Motto®

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder and CEO of Southbound Tequila. I will focus on representing our product and overseeing the organizational structure.

For what projects/services did your company hire Motto®, and what were your goals?

As a start up company we hired Motto to take us through brand discovery, brand strategy, visual identity, logo and packaging design, and sales deck design.

How did you select this vendor?

We found 3 companies through a third party service. After several in depth interviews, Motto was the clear choice for us. The level of expertise for the scope of work, efficient project management/communication, and price point were a few top drivers for our choice.

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

To start, we were introduced to all team members and their respective roles on our project. They created a very streamlined path for communication from the start and walked our company through organized workshops to navigate brand discovery.

They created vision boards and options to help piece together our preferences for brand feel and look. Once we gave them our preferred direction, they began logo design, bottle label design, packaging, continued photography direction and eventually presented us with all final deliverables.

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

I worked directly with their amazing project manager. The lead designers and the two founders were always available and a significant part of the continued project direction and success.

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

While our product has not yet officially launched in the marketplace, the consumer and investor feedback has been beyond incredible. We have had a couple of media teasers and they first thing they mention after tasting the incredible tequila is how gorgeous the packaging and bottle design looks.

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

Motto has an incredibly tightly formed organizational structure which kicks off the experience positively right from the start. They use an app to streamline all communication and deadlines. It helped us as a team know what was happening at all times and stay on task to complete our goals.

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

I loved the flexibility within Motto that is inevitable with creativity. The founders, designers, and all involved really took time to listen if we wanted changes and always had innovative ideas to keep in the right direction for us. They helped us find our unique voice in the branding process and understood how to walk us through it to get to it. The team was a pleasure to work with.

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

They are a global company which is amazing. Our talented designer was based in the UK. Sometimes time zones for calls would be tricky but they remained very flexible and it always worked out well.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of Hopscotch, an all-in-one B2B payment platform. We’re essentially Venmo for businesses. Thousands of freelancers and small businesses use our platform to manage their invoicing needs in bulk. Everything is automated, and transactions are free and happen in real time. 

On top of that, we integrate with QuickBooks, so everything is automatically reconciled back and forth. One of our biggest differentiators is Hopscotch Flow, which enables businesses to unlock funds tied up in invoices for a small fee. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Motto®? 

After coming out of stealth with new funding, we engaged Motto® — we believed that the best way to sell a business or company wasn’t to sell at all. Rather, the brand should tell stories about what we were building and how people could use it. It was important for us to create an identity we could move around; our goal was to create a strong recognizable brand identity and a powerful brand strategy. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had a two-step engagement with Motto®. They spent about one month and a half digging deep into who we were as people and understanding our personal ethos. The team worked on understanding the reason behind the company, the product we were building, and the pain points we were solving.

Once they had a good understanding of everything that we were doing, they started building our brand strategy and identity. Their members did everything for us, setting the foundation for our company. They created our name, logo, color palette, website, and all other elements. 

For our name and logo, they took everything we were saying about the brand, including how we wanted it to feel and sound. They then came back to us with a list of potential names. We worked through those names to determine the top choice. Once we completed that, the Motto® team proposed a handful of logos and styles. In other words, they turned everything we were saying into a brand. 

Meanwhile, the website was created using WordPress. They outsourced its development and didn’t offer hosting services. However, they provided a 30-day maintenance period where they fixed any issues that arose. 

What is the team composition?

We worked with a handful of people, including Sunny (Co-Founder & Chief Visionary Officer) and Ashleigh (Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer). Rachel (Strategist & Facilitator) and another person served as account managers that helped with scheduling and facilitating calls. Finally, we worked with Lauren (Creative Producer) on the designs. 

How did you come to work with Motto®?

I found Motto® through Clutch. Apart from that, we asked around among our friends in the industry for recommendations. Their company came up multiple times, leading us to reach out to them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $100,000–$250,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from June 2021–April 2022. 

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

We won a handful of awards, and we consistently received positive comments about our brand. Overall, Motto® created a truly recognizable brand identity for us.  

How did Motto® perform from a project management standpoint?

They delivered everything on time. They were happy to support us if anything came up. If the issue wasn’t in our scope of work, they made a change request. If it was scoped out, they were happy to get it done. We communicated through Basecamp, Zoom, and email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their strategic minds were impressive. Creating a brand with them was so much more than colors and shapes. There had to be a reason behind our choices, and Motto®  was good at tying our business goals with our identity through brand strategy. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there weren’t any. If they had to improve anything, we had open dialogues about it. This was one of the best things about working with them on this project. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take advantage of their ideas around brand strategy. Motto® is one of the best businesses in the world in what they do. Given that, you should ensure that you have a good grasp of what they’re saying about how you should approach your branding strategy. 

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Practice Leader for Culture and Inclusion at Kadabra, and principal consultant there. 

For what projects/services did your company hire Motto?

Re-branding and re-naming the company after my company merged with one of our partners, SJ Leadership Coach.

What were your goals for this project?

Crystalize the brand and new company for greater internal cohesion, unity and focus. Clarify who we are and what makes us unique in order to attract more ideal clients, grow visibility, and influence audience perception in a positive way.

How did you select Motto?

My partner and I both read their book, Rare Breed and knew that they would totally get us and what we were trying to accomplish.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

*Brand identification *Ideal client avatar *New name for the combined company *Visual collateral (typography, iconography, logo, color palette) They used a combination of 1:1 interviews, immersive group workshops, and independent research to understand the industry, our place in it, and what was possible for us.

What was the team composition?

We worked with the two co-founders, Ashleigh and Sunny, and their team of professionals who helped with brand identity, copy, and visual elements. They also had a coordinator who kept us up to date on where they were in the project each week. Team members rotated in and out of meetings based on what we were working on.

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

We are THRILLED with the new name, the logo, and all the visual collateral. We're currently in the process of redesigning the website to showcase all this goodness. The team at Motto far exceeded our expectations. Early indications are that clients love the new identity!

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They were extremely effective in managing the project. They used Basecamp, so we always knew where we were, what was next, and anything we needed to deliver to them. They were very open to feedback.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They were professional and personable. They have a strong creative point of view, yet they gave us plenty of room to explore what felt aligned. We felt like they were true partners in this experience; while they clearly have a ton of expertise, we never felt like they shoved it at us.

They pushed us to allow our true selves to show through in the branding-- no wallflowers here! They also did a great job of delivering everything virtually.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, this was an A+ experience for our team.

Please describe your company and your position there.

MAXX-D Trailers is a family-owned trailer manufacturing company based in Texas. It is a nationally recognized brand, sold in nearly every state in the US. My name is Johnathan Harms, and I am an owner in the company and the social-media and marketing director at MAXX-D.

For what projects/services did your company hire Motto?

We needed help doing a brand refresh, but it became a little more like a full re-brand by the time we were done.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted an updated, more modern logo that was more legible and recognizable on our product, along with an updated design for a coherent brand look and feel. We also wanted to clarify the messaging to make the brand more uniform and communicate our vision and values clearly.

How did you select this vendor?

We searched for and interacted with several different branding agencies. Some of the companies seemed a bit unapproachable, and for the most part we failed to make a good connection with any of them until we ran across Motto. The fact that Motto had a Dallas location really drew us in and made us feel more comfortable with them, even though we worked with the NYC team. We were initially, prior to the COVID situation, wanting to meet in person at least once, and we felt that finding a Dallas-based company would make that more possible.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

Motto did a full-service re-brand for us, starting with a very thorough brand discovery phase that really helped us understand who we are as a company and clarified where we want to go in the future. In the Brand Messaging Phase, Motto took who we already are as a company, and articulated it clearly and effectively. They helped us determine who our audience is, and focused us in on serving them well. Motto also designed a new logo and other key branding assets for our brand, along with a complete brand guideline. They also provided us with guidance on how to launch our re-brand, which was very helpful.

What was the team composition?

While Ashleigh headed up the project, there were an additional 5 people as part of the team: Gabriela handled scheduling. Luis helped with presentations and helped kick the project off, but we did not hear much from him later on. Allyson was the messaging expert and copywriter,. Hsiao was in charge of design, the size of the team stayed relatively constant throughout the project. Sunny initiated contact with us in the beginning, in a sales role, and was in more of a behind-the-scenes throughout the rest of the project.

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

Unfortunately we are only launching our re-brand in July, so we do not have definitive results in the marketplace yet, but one positive outcome has already been achieved: Our logo is much more visible on our products, and much more legible as well. This was very important to us.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Their workflow was very efficient, easy-going, pleasant, and smooth. We were able to discuss things openly and honestly, and overall there was a mutual attitude of respect all throughout the process. Team Motto was on time, did what they said they would do, and they were able to steer us in the direction they thought we needed to go in an agreeable but direct way.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Two things stand out: 1. Motto was able to identify who we really are as a company and help us own it, and a big part of that was the in-depth 'Brand Discovery Workbook' they had us go through in the beginning of the project. They skillfully used the material they had to work with and brought out the unique stuff that makes us who we are. No fluff and hoopla, just authenticity. 2. Secondly, their thoroughness and on-time delivery. We had to deal with a pandemic, which was centered in NYC, where Motto is headquartered, and government shutdowns and regulations, during our project. In spite of all of this, Motto kept their word and did what they said they would do. Bravo, and hats off to them for their heroic effort. Another thing that we appreciated was that although they provided us with opportunities to invest further in our marketing with them, they did not let the project grow out of its scope. They kept things in check and did what we wanted them to do. Some marketing and design companies (NOT MOTTO) we have worked with in the past have given us a cost up front, and then let the project grow and grow and get out of hand, costing us much more than we had anticipated.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Keep doing what you're doing Team Motto!

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the co-founder and CEO of MyLooie, an e-commerce subscription-based pet services company located in Dallas, Texas.

What challenge were you trying to address with Motto?

We engaged Motto for branding services for everything from our company name to a logo and overall messaging.

What was the scope of their involvement?

After providing Motto's team with as much information about our company as possible, they helped us develop a name, logo, style guide, and various pieces of messaging (i.e., taglines, headlines, imagery, promotional work).

What is the team composition?

We worked with about five people on their team, including a project coordinator.

How did you come to work with Motto?

We found them through an online search and were very impressed by their portfolio and depth or work. We also liked their team right away and thought they'd be fun to work with.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested about $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2018 and just wrapped up the work a couple weeks ago (in September).

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

We haven't yet launched, but everyone who's seen our new branding materials thus far is very impressed. The deliverables Motto provided are extremely valuable to our team and easily transferable to other realms of our business.

How did Motto perform from a project management standpoint?

They were very organized, consistent, and professional throughout the engagement.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team is full of young, proactive individuals with old souls. It feels as if they've been doing this type of work for decades; they're experts in branding, yet not pushy about their own opinions.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the vice president at Chance, a sporting ball company. We sell basketballs, footballs, soccer balls, and volleyballs that are trendy and stylish. Our products use vibrant colors, prints, and styles so that customers can express themselves more when they’re on the field.

What challenge were you trying to address with Motto?

We launched in early February with just a templated theme from Shopify. We wanted to solidify our brand and knew what we wanted to say, but we weren’t sure how to say it or who we should be saying it to. So, we started looking for a partner to help with our brand deck.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Motto immediately went through several rounds of phone calls and questionnaires to get to know our brand and determine what we wanted. They also conducted competitor research to better understand the market. They then presented the results and told us what they thought would work best. At the end of the engagement, they provided a detailed brand deck that went over the Chance brand, our tone, and our target audience.

What is the team composition?

We had a project manager and a few other team members to help craft our deck.

How did you come to work with Motto?

I found them by researching different agencies online. They stuck out because of the work they’d already done and their own story. I watched some videos on their website and felt they’d be a great fit. I talked to a few other companies, but we best gelled with Motto. They understood what we wanted and how to address our concerns.

How much have you invested with them?

In total, we spent about $12,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from February–March 2018.

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

We don’t have any quantitative metrics, but the brand deck has been a great guide when we’ve needed to make difficult decisions. Before, we didn’t have a clear direction, but now it’s easy to make those decisions.

How did Motto perform from a project management standpoint?

They were on top of everything and provided Gantt charts to lay out exactly when things would be delivered. They responded quickly, and we had no issues with them. We also used Basecamp to track progress.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They put in a lot of effort for every project, which shows how much they care. You can tell they’ve thought about their solutions instead of just providing a last-minute fix.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm Chief Operating Officer of KEETSA Inc. We sell mattresses online and in stores for retail and wholesale.

What challenge were you trying to address with Motto?

We needed to rebrand ourselves in order to stay fresh and interesting. The mattress market is constantly changing with new companies appearing every day, so we needed a way to capture customer attention. We wanted to do this while maintaining the core company values we’ve built over the last 10 years.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Motto thoroughly interviewed our employees, customers, and partners to better understand our company. Afterwards, they brainstormed and brought us ideas for our rebranding strategy. From there, they delivered a new logo, brand strategy, personality, and company story. We’re currently working on a new website and product images.

What is the team composition?

I work with 5 people mainly, including both founders, a designer, a project manager, and another professional who researches the company and organizes the brand strategy ideas.

How did you come to work with Motto?

I did research online and found several marketing companies that had past work similar to what we wanted. I reached out to them, and Motto was the most thorough and prompt in communicating with us. I even spoke to their founder, which helped me understand how they work and made me confident that they would deliver.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve spent around $150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2017, and the work is ongoing. The new brand identity was completed in February, but we’re still working on the new website and product photography, which should be completed in the next 5–7 months.

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

Motto understood our specific requirements for rebranding the company and delivered beautifully. The new logo is young and bold, which is just what we asked for. They helped us reach a wider and younger audience, which is awesome. We’re happy to be working with them.

How did Motto perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re thorough and detail oriented. When we initially started the project, they planned a specific timeline, and we stuck to it, even with all the revisions and changes.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re an amazing team of highly professional people who are sincere and easy to work with. We foresee having a long-term relationship with them for future marketing projects and campaigns. We work so closely together that it feels like they’ve become our own internal marketing team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. We're thoroughly happy.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We're a mattress manufacturer that sells direct to the public nationwide. I served as chief marketing officer when we first hired Motto.

What challenge were you trying to address with Motto?

Having been around since 1931, we wanted to update our branding to connect with modern customers, especially in this new digital environment.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started with a discovery phase. Motto talked to several people within our organization to get an idea of our company, and also analyzed our existing marketing strategies. From here, they developed several excellent branding options for us to choose from.

Once a decision was made, they helped with everything from frontend website design to the look of our products. The process took several months, but they completely overhauled our customer experience and essentially built our brand identity from scratch.

We kept adding things to our initial scope as Motto taught us about branding. We found that many of the suggestions they had made upfront were the right choice, after all, so we happily expanded the project.

What is the team composition?

Sunny [Bonnell, CEO, Motto] is our main point of contact, though we’ve also spoken with Ashleigh [Hansberger, Co-founder, Motto] on occasion.

How did you come to work with Motto?

I found a number of companies through an Internet search, but none of them seemed to understand our goals. They tried to apply formulaic solutions based on the strategies of our competitors. Motto, on the other hand, understood that we needed our own unique identity. They wanted to do something fresh with our company to set us apart in the industry.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent at least six figures.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2015 and our relationship is ongoing. While we completed our initial stage at the end of 2015, the project is always evolving.

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

Our sales doubled within two months of launching our new brand identity.

How did Motto perform from a project management standpoint?

They're a well-oiled machine. They hit every deadline and kept the project organized through project management software. Our discussions are documented to ensure we’re all on the same page.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I appreciate that they didn’t try to apply generic, boilerplate solutions. Instead of tweaking the branding of our competitors, they took us in an entirely different direction to help set us apart. This scared us at first, but we trusted them – and it worked!

They also value their clients. Even though we currently hire them for smaller projects, they pay us the same attention as when they worked on our initial, large-scale venture.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing comes to mind.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a small business startup called Salt of the Earth and I am the founder. We sell primarily men's goods that are made in the USA and are natural, absolute essentials of what we carry with us each day. I handle all of our day-to-day operations.

What challenge were you trying to address with Motto?

We understood the importance of having cohesiveness and a common voice in our market, especially when it comes to marketing. We approached Motto to help define our identity without having too many tangibles.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started by filling out questionnaires about who we are, what we're trying to do, and what our goals were. Motto wanted to understand the core of our company to make sure that they were a good fit for us.

We then had a series of open conversations to further define our strategy and funnel all of that information to one place. Once they had a pretty good concept of our company, they asked for a series of images of things that we like and don't like. They scoured through those photos and developed three themes we could work with. We selected one of the three.

The final deliverables we received from Motto were a number of assets for our brand mark, including the imagery, color themes, and specific typography. 

I worked primarily with the two co-founders: Sunny Bonnell and Ashleigh Hansberger.

How did you come to work with Motto?

This was our first engagement with a branding agency. We did a heavy search for providers for about six months, and received around three proposals. I did quite a bit of research and ultimately decided to go with Motto.

I could sense that they were more hungry, bold, outgoing, and brash as far as breaking the norms. Motto focuses on quality and truly understanding what is important and meaningful rather than some of the other companies that submitted proposals. You could sense that they had a more corporate environment.

How much have you invested with Motto?

We spent $15,500. The original budget was $15,000, so there was one minor change.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with Motto in April 2017 and the project is now complete.

How did Motto perform from a project management standpoint?

They were a real pleasure to work with. The Motto team was very professional, courteous, and helpful. They handled the project very well.

What did you find most impressive about Motto?

Motto has a passion for this kind of work. They are great at digging in and understanding our goals and visions. I'm even more pleased now than when I was when we first began working with them. As we continue to grow, I have no doubt that we will go back to them.

Are there any areas Motto could improve?

Not really - all in all, it was a great experience working with Motto and we're extremely pleased with our finished results.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a company that makes headphones. Our products customize sounds to the way that you hear.

What challenge were you trying to address with Motto?

We needed help with overhauling our brand as well as with website development.

What was the scope of their involvement?

It was a big branding project, involving a lot of design work. Motto created a manifesto for the company, a brand identity, logo, photoshoots, and collateral. The website was also a part of that.

How did you come to work with Motto?

Our CMO did a review for quite a number of companies. He was referred to Motto and had several calls with them. After talking to them, we were pretty sure that this was the right company for us.

How much have you invested with Motto?

We’ve spent more than $100,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started November 1, 2016. A big chunk of branding work has already been completed. The website is still undergoing some work, so we will probably continue collaborating with them in the future.

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I think Motto’s work was exceptional and outstanding. We’ve been getting amazing feedback from stakeholders, investors, and consumers about what we have been doing and what it’s done for us. We see a lot of very positive indications. There are more shares, likes, and engagement on the website. That’s because Motto enabled us to create content that people are interested in. Across the board, the reception is very positive.

How did Motto perform from a project management standpoint? 

Sunny and Ashleigh are a very inspiring leadership team to work with. They make sure that the actual deliverables are done very well. It has been a great experience to work with them, particularly for executives in the company, because they took us on a voyage. It has resonated and not just on the specific stuff that we hired them for.

Are there any areas Motto could improve?

Not that I can think of. I was extremely pleased. They did what they said they would do when they said they would do it. They are very passionate, responsible, and creative people.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Motto?

Listen to what Sunny and Ashleigh tell you to do.