Strategy & Messaging

    Positioning, narrative, and message architecture. For communications that must hold their shape across teams and time.

    Strategy is where most agencies say the same thing. We try to do something useful instead: write things down, defensibly, that hold up when the audience is a regulator, a board, an investor, or a journalist.

    What we deliver

    Positioning. A clear statement of what the organisation is, who it serves, and where it stands. Written so a chief of staff and a junior comms manager can both use it without translation.

    Message architecture. Pillars, proof points, key phrases, and the words to avoid. Built so the message survives being passed between teams, agencies, and channels.

    Narrative development. The longer story behind the positioning. Used for capital-markets work, IPO communications, rebrands, and milestone moments.

    Communications planning. Channel strategy, audience mapping, stakeholder content, and the editorial discipline to run a programme rather than a series of projects.

    How we work

    Most strategy work for our clients starts with reading. Annual reports, internal decks, prior agency work, regulatory filings, audience research, competitor materials. Often the right strategy is already in the room; it just hasn't been written down with enough discipline to be defensible.

    We then work in writing. Drafts go to the partner first, then to the client team. We expect to iterate. We do not present work we cannot defend in a room with the chair.

    When this matters

    Strategy work pays off when the message has to last and the audience reads carefully. For a viral social campaign it usually doesn't. For a rebrand, a recovery, a category launch, an IPO roadshow, a board-level decision, or a national programme, it is the difference between a campaign that lands and a campaign that doesn't.

    Frequently asked questions

    What is message architecture?

    The pillars, proof points, key phrases, and words to avoid that keep a message intact as it passes between teams, agencies, and channels.

    When is messaging strategy worth the investment?

    When the message has to last and the audience reads carefully: rebrands, IPO roadshows, category launches, recoveries, and national programmes. For a quick social push, usually not.

    Do you work alongside our in-house communications team?

    Yes. We are used to working with in-house comms and legal teams rather than replacing them, and we expect to iterate with them.

    What does a strategy engagement actually produce?

    Written, defensible documents (positioning, message architecture, narrative, and a communications plan), not a deck of slogans.