# Spine LLC > Admin Email: sdev@alignideas.com ## Posts ### Building Brand Credibility Through PR People are exposed to thousands of brand messages per day, from logos on clothing and coffee cups to music streaming and radio ads to targeted social media campaigns. In this cluttered space, with thousands of options to choose from—literally at your fingertips—how does your brand stand out in the crowd? Credibility. It’s true, that single word is a major factor in being selected by your prospects, growing your leads, increasing customer retention, and boosting profits. Credibility helps to influence people’s behaviors, actions, and way of thinking. People are more likely to want to do business with a brand that is transparent and trustworthy, with a positive reputation. PR initiatives can help your brand attain those desirable attributes and more. (PR is most effective when supported by strong branding and marketing programs, which is why SPINE provides services across all three disciplines.) So why should your company focus on credibility? Here’s an example: Many of our clients are service-based businesses, competing in extremely crowded marketplaces. Your company must stand out from the crowd to grow your business. If I’m a potential customer, I’m going to do my research before selecting a service provider. I may start by visiting your website and social media pages. Do you have them? Are they filled with current, innovative, and engaging content? Do you showcase the services you offer, the quality of your team, and the impact of your products? And are they presented jargon-free so that anyone seeking to do business can easily understand what you do? If the answer to all of those questions is yes, then I might look at reviews to see how previous customers have rated your business. Is this something you encourage customers to do? Are reviews available on your site or only through a web search? Are they favorable? And if some are not, what have you done to address them? Do you demonstrate that customer feedback is important to your company—and that even when things don’t go quite right, you fix them? Finally, I may look to see what your company is doing to support the local community, the environment, or the people you do business with. At a time when many consumers are seeking out responsible corporate citizens, it is more critical than ever to work toward a social responsibility goal. And if you are actively giving back—brag about it! This is something to be proud of! In a world with thousands of companies to choose from, a digital presence that highlights the impact and quality of your work—one that speaks to me, on my level, to explain what you do and show you care about more than profits—will most likely earn you my business. And the perception that a company creates with its public helps to establish credibility in the industry. So how can your brand build credibility? Create a social media footprint: There are more than 660 million users on LinkedIn and 2.5 billion users on Facebook each month. That’s a huge audience to get your brand in front of! Establishing your brand voice, building a strategic editorial calendar of what and when to post, tracking analytics to see the content your followers are most interested in, and sharing important information about your business and industry with your audience will help to create your company’s social media footprint and establish your brand as a credible source. Build brand awareness through the media: Forming strong relationships with journalists, pitching content to industry publications, and drafting press releases with critical updates on your company will help get the word out about your brand. Earning placements in reputable industry media outlets like trade publications, prominent podcasts, and association blogs will help you establish credibility among the people you do business with, and can help reach potential new audiences through additional exposure. Establish executives as thought leaders: Leverage the experience of your executive team to position them as thought leaders within their industry. Create a blog, serve as a key source for journalists, and pitch executives as keynote speakers and panelists at industry events. As your leadership team members become more trusted sources, your brand becomes more credible.   Looking to bolster your brand’s credibility through a proactive public relations strategy? Contact SPINE to start planning your customized approach. ### Observations on Financial Branding Asset managers typically focus on strength and stability when establishing their brand identity. And that makes sense—after all, they are charged with securing their clients’ financial futures and want investors to feel confident in their choice. But that desire to appear strong and steady can make it challenging for firms to stand out from the competition. With so many managers telling the same story, how can an investor know which one to choose? At the same time, straying too far from accepted norms in financial branding can diminish your credibility with your target market. Whether you’re launching a new brand or updating an existing one, it is important to understand those norms. Then you can make an informed decision on how much to adhere to or deviate from them. Below are some observations we would like to share, based on our extensive experience working with asset managers and other financial clients. These are some of the branding conventions we have seen in the industry; they are not necessarily strictures that must be followed, but rather commonalities that have emerged over the years. Color choices – A quick glance at the top financial services companies and you’ll see that many choose variations of blue for their website design and other branded materials, including 10 of the 20 largest global asset managers for 2018 as compiled by Investment & Pensions Europe. And there’s a good reason for that, since blue inspires trust and conveys dependability and strength. It’s also the most popular color among men (57%) and women (35%). (Type “blue” into Pantone’s ColorFinder and you’ll find 100 variations.) Images – Some common themes for images that financial firms use to establish a brand identity are nautical (bridges, lighthouses), structural (columns, city skylines), and environmental (mountains, plants, trees, sky)—implying concepts such as strength, direction, movement, growth, and health. This type of imagery is usually used as a secondary branding element, but may sometimes appear in the identity. Look at the logos above—see any common themes? Typefaces and fonts – Professional and financial services companies use serif typefaces such as Times New Roman, Garamond, and Franklin Gothic far more than sans serif fonts, since they are seen as more conservative, traditional, and formal. Physical manifestation – For asset managers, this primarily refers to the printed materials that provide a tactile representation of your brand identity. From cotton or linen paper complete with watermarks to thermography (raised type) and engraving, the heavier and higher quality the materials, the stronger the message of success and prestige. Everything from your print materials to your digital presence should work together to reinforce your distinctive brand identity, yet fit within acceptable parameters. That’s no easy task, given all the options and decisions. Make sure you work with a branding agency that understands the financial space and can push the limits in an acceptable manner without compromising your credibility. Whether you’re a startup seeking to build a brand or an established firm that needs a refresh, SPINE can help you through the process. Contact us now to start the conversation. ### Logos vs. Brands: What’s the Difference? Often we hear the terms “logo” and “brand” used interchangeably. However, as an agency focused on building brands, we believe the difference is significant—and important for companies of all kinds to understand. Let’s start with a little history. “Brand” is an old term derived from the Scandinavian word “brandr,” which means “to burn.” Thousands of years ago, our ancestors needed a way to label their possessions. They developed simple symbols and applied them to livestock—using hot irons—to quickly identify ownership. So in the beginning, logos and brands were in fact synonymous. Fast-forward to today’s competitive marketplace, where companies are constantly battling for customers. At their simplest level, logos continue to perform the same basic function of identification and differentiation. A more thoughtful logo may convey some unique aspect of the business, but still must be quick and easy to read (as opposed to an illustration, for example). Branding, on the other hand, has evolved into a more complex concept. A brand is not one thing. It is an assortment of images, messages, and experiences a customer has collected while engaged with a company or product. A logo is a single component of that—albeit an important one. It may be helpful to think of a company as a person; the logo is the face, while the brand represents the person in full—character, personality, etc. Logos vs. Brands: Real-World Examples A logo is typically the most recognizable visual representation of an entity. Picture Nike’s swoosh, Apple’s—well—apple, and so on. A brand doesn’t exist on paper—it exists in the mind of the target audience. It should be conveyed at every customer touchpoint, as bringing the brand promise to life is a shared responsibility organization-wide. That said, branding is not a one-way street. A critical part of your brand is the way it makes your customers feel about themselves. For example, is your brand a status symbol? A basis for social identification?   Branding: A Company-Wide Responsibility Brand building is an ongoing process that every company should focus on. However, it is not simply a marketing endeavor but instead involves every aspect of the customer experience—from visual presentation to personnel to price and beyond. This often requires companies to maintain brand guidelines that ensure team members across departments and facilities are acting in alignment. A distinctive and well-executed brand promise not only enables you to cut through the clutter. Ultimately it can help you increase revenue in a multitude of ways—including driving customer loyalty, supporting premium pricing, and paving the way for successful product line expansion. ### What’s in a Name? Think about the last time you introduced yourself. What were the first words out of your mouth? Chances are, it was your name. Companies are no different. The name is typically the first bit of information potential customers and business partners learn about you. As they attempt to understand what your company does and how it fits into the marketplace, your name serves many functions—both practical and subjective: “Naming is ‘one of the chief methods for imposing order on perception.’” — Stephen A. Tyler, Anthropologist1 Identifies a group of people working together toward a common goal Acts as a sorting device to differentiate your company Helps to shape perceptions and set expectations Provides insight into the personality and culture of the organization Ultimately, the name forms the cornerstone of your brand, informing the corporate identity and—in turn—the visual language. One of the challenges with naming is that a name can be anything. (When naming a rock band, it probably just needs to sound—ahem—“cool.” Your business, however, requires more gravitas.) To help bring some structure to the process, we have compiled a list of name categories to consider. This is not an exhaustive list, but provides a framework to aid your decision-making and ensure your name exploration is fairly thorough: Personal This approach is frequently seen in the legal and financial industries, where an individual's reputation and character are central to the service being provided. While names in this category can take several different forms, they most often contain the founder's name(s) or refer to an area of personal interest. That can include significant landmarks from their lives—birthplaces, schools, recreation spots, etc. We have even seen children’s initials used to form acronyms. Descriptive In this approach, otherwise unremarkable words are paired to provide a straightforward description of a business. These names are not necessarily “catchy,” but make up for that in other ways. For example, in a new or poorly understood industry, a descriptive name can help a company convey legitimacy and quickly explain what it does. Companies in service industries might take this route to communicate honesty and foster trust. One challenge is that the more straightforward the name, the more likely it is already being used—and the tougher it may be to secure legal approval. Aspirational Aspirational names are more abstract—and often quite unique. Rather than providing concrete descriptions, they are designed to convey positive attributes such as innovation or leadership. This approach may use whole words, fragments, and even other languages—alive or dead. (For example, Latin is always a rich source of classical-sounding names.) This approach works best in industries that are established and well understood. Because these names are uncommon—if not completely made-up—they may have a better chance of passing legal muster. Struggling to find the right name for your company? Contact SPINE for help developing a name that will set up your startup for success. 1 Via Michael C. Shapiro & Harold F. Schiffman, “Language and Society in South Asia” ### How to Communicate Through Change Change occurs constantly in the business world. Another constant: Change creates uncertainty, which is always unsettling for people. Your stakeholders—both internal and external—are no exception. Investors in particular can be deeply unnerved by change, because their money is quite literally at stake. How you communicate through periods of transition is critical, and the risks of mishandling them are considerable. Change that becomes too disruptive can damage your credibility and cause you to lose market share. Employees are generally more tolerant of change than external stakeholders, but mishandling transitions internally can even cost you valuable team members. Some changes are planned, while others are completely unexpected. This post deals with the former—as well as proactive communication strategies for positioning change as positive, or at least ensuring a smooth transition. 3 Types of Change – And Strategies for Successfully Navigating Them Below are three examples of major change at the corporate level, drawn from SPINE’s history of helping clients navigate periods of uncertainty through their marketing, corporate, and investor communications. For each situation, we share some of our strategies for helping our clients achieve successful outcomes. Leadership Succession Over the years, the topic of succession has arisen fairly often in our work with financial firms—particularly asset managers. Usually, it comes up in the context of founders passing the torch to the next generation of leadership. These situations can rattle investors, who understandably fear they won’t achieve the same returns with someone different managing their money—decimating funds and even destroying firms as a result. The term we often hear is “key man risk,” the idea that the fate of a business is too heavily tied to one person. PIMCO and its founder, Bill Gross, are a prominent example from recent years. Gross ran the firm for more than four decades and managed the PIMCO Total Return Fund, once the world’s largest bond fund. After his abrupt departure in 2014, the fund saw massive outflows, with assets dropping from about $200 billion to about $74 billion as of February 28, 2017. To minimize disruption—and outflows—it is best to begin planning for succession well in advance. (A case can be made that PIMCO could or should have planned better for Gross’ eventual departure, although the precise timing came as a surprise.) When we work with a client planning for succession, we recommend a multi-pronged approach to communications that may include strategies such as: Focusing on attributes that enable the firm to generate consistent returns no matter who is in charge. Providing greater exposure to the team that will ultimately lead the firm. Sharing details as soon as possible; transparency reduces uncertainty. Corporate Merger When two companies join forces, customers and employees alike are bound to have big questions: Customers want to know how the merger will affect the products/services they use, as well as their overall relationship with the company. Employees want to know the company will have a place for them in its new incarnation, and how the organizational structure will change. We help clients assuage both internal and external concerns through proactive communications that set expectations and eliminate surprises. Beyond that, we advise clients to make sure all stakeholder groups understand how they will benefit from the merger. Again, transparency and detailed explanation help eliminate uncertainty, so we recommend increasing customer outreach and holding frequent staff meetings during the transition. Increased Capabilities As businesses grow, they often expand into areas that fall outside the core competencies they were historically known for. By way of example, one of our clients began as a logistics company and ended up adding eCommerce IT services. If you’re launching a product or service that’s substantially different from your current offering, you must be careful to do it in a credible way. That means taking a measured approach that ensures your stakeholders understand your product line logic: Externally, we work with clients to develop messaging that explains the new offering in the context of their overall mission. Often we update core components of the branding system to communicate the strategic shift in a visual way, or at least signal that positive change is occurring. Employees will be the ones to execute your vision, so we recommend involving them early in the process to ensure their buy-in. Before the messaging and branding are launched publicly, we work with clients to educate staff members, help them internalize the changes, and build excitement. Facing one of the situations above, or another significant transition? Contact SPINE now for help communicating through change—and positioning your business for long-term success. ### How Well Is Your Website Working? Congratulations, you just launched your new website. Presumably you built it with the end user in mind—wrote relevant content, structured it in an intuitive manner, and presented it in a compelling fashion. Now that it is done, both you and management want to know how the site is performing. To evaluate a site’s effectiveness, you need some kind of stats package running. Google Analytics (GA) is far and away the most popular, offering comprehensive data at a compelling price: free. GA provides access to a trove of information that can help you: Understand whether the new site is accomplishing your goals Monitor trends and respond accordingly Identify critical opportunities for improving the user experience GA is a powerful tool, although tapping into its advanced capabilities can require special configuration. These are some of the more basic metrics we look at to assess how well a site is performing: Sessions – This is essentially the number of visits your site received in a given period. It’s a measure of the overall traffic level, which (clearly) is not something you want decreasing over time. That said, in addition to quantity, you should consider the quality of your traffic—which you can gauge through some of the metrics below. And when you see fluctuations, there is often a reasonable explanation unrelated to the quality of your site. Example: As a B2B agency, we typically see client website traffic drop during the summer and holiday season. Bounce rate – This stat receives a lot of attention—and it certainly is important, but can also be misleading. Generally speaking, the bounce rate is the percentage of sessions in which users visited only one page before leaving the site. A high bounce rate (see sidebar) could indicate users aren’t finding what they need; maybe the site is confusing, or they arrived there by mistake. But this stat isn’t always the best indicator of actual user engagement—for example, if you have a one-page scrolling site. So What’s a High Bounce Rate? “As a rule of thumb, a bounce rate in the range of 26 to 40 percent is excellent. 41 to 55 percent is roughly average. 56 to 70 percent is higher than average, but may not be cause for alarm depending on the website. Anything over 70 percent is disappointing for everything outside of blogs, news, events, etc.” — The Rocket Blog Example: To simplify the user experience on a client’s site, we moved all the preliminary information a prospect might need to the home page. After deploying the changes and seeing relatively high bounce rates, we configured GA to track a broad range of on-page interactions to understand what was really going on. These included file downloads, clicks on an interactive slide show, and the length down the page users were scrolling. Average session duration – This is another measure of traffic quality—and the quality of the user experience. The caveat here is that, without special configuration, GA doesn’t measure the length of time users spend on the last page they visit before leaving your site. That means the session duration for a single-page visit (i.e., a “bounce”) is reported as 0:00… and that this metric is somewhat misleading. Example: For the site mentioned in #2, we configured GA to track how often users spent at least 30 seconds on the home page. Again, we wanted to get a better sense of user engagement during visits that were being characterized as “bounces.” Pages per session – We consider this a companion stat to average session duration. Again, however, you should look beyond the number. Check out which pages received the most views to find out whether users are seeing the content you consider most important. If not, you may need to tweak the layout or language (or both) to steer them in the right direction. Example: A client was posting updates on current events and linking to them from the home page, but GA indicated they were receiving relatively little traffic. We updated the home page layout to make draw more attention to the posts and increase their appeal. Desktop vs. mobile – GA breaks down your traffic by the technology used to access your site—desktop computer, smartphone, or tablet. This provides good insight into the technology preferences of your target audience. Pairing this information with some of the user statistics listed above (bounce rate, etc.) can help you understand the quality of the experience you’re providing to mobile users. Example: A client had a much higher bounce rate for smartphones than desktops and tablets. Based on this revelation, they engaged us to build a responsive site that would adjust the presentation to the screen size. Traffic sources – GA also breaks down traffic by acquisition channel. There are two channels we focus on most: organic search and referrals (i.e., traffic from links posted on other sites). If your organic search traffic is low, you should consider search engine optimization (SEO). To increase referral traffic, consider trying to get yourself listed on the sites of industry associations and business partners. All that being said, in our experience, generating high-quality content that others want to share is key to increasing traffic from both channels. Example: One of our clients wrote a blog post in 2014 that a Yale University website linked to. The link not only generated referral traffic, but continues to help drive organic search traffic. That’s because links from highly credible sites boost your own credibility in Google’s eyes—and, in turn, your search rankings. Want a report on your website traffic or more information about Google Analytics’ tracking capabilities? Call or drop us an email. ### Google’s Big Update: Your Response Required Been too busy to consider upgrading your site? That’s understandable, but a material change in the way Google operates this month ought to grab your attention. The goliath of all things online just began rolling out a major update to its ranking algorithm focused on mobile devices. When smartphone users search for sites like yours, those that are mobile-friendly will now receive far greater priority over those that are not. What does “mobile-friendly” mean? In functional terms, Google says sites must meet these criteria on smartphones: Text legible without tapping and zooming Links spaced out appropriately No unplayable content or horizontal scrolling (To see how your site stacks up, take Google’s simple test.) In practical terms, there are several types of mobile-friendly sites: Mobile-specific – Alternate site seen only on mobile devices Adaptive – Optimizes the presentation for certain devices Responsive – Dynamically adjusts the presentation for a broad range of screen sizes The first two approaches have their problems, although adaptive websites are certainly an economical option for businesses that can get by with a relatively short-term solution. Responsive design is the best way to future-proof your website as smartphones come in an ever-growing variety of shapes and sizes. Check out some of SPINE’s responsive and adaptive web design work: ### Make Google Work For You You’ve undoubtedly googled your business by name. But did you ever search using more general terms for the products and services you offer—like a potential prospect who may not know you yet? If so, was your website listed high in the results? The process of achieving favorable placement for your site is called search engine optimization (SEO). There are two sides of SEO: on-site and off-site. Both are important to successfully leveraging the power of Google (and other search engines) to drive traffic to your site: On-site: Identifying and implementing carefully chosen keywords and phrases Off-site: Building links from other reputable websites to yours (You can also ensure prominent placement on search engine results pages through pay-per-click programs like Google AdWords, but that’s a topic for another blog post.) Keyword Research & Usage At SPINE, the first step in the SEO process is determining which terms (known as “keywords”) to target. We begin with an exercise with the client to compile a preliminary list. Using research tools, we then assess each keyword based on two factors: Search volume: How often is it being used in Google queries? Competition level: How difficult will it be to rankly highly for this term? We also look at related terms that may hold value. Based on our findings, we recommend the keywords we believe will offer you the greatest opportunity to increase traffic from people searching for sites like yours. Finally, we deploy the selected keywords across the site according to best practices. Inserting them into the content is only part of that process. Your target keywords will also influence elements such as site structure and navigation. Link-Building Google’s algorithm for generating search results places great value on links from other sites to yours. Inbound links help the search engine gauge the quality and relevance of your website. Quantity certainly counts, but so does quality. The more reputable Google considers a site, the more it can bolster your credibility and domain authority. There are many approaches to generating inbound links, but they can generally be categorized as either “white hat” (ethical) or “black hat” (unethical). Here are some examples: White hat: Developing high-quality content people want to share, appearing in news articles, getting listed on sites of relevant industry associations Black-hat: Paying owners of other sites to link to yours, using “content farms” (see below) Content farms are companies that publish large quantities of low-quality content for the sole purpose of embedding links to their clients’ websites. Google has cracked down on content farm sites through algorithm updates such as Penguin and Panda, but it’s impossible to eradicate them all. Beware of black-hat SEO tactics. If Google identifies and punishes a content farm site that links to yours, it’ll hurt your search engine rankings. Your brand can even suffer, as the material that many content farms publish is so poorly written it’s often nonsensical. Getting Started This is hardly a comprehensive guide to SEO, which has grown into an entire industry. There are entire companies devoted to helping clients appear higher in search engine results. That said, there are ways to improve your rankings that are less resource-intensive than engaging the services of a dedicated SEO firm. Which approach is right for you? Depending on the nature of your business, SEO can be vital to your advertising and lead generation efforts—or a complementary component. If you’d like to discuss SEO strategies for your business, please get in touch. ### ITA Software: Startup Success With Spine ITA Software's recently announced acquisition by Google makes us incredibly proud, because ITA was one of SPINE’s first clients. Together, we developed the user interface for an online flight planning application that would transform the travel industry. SPINE began working with ITA during the dot-com boom of the late 1990s. At the time, ITA was vowing to revolutionize an industry—but so was every other Internet startup. The difference is that ITA actually delivered on its promise. Back then, the company was comprised of a few computer science graduates from MIT. They had devised an advanced new algorithm to simplify online travel planning, but the company needed help turning this knowledge into a product and marketing it. That’s when ITA approached SPINE. One of our primary tasks was to make ITA’s technology more user-friendly. We interviewed potential customers and users at the onset of product development to provide a solid structure for the application. SPINE also helped ITA establish its brand. We designed the corporate identity ITA still uses today, which combines the “@” symbol with an airplane contrail. We also developed a communications system that allowed the startup to present itself to the marketplace with a high level of professionalism. ITA’s product was a breakthrough success and the company quickly established itself as a technology leader. Before long, it was providing software solutions for major airlines and travel websites including U.S. Airways and Orbitz. Now ITA is becoming part of Google’s ever-growing Internet empire, and we couldn’t be happier for our former client’s success. ### Spine Expands Annual Report Department Marketing communications agency responds to recent IPO rebound and demand for greater value in investor communications STAMFORD, CT—March 9, 2010—Responding to the recent rebound in IPO activity, SPINE marketing communications has expanded its investor communications department. The move is also designed to meet the growing demand among public companies—both new and established—for greater value in their Annual Report design and production. SPINE’s (www.spinellc.com) new team of specialists includes marketing and investor communications experience at public companies. A major reason for the expansion is to provide customized client service to guide newly minted IPOs through the complex process of developing an Annual Report. “At SPINE, we understand that newly public companies may be intimidated by the Annual Report process,” said Glenn Hoffman, principal of SPINE. “We have assembled an experienced and dedicated team to help companies handle the deadlines and detail-oriented aspects of these projects—especially new IPOs that are navigating the process for the first time.” Whether companies recently went public or were listed years ago, Hoffman said they share a common goal in this tough economic environment: getting the best possible value. SPINE helps companies meet this objective by developing high-quality Annual Reports—both print and online—at reasonable rates. The agency’s boutique size keeps overhead low while ensuring senior-level talent is assigned to each project. “We are able to create a compelling Annual Report within a tighter budget than many marketing communications firms because we are a boutique agency,” Hoffman said. “Our clients know they’ll get informed creativity and responsive, attentive account management for their dollar.” He added that his agency’s relationships with some of the most successful Private Equity firms and hedge funds in the New York metropolitan area illustrate the trust the financial community places in SPINE. “This provides our clients with a level of confidence that few marketing communications agencies can offer,” Hoffman said. ### SmartMail: Startup Success with Spine Congratulations to SmartMail on its sale to Deutsche Post! Smartmail was a non-asset based transportation company backed by private equity firm Great Hill Partners. SmartMail’s founders built a strong business by capitalizing on a little-known U.S. Postal Service initiative called the “workshare” program, which encourages partnerships with private logistics companies. Great Hill Partners said Deutsche Post paid a premium for the company due to the strength of the brand that SPINE helped create. As a workshare partner, SmartMail consolidated large volumes of mail from its customers (other businesses) and transported them to local USPS facilities for final delivery by postal carriers. In exchange, SmartMail received large postage discounts—savings the company passed on to its customers and used to enhance its services. This success attracted some growth capital and a more focused sales and marketing effort, which is where SPINE came in. During the five years we worked with SmartMail, the company grew nearly 10-fold. We began by developing simple sales tools like a capabilities brochure and website. As SmartMail’s marketing needs evolved, we became its agency of record—at one point handling all internal and external marketing and communications. This included such diverse disciplines and deliverables as public relations, direct mail campaigns, advertising, trade show graphics, sales support, and internal HR communications. Through these efforts, SmartMail established a strong brand and became the leader in a niche market. Matt Vettel of Great Hill Partners said Deutsche Post paid a premium for the company due to the strength of the brand that we created. We always hear about ROI; this was a case of ROCI—return on creative investment. ## Pages ### AEO & AIO Services ### Marketing Strategy ### fishing ### All Projects ### Financial Projects ### Sectors SPINE's creative process offers you fresh insights regardless of your field. Over the course of nearly two decades, we've partnered with clients representing a broad range of sectors, stages, and sizes -- from enterprising startups to global enterprises. That said, we work extensively with the industries listed here. ### Brand Alignment ### Home SPINE is a boutique marketing and communications agency. Since 1999, we’ve helped clients create distinctive brands and build strong businesses. ### Work ### Thinking ### Work Peak Ten Capital Identity ### Case Study Energy Boom Lime Rock was a boutique private equity firm that had just raised its first fund when it approached SPINE. Now it’s a global conglomerate that not only manages billions in assets but also produces energy. We’ve helped the brand evolve as the business grows. ### Services Companies and enterprising individuals come to us for comprehensive branding solutions. Our holistic approach to marketing and communications coordinates the design, development, and deployment of marketing efforts to accomplish our clients' goals. On the other hand, some clients just want a website. Or a logo. Or a pitchbook. And we get it—not everyone needs a holistic solution. Our multidisciplinary team enables us to take on a broad range of challenges, both big and small. From standalone projects to large-scale strategic initiatives, SPINE is fully equipped to meet your marketing communication needs. ### Process Strong brands aren’t born—they’re built. That takes time, hard work, and a commitment from you, the client. Whether you have an established brand or new company, whether you’re launching a service or simply updating your website, it's often unclear how to best present your offering to the marketplace. Our process equips us with the information and insight to create materials that put your brand in position to thrive. ## Services ### Brand Strategy ### Corporate Identity ### Marketing ### Digital & SEO ### Investor ### Finance ### Energy ### Logistics ### Technology