We’re a branding & digital marketing agency helping A/E/C* firms attract clients and talent.

* Architecture / Engineering / Construction (but you already knew that.)

Why LecoursDesign?

100% Focus on A/E/C*

We get you. You won’t waste time onboarding us about the nuances of AEC marketing.

Since 1995 we’ve specialized in your industry. Our expertise and narrow focus allow us to rapidly hone in on how you can stand out from your peers.

Senior Experts Only

We have an elite team of seasoned professionals. There’s no bait-and-switch handoff to junior staff doing the work.

Our proven alliances with senior consultants and craftspeople means we’ve already vetted resources for you.

You’ll Enjoy the Process

We’re committed to making our work together fun & efficient. You’ll appreciate our systems and love of sharing best practices for project management. Clients tell us we communicate well—listening closely while respectfully challenging their long-held assumptions.

Our Core Values

Continually Evolve

Marketing is never done and never perfect. The same goes for us as individuals and our brand; we continually improve project-by-project and person-to-person. When we witness growth in others, we acknowledge it.

Feed Yourself Well

The quality of our input = The quality of our output. We must feed ourselves well to create well; staying curious while designing an interesting life. We have hobbies offline to compete with our urge to continually work. One of these hobbies needs to be a love of learning in whatever form best nourishes you.

Communicate with Clarity & Courage

A great designer is a great communicator. Within our team and with our clients, we write and speak clearly and courageously. Using empathy, we keep it concise, use good grammar, then hit send.

Embrace Systems & Order

We are methodical and find joy in order, structure, organization, and managing our energy. This grants us time to do deep work, achieve flow, and be creative. Our punctuality for internal and external deadlines demonstrates our respect for others.

None of Us Are as Smart as All of Us

We encourage feedback from clients and team members because it improves our work. We utilize the strengths of our teammates to achieve greatness and create connections.

Our Story

by: david lecours, principal

When I launched LecoursDesign in 1995, we were like most start-ups—no clearly defined brand positioning. I would soon discover this was a mistake.

In 1998, KAA Design, a prominent Los Angeles architecture firm, hired us to update its brand identity. Building on our success, we created nearly all of the firm’s marketing communications materials over the next five years. This included branding a new KAA division focused on brand experience. Unfortunately, because our firms now offered similar services, we were informed that our services were no longer needed.

As you probably know, losing a great client is hard. The work we created together was intellectually challenging, fun, creative, and financially rewarding. The loss was even more painful because the leaders at KAA had also become my friends. But through the experience, I learned an important lesson; If my firm could so easily be replaced by a new in-house branding division, we were simply a commodity.

Over the next 10 years, I made a deliberate choice to deepen my expertise in the architecture/engineering/construction (A/E/C) industry. That included serving as a board member of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) and achieving my Certified Professional Services Marketer (CPSM) professional designation. By writing and speaking about A/E/C branding and digital marketing, I got smarter. And through sharing my expertise, LecoursDesign now had a compelling brand positioning.

In 2013, after not working together for a decade, I received an unexpected call from Grant Kirkpatrick, the CEO of KAA Design. He had just received one of our regular advice emails.

“I get a lot of email newsletters from vendors, and I mostly unsubscribe because the content is all about them…But I’ve read yours through the years because they are thoughtful and helpful and I like your voice. We’re going through some big changes here and I’d like to discuss using your voice to help us express ours.”

Receiving this phone call was so validating. When Grant and I previously worked together, my firm was unfocused and a commodity. Now I’d positioned LecoursDesign as an expert, and had shared that expertise in an email that inspired him to call. This call led to a new consulting project where we were the only firm considered for the assignment.

The Lesson of This Story

Decide where to position your firm in a crowded market;
Continually build, share, and archive your expertise;
Create an emotional connection through creativity, story, and experience.