Change is inevitable. It happens everywhere and to everyone. We’re predisposed to resist it, but everything’s survival has been dependent on the ability to respond effectively to change. This “law of change” holds true not only in the natural world but in the world of business and marketing as well.
Marketing is “change” at its core.
Marketing’s primary goal is to change consumer behavior. But the industry itself has changed too. The marketer’s toolbox is evolving and changing faster than ever before with techniques such as telemarketing, direct mail, and print ads giving way to digital tactics like web development, email marketing, real-time video streaming, and virtual-reality experiences.
All of this “change” talk made us think.
Our 55-year-old privately owned marketing agency has been competing with 120,000+ advertising agencies, project by project, and thriving in a rapidly changing industry. How have we done it? We decided to take a moment to step back from all of the work and take a close look at ourselves, our processes, our philosophy…and everything else in between. We needed to apply our own strategic thinking to our brand, which has been quickly evolving, to determine what truly made us stand out from the rest. And more importantly, could we better showcase those differences to the world?
“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
This proverb is a potentially dangerous approach to business and could “lull you to sleep” if you let it. Conversely, there is a bit of wisdom in it. While taking an introspective look at the agency, we unearthed a few things that we knew we didn’t want to change. Core philosophies such as “always giving extra effort,” “continually proactive,” “persistently client-centric,” and “consistently delivering quality.” These were traits that we knew were foundational to our business. But there is always room for improvement.
Turning negatives into positives.
We recognized the importance of not only repositioning ourselves to the world, but committing to real change internally. Our new found focus is noticeable. What were once challenges are transforming into new opportunities. And our further commitment to learning and emerging technology not only guarantees our own continued success, but our clients’ as well.
In simplicity, you find clarity.
Through this repositioning process, we discovered a common theme at the core of our agency. Words like “consistently” exceeding expectations, “continually” insightful, “constantly” delivering and “routinely” engaging found their way into almost every description of what we do. Fortunately, there happens to be one word that embodies all of them. That word is “ALWAYS.”
“Always” is incredibly versatile. It can mean “consistent,” simultaneously giving the feeling of “perseverance.” “Always” is also “never-ending.” That in itself can be a powerful visual. And that’s how we decided to position ourselves. Our positioning statement:
ALWAYS ICONIC
There is a great deal more to a brand than a logo. But we knew that if we could successfully visualize the notion of “ALWAYS MORE” in something as simple as a logo, we had something special.
We started with the idea of “always.” We then added some “agency” and “marketing support.”
In the early years, our agency was called “Marketing Support, Inc.” Later we evolved into the abbreviation “MSI”. So we wanted to be sure to include “where we came from” in the final logo.
But most importantly, we achieved the visualization of the infinite “always more” agency brand positioning.
ALWAYS PASSIONATE
It’s easy to be passionate when you love what you do. As excited as we are about our brand identity, we are equally delighted in what the future holds. Our new brand positioning combined with the talent and energy of our Motion team should continue to deliver smart, innovative, and effective marketing solutions for our clients for many years to come.
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