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Brand Strategy

Decide who you are, who you’re for and why you matter

What is Brand Strategy and why is it important?

Brand Strategy defines the choices that shape how you compete and how you’re remembered. Grounded in evidence, it brings together your ambition, positioning and narrative into a clear strategic framework. The result is clarity on who you are, how you create advantage in the minds of your audience and guides the ongoing growth of your brand.

What is Brand Strategy and why is it important?

Brand Strategy defines the choices that shape how you compete and how you’re remembered. Grounded in evidence, it brings together your ambition, positioning and narrative into a clear strategic framework. The result is clarity on who you are, how you create advantage in the minds of your audience and guides the ongoing growth of your brand.

The benefits of a Brand Strategy

  • Clear competitive positioning - define where and how you compete in relevant categories
  • Stronger recall at key moments - shape what audiences remember at the moments that matter
  • Strategic focus - make sharper decisions about what to prioritise, and what not to
  • Leadership alignment - a shared framework for confident, consistent decision-making
  • A foundation for distinctive execution - clear strategic direction for brand development and activation

Our approach:

For us, Brand Strategy is all about disciplined choice-making. Our approach combines leadership engagement, insight and competitive analysis to ensure your strategic brand decisions are grounded in solid evidence. 

Explore the steps we take below.

Step one

Talk — Clarifying direction and ambition

We’ll work with your senior leaders to understand your organisation’s ambitions and strategic priorities, and the role your brand must play. This establishes clear criteria for success.

 

Step two

Dig — Understanding category, audiences and competition

We’ll explore perceptions, category dynamics and competitive positioning. This will show us where attention is won or lost, what your competitors are associated with, and what people recall when making choices. We’ll reveal the cues and messages that cut through and those that are being overlooked.

Step three

Define — Setting the brand strategy

Here’s where we bring our insight together into a clear strategic framework. Including positioning, category focus, brand architecture and narrative direction, this will define what your brand should stand for and what it needs to be remembered for.

Recent Brand Strategy projects:

Developing brand and long-term positioning in the market for the University of Liverpool

Liverpool was the first civic university to open its doors in 1881. But was this founding spirit of improving society – better health, education and economy in Liverpool – was still a motivator today?

We shaped an original brand that:

  • celebrated the University of Liverpool's heritage

  • looked into the future

  • uncovered the essence of a redbrick University.

“Your Brand isn't just a logo - it’s how people experience you every single day. And we give a damn about getting that right.”

 

Meet our Brand Strategy experts:

Aimee Kleinman

Aimee Kleinman

Aimee has more than 15 years’ marketing, communications and student recruitment experience in higher education, having previously worked for a number of universities, leading the development of UK and international recruitment strategies. As a Lead Marketing Consultant, her areas of expertise are brand positioning and international recruitment strategy.


Ed Layt

Ed Layt

Leading a team of 15 consultants and strategists, Ed has a deep understanding of both the challenges of the education marketplace as well as the realities of working within an institution. With over 18 years of education experience, he’s delivered marketing consultancy projects with more than 100 further and higher education institutions.

 

Vicky Conroy

Vicky Conroy

As Consultancy and Insight Lead, Vicky leads our team of 15 consultants and strategists with expertise in areas including marketing, brand, creative, market research and data science. As a Higher Education specialist, Vicky delivers and implements effective and innovative strategic solutions to overcome marketing and recruitment challenges for our university clients.


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