Substance Strategy & Creative

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

 I am the Creative Director of a financial services company 

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We provide technology, resources, and services to our financial professionals.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Substance Strategy & Creative to accomplish?

• Improve our brand recognition in the market
• Translate our new organizational values into actionable brand-experiences across the firm
• Gathering critical ground-level insights to inform our internal decision making

SOLUTION

How did you find Substance Strategy & Creative?

Referral

Why did you select Substance Strategy & Creative over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Substance Strategy & Creative were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

• Brand Strategy & Messaging: Comprehensive narrative architecture and copy for Moments branding and major enterprise messaging priorities.
• Values Rollout Strategy: Strategic activation framework and touchpoint planning to bring organizational values to life.
• Stakeholder Research: Design and facilitation of advisor roundtables, including detailed synthesis and strategic takeaway reporting.
• Creative Bandwidth Extension: High-fidelity print and digital design deliverables, campaign collateral, and quick-turn production support.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• Zero Production Bottlenecks: Maintained 100% on-time delivery across major enterprise milestones by providing high-fidelity creative bandwidth when internal team capacity was fully allocated.
• Accelerated Executive & Stakeholder Alignment: Successfully facilitated advisor roundtables and stakeholder sessions, turning qualitative feedback into actionable messaging frameworks that streamlined leadership sign-off for campaign rollouts.
• Brand Consistency Across Touchpoints: Achieved seamless visual and narrative alignment across major initiatives like Moments and our firmwide values activation, establishing a unified brand presence across both digital and physical touchpoints.
• Brand Recognition & Perception: Advisors are noticing, but lift metrics are pending a measurement later this year.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Substance’s project management was exceptional and delightfully proactive. Their team were always steps ahead of us—consistently initiating check-ins, tracking milestones, and ensuring every deadline was clearly mapped out well in advance. They delivered 100% on time, often turning work around ahead of schedule. They are one of the most reliable external partners we’ve worked with and why we continue to work with them.

What was your primary form of communication with Substance Strategy & Creative?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Their ability to adapt to any situation including pushed up timelines or a cut in budget was truly impressive.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Substance Strategy & Creative could have done differently?

None. They have been amazing and we will continue to partner with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing director of a leading Canadian bank offering a wide range of financial products and services, including personal and business banking, to help clients achieve their financial goals with innovative tools and dedicated support.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Substance Strategy & Creative?

We needed to enhance our marketing reach and brand better in the private wealth space.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Substance Strategy & Creative has worked on messaging our brand. They’ve worked on our proposal to tell our story in a more concise manner. The team has delivered written messaging documents and presentation materials.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 2–5 teammates from Substance Strategy & Creative.

How did you come to work with Substance Strategy & Creative?

Someone referred Substance Strategy & Creative to me. I chose them over other options because they had high ratings, a great culture fit, and aligned company values.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Substance Strategy & Creative in March 2026, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Substance Strategy & Creative has helped align our team to tell one story. Before using Substance Strategy & Creative, our messaging was fragmented. Now, everyone is on the same page. Our clients and external partners have agreed that our messaging is concise, clear, and truly tells our story and value proposition.

How did Substance Strategy & Creative perform from a project management standpoint?

Substance Strategy & Creative's project management has been outstanding. The team is very attentive, listens, and delivers everything ahead of schedule. We communicate with them through in-person and virtual meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Substance Strategy & Creative understands our space, so we don't have to educate them. The team has brought industry ideas to the table that we were unaware of.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Substance Strategy & Creative has done everything well.