went into an identity refresh, introducing a visual mark to the Lowenstein Sandler logo for the first time. From there we built a full identity system that reinforced the brand characteristics and guided our web creative development. We also brought this identity to life across collateral including emails, ads, one pagers, deal sheets, PowerPoint presentations, and event signage. ### Educational Records Bureau (ERB) ERB had been providing admission and achievement assessments to Independent Schools around the world for over 90 years but was losing share to competitors and was looking to increase their presence and relevance among existing and new target segments. Starfish uncovered that ERB was the only organization in their industry to offer services across admissions, achievement, and social-emotional learning. The solution was repositioning ERB to communicate they are a trusted advisor that provides a dynamic system of academic assessments, data analysis, and actionable insights vs. just being a test publisher and administrator.   ### Maison Kayser Starfish was engaged to create a U.S. strategy, new packaging, a U.S. website, and marketing collateral for Maison Kayser to help tell their story on this side of the pond. We brought Maison Kayser’s brand to life visually by marrying the existing brand assets with, contemporary design elements, evocative pops of color, and stunning product photography. We developed packaging suites for both everyday and holiday occasions, a new online experience, and marketing and promotional collateral. ### Hearts & Science Hearts & Science is a major media agency that uses data to intelligently create and nurture relationships between brands and individuals. However, as the agency was forming, they struggled to articulate this positioning and bring it to life. Working closely with the client, Starfish helped define the agency as “pioneering the future of media.” As they continued their rapid growth, Starfish brought the brand to life through a bold new identity that leveraged the brand’s name with a striking color palette, creative multimedia graphic approach, and dynamic application in their new office space.  ### Leaf Vodka Ukraine’s #1 liquor company, Global Spirits, had immense success with its Moroshka brand of vodka whose main point of difference is that it is made with nature’s purest ingredients and water from the Carpathian Mountains.  Intent on leveraging its learning and success in the U.S., the company developed LEAF and wanted to position it as “Organic Vodka.” However, the U.S. vodka market consists of hundreds of brands, not to mention the thousands that have failed along the way.  The challenge? With an identity as thin as water and no celebrity endorsement, we were tasked with creating a brand from scratch. The inspiration behind the brand: water. We leaned into the idea that water is the spirit of life and therefore the spirit of vodka and that the makers of LEAF search the globe for the world’s purest water, enabling them to make the cleanest-tasting vodka.  ### ADL Hate has no place here. And yet, it does. Out in the open, in social media, in politics, in communities and in protest. Out from the underground, public hate was making a resurgence. ADL (formerly the Anti-Defamation League) was embarking on a new era and came to Starfish with one defining need: to become a 21st century civil rights organization.   Initial resarch showed that many people did NOT know the broad scope of what ADL did. Even fewer knew that ADL fights all forms of hatred and bigotry, or that it uses a number of innovative programs to do so.   Galvanized by the tagline "Fighting Hate For Good" we helped them articulate a clear, unifying idea for thier entire brand, revamped thier visual identity system, and communicate thier transformation both internally and externally, ultimatley redefining thier legacy for the next generation.  ### Women's Prison Association (WPA) Branding for Women's Prison Association. ### AST Transform a highly fragmented brand with 26 different sub-brands into a singularly focused brand.   ### LiveOn NY Branding for LiveOn NY. ### Hisense Branding for Hisense. ### Samsung Branding for Samsung. ### DBLTKE A highly successful consignment retailer that needed to refocus their brand around the idea of sustainably luxury. ### NYC Advertising for NYC. ### ComfortEX Branding for ComfortEX. ### 24Hr Fitness Branding for 24Hr Fitness.   ### Atlas Air Branding for Atlas Air. ### Vornado Branding for Vornado. ### Seagram Branding for Seagram. ### Sharp Advertising for Sharp Electronics. ### Optum Branding for Optum. ### Swish Branding for Swish. ### 505 fifth Branding for 505 fifth. ### 100 West Branding for 100 West. ### Industry Recognitions - B2B Marketing Award - Purolator - Best Creative Development: New Brand - 10 Bryant - Best Creative Strategy (Consumer) – Orolay - Best Rebrand of a Digital Property–Cosette/Vyleesi - Best Creative Strategy (Business) – 10 Bryant - Best Corporate Rebrand: Nexxen - Best Visual Identity: Healthcare -Cosette/Vyleesi - Young Contender of the Year - Best Visual Identity (Transport & Logsistics) - Best Brand Consolidation - Best Brand Evolution - 2012 Rebrand 100 Global Award - Hu-Friedy - 2018 Rebrand 100 Global Award - AST - 2019 Transform Awards - Best Visual Identity - 2019 Transform Awards - Best Brand Architecture - List of the top New York City Web Designers - Top Employer Branding Services Provider 2022 - Best Digital Marketing Agencies in New York - Top 27 Best Branding Agencies of New York City - Gold Effie - Smirnoff Vodka - Art Directors Club PwC - Cannes Gold Lion - Sony Electronics - Gold Effie - Sony Electronics - One Show Gold - Best Brand Campaign ## Key Clients - PwC ## Packages ## About the Team ### Our Story We are Starfish, an independent NYC full‑service branding and creative communications team. Rooted in the belief that the Brand Experience IS the brand, our multidisciplinary experts blend strategy, design and advertising to craft immersive brand systems across digital, physical and traditional touchpoints. Using our proprietary ACNA.AI Model—honed across hundreds of brands—we’ve driven impactful identities and campaigns for clients from startups to global firms. ### Quick Facts - 43 Verified Clutch Clients - 24 years in business ### Tools and Technology - FigJam - SurveyMonkey - Slack - Microsoft Teams - Zoom - Google Meet - ClickUp - Google Drive - Gusto - Fireflies.ai - Google Docs - Google Sheets ## Verification Clutch verification provides an additional layer of data to help you make the right purchasing decision of business services. - Verified Client Reviews: 44 - Overall Review Rating: 4.9 Last Updated: 2026-07-19T04:16:20Z ### Business Entity - Business Entity Name: Starfish, LLC - Source: New York Secretary of State - Jurisdiction of Formation: New York - Date of Formation: December 19, 2002 - Status: Active - Last Updated: November 19, 2025 - ID: 2847588 ### Credit Report Results - International Credit Risk Assessment: Very Low Risk - Source: Creditsafe - Last Updated: November 19, 2025 ## Locations (3) ### New York, NY (Headquarters) - 138 W25th Street, Floor 7 - New York, NY 10001 - United States - 41 - 49 employees - Phone: 9737478542 ### Boca Raton, FL - 324 Northeast 7th Street - Boca Raton, FL 33432 - United States - 2 - 5 employees - Phone: 9176230897 ### Paris, France - 17 Rue Saint-Fiacre - Paris 75009 - France - 2 - 5 employees - Phone: 9176230897 ## Connections - Shalaka Teli (Gadre Infotech Pvt. Ltd.) ## Contact Starfish [Send a message](https://clutch.co/profile/starfish) ### Connect on Social - [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/starfish-brand-experience-design/) - [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/starfish.nyc/)