BUSINESS-CRITICAL BRAND STRATEGY
FOR STARTUPS

What value does your brand add to your offer? How does it turn investors, talent and customers into believers? Is your brand identity accelerating your progress or holding you back? For startups in particular, questions like these can determine whether you sink or swim.

That’s why I designed a brand reality check to answer them

Start

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It’s simpler than you think

You have a great idea, the best technology and the smartest people. Yet deep down you know this may not be enough. And right now you don’t have the time or budget needed to invest in your brand. Or do you? In truth, all you need to develop a brand strategy is a shared understanding of some key principles and somebody with enough experience to guide you through the process. This is where I can help.

Are you ready to build your brand launch pad?

Get the right things right

Of course, you could spend a lot of time and money on branding and still not get it right. On the other hand, there are some aspects of branding that could ruin your business if you don’t get them right. This is the essence of business-critical brand strategy. It’s a lean approach to branding that concentrates on what every startup needs to know.

Perhaps I can be your coach

Don’t let them fool you

Brand issues are sneaky. They can disguise themselves as isolated business problems. You think there is something wrong with your pricing strategy, your distribution model or your sales approach. But in actual fact, you need to work on your brand story, to change your positioning or rethink your definition of purpose. And this is what I do. I use brand know-how to solve business problems.

Maybe you have a problem in mind?

Simon Coe

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Simon Coe

THIS IS MY STORY

I’m English, but I speak Swedish. And enough Italian to get me into trouble. As a young entrepreneur I sent myself to business school at the same time as I became a  consultant. My clients were all international and mostly B2B. I used to get hired a lot for agency pitches, because I could always come up with a strategy that worked. As a freelance copywriter I spent 3 years working on a series of campaigns for Volvo Trucks that turned out to be the most awarded advertising of the decade.

After that I got bored and cynical. Working for too many big brands driven by the fear of losing what they had. Then I held some seminars for some startups, and understood that these were the people who were going to fix the world. This really lit my fire. I suddenly realised there was a reason I’d spent 20 years learning how to make businesses grow.

I’m here to help those who are driven by hope not fear. Those who are brimming with potential to do something good. The worthy startups who may one day become truly great brands, if they’re given the right help when they need it.

Services

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WHAT I CAN DO FOR YOUR BUSINESS

Seminars

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MY TALKS AND SEMINARS

If you don’t need my strategic help at the moment, book me for a seminar. You’ll pick up a few things that some of the greatest brand leaders in the world had to learn the hard way. I guarantee you’ll come away feeling inspired and ready to take action. And, we’ll get to meet. So you can decide if you’d trust me to help you with your most valuable asset.

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Branding is Believing

The branding seminar that should be compulsory for every serious startup

Do you and your team have a shared definition of what branding really means? Do you know which aspects of your brand will help you to survive and scale-up in the early stages? And which ones can trip you up as you start to gain traction? This is the seminar I’ve developed to share them with you.

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Branding by Doing

A seminar that explores the power of action guided by purpose

Great brands are never built by great advertising alone. Most are built by founders and leaders who take bold decisions when driven by real purpose. Branding by Doing is a concept that starts with corporate decision making and feeds into marketing, not the other way around. It draws on everything I’ve learned while helping brands to grow.

Speak to me

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NOW IS 
THE TIME TO 
DO SOMETHING BRILLIANT

So drop me a line and introduce yourself

As a brand design studio we wanted a rock solid strategy before designing our visual identity. Simon led us through a process, starting from scratch and arriving at something that was complete and ready to use. He challenged our perspectives on many things, and we worked hard together, but it never felt like work. We enjoyed every part of it and would happily do it again. Now we have a clear positioning strategy which underlies everything we are doing to build our brand.

Matteo Modena
CEO & Founder, We Meet Brands

He was able to spot strategic opportunities for the Drype brand identity in just a few minutes of conversation. He provided fundamental advice that we still use as a communication pillar. Extremely competent.

Lucia Freschi
CEO & Founder, Drype

He manages to grasp the needs and values ​​of your business and then brings order to a series of questions you have to face as a founder. Simon leads you to your clearest and most coherent brand vision. And he’s a great guy to work with.

Lapo Ceccherelli
Founder and CCO, Filo

It was a pleasure to work with Simon Coe as a professional and as a person. His workshop was a great mix of brand theory, examples and practical exercises. We especially appreciated that he really studied his audience and tailored the content and examples to the startups of our specific vertical. Additionally to his workshop, he had individual meetings with each startup to talk about their specific cases. 10 out of 10 would recommend it!

Enrica Bonora
Program Associate, Takeoff Accelerator

Simon helped me to understand the importance of our brand purpose – and then to articulate it. This gave us a vital sense of direction that has been a huge help. I recommend him warmly.

Ivan Koshurinov
Founder & CEO, Invisens

Simon's branding workshop is always ranked amongst the favorites. He delivers his talk with passion, listens attentively, and asks the right questions to help the startups move forward. The Motor Valley Accelerator is proud to work with him.

Camila Tellez
Program Manager, Motor Valley Accelerator

Our discussions helped to clearly articulate our biggest challenges – while reminding me of our strong mission and purpose.

Ahmed Mohamedali
CEO and Founder, Conical

Simon took the time to listen and focus on who we are and where we want to be, pushing us to figure it out. He gets it.

Greg Foster
Founder & CEO, Vizens Analytics