What clients ask before the first session

A discovery sprint produces a written brief we can both sign off: where the brand sits today, who it is for, what is not working in the current message, and what the first phase of work should cover. You receive a positioning summary, a draft message hierarchy, a channel map with rationale rather than a channel laundry list, and a sequenced plan for the next four to eight weeks. It is working material, not a slide deck for the boardroom. Sessions are recorded in shared notes so nothing lives only in someone's memory.

A retainer is a monthly block of studio time scoped to a standing set of outputs — usually editorial direction, campaign architecture, or ongoing creative review. We agree the disciplines involved, the rhythm of working sessions, and what counts as in-scope before the first month begins. Work is logged against that scope in a shared ledger so you can see where time went. Retainers suit teams that need senior input without hiring full-time, or that want continuity across quarters. They are not an open-ended ticket queue; scope still matters.

Before the first session we ask for whatever already exists: current website copy, sales decks, brand guidelines if you have them, and a plain description of who buys from you and why. We do not need a polished brief; a bullet list in an email is enough to start. Name the decision-makers who will attend, any hard deadlines, and channels you are already committed to so we do not reopen settled choices. If material is confidential, say so upfront and we will agree how it is stored and shared.

Every engagement has a lead strategist and a creative director in the room from the first session. Editorial and design roles join when the work calls for them — a campaign architecture session might include editorial; a brand-systems phase brings design direction in. We do not rotate junior staff through your account to learn on your time. The people named at the start are the people who do the work and attend the reviews. If a specialist is needed for one session, we say so before they arrive.

Revisions are part of the craft, not an afterthought. Each deliverable includes an agreed number of review rounds defined in the written scope. Feedback is collected in one place — usually a shared document with numbered comments — so changes are traceable and nothing is lost in a thread. We distinguish between refinement within the agreed direction and a change of direction; the latter is a scope conversation, not a silent extra round. Clear feedback speeds the work; vague feedback slows everyone down.

Handover is a defined phase, not the last email attachment. You receive source files, a tone-of-voice guide with examples, a message hierarchy document, and any templates the in-house team will need to continue without us. We run a walkthrough session with the people who will own the work day to day, answer questions, and leave written notes on decisions that are easy to forget later. The goal is that your team can produce on-brand material independently within a few weeks of handover.

Yes. Most of our work happens with teams across South-East Asia and occasionally further afield. Working sessions run on Singapore time by default, with shared documents and async review in between. We have done discovery sprints entirely over video when travel is not practical, though we prefer at least one in-person session for positioning work when geography allows. Language of work is English; we do not provide translation services as part of a standard engagement.

Channels follow the audience and the message, not the other way around. We map who needs to hear what, how they already encounter brands like yours, and where your team can sustain quality over time. A channel that cannot be resourced properly is left out of the first phase even if competitors use it loudly. The output is a prioritised channel plan with rationale for each inclusion and explicit notes on what is deferred. We would rather recommend three channels done well than twelve done thinly.

Briefs change; that is normal when new information arrives or priorities shift. We pause, document what changed and why, and agree whether the existing scope still holds or needs rebalancing. Small adjustments within the original direction are absorbed where possible. A fundamental shift — new product, new market, new leadership mandate — triggers a scope conversation before more work proceeds. We do not silently absorb major changes; that creates bad work and bad relationships.

Consistency depends on tools your team will actually use. We leave a tone-of-voice guide with do-and-don't examples drawn from your real material, a message hierarchy that shows how headlines relate to body copy, and templates for the formats you produce most often. For retainers, we can stay on as an editorial review point for a defined period after handover. Without that, the guide and templates are designed so a competent writer can follow them without calling us for every paragraph.

Yes, when roles are clear. We are often brought in for positioning, narrative architecture, or editorial direction while an agency handles production and media. The failure mode is two parties writing strategy at once; we ask for a single decision-maker on your side and explicit boundaries before starting. We attend joint sessions when useful and share working documents in formats the agency can use. We do not poach accounts or undermine incumbent relationships.

Email [email protected] with a short note: what your organisation does, who it is for, what is not working in your current communications, and when you would ideally like to begin. Attach or link whatever material already exists. We read every message and reply with a plain assessment of whether there is a fit and what a sensible first step would look like. There is no intake form on this site by design; a thoughtful email is a better start than a blank template.