AEC Advisors

AEC Advisors

BRANDING / CASE STORY

AEC Advisors

/ SERVICES

Discovery & Recommendations
Brand Foundation
Brand Identity
Collateral
Voice & Messaging
Digital Marketing

VISIT WEBSITE

/ OBJECTIVE

Like most start-ups, AEC Advisors used minimal viable branding for its first few years. But the firm has ambitious plans and needed a re-brand to communicate where they are headed, not where they’ve been.

LecoursDesign was hired because we are branding and AEC industry experts; Our clients are also AEC Advisors clients.

/ IDEA

Architecture, Engineering, Construction, or Consulting is often written A/E/C. The new logo is a play on this. The angle up and to the right is also a graphical reference of adding financial value (something that AEC Advisors do).

/ LOGO MEANING
AEC Logo Meaning
Color Palette
/ SEAL MEANING
AEC Business Cards

Brand foundation & messaging by LecoursDesign.

/ PURPOSE

We help A/E/C firm leaders to confidently address financial issues and opportunities, so they can focus on clients, projects, and people.

/ VISION

We elevate our industry to be the most respected and valuable, over the next decade.

Purpose video by Josh Miles

/ CORE VALUES

Share your individual best for the benefit of all.
Combining diverse strengths powers our team to reach elevated outcomes.

Aim to surpass your former self.
Small incremental improvements compound into radical transformation.

Use empathy as your superpower.
Understanding others’ needs is our first priority. Then we provide authentic advice.

Make integrity contagious.
Every choice we make reflects who we are; as individuals and as a firm.

Be responsive; Act intentionally.
We are responsive with our team as well as our clients.

/ BRAND PERSONALITY

We’ve established five brand personality attributes to guide all future marketing communication materials and activities:

Focused

Trusted

Sincere

Best-in-Class

Progressive

/ POSITIONING STATEMENT

As AEC Advisors, we focus on M&A and corporate finance. The industry trusts our data, expertise, and network to build stakeholder value.

/ CLIENT TESTIMONIAL

“LecoursDesign did our rebranding, website, and office renovation design. We could not be happier. David is the kind of person who really gets to know his clients and puts together branding options that speak to your firm’s culture. The initial process of learning who we were, and the audit he did of our clients, was the most valuable part. We learned more about what we need to do to achieve our goals than we anticipated.”

Josh Lahre

Co-Founder & Partner, AEC Advisors

Michael Wall Engineering

Michael Wall Engineering

Michael Wall Engineering
We’ve Done That, Twice!

C L I E N T

Michael Wall Engineering (MWE)
See Site

S E R V I C E S

Discovery, Insights & Recommendations,
Positioning, Core Values, Website Design,
Website Development

T H E  B R I E F

The original website we designed for MWE in 2012 was dated, especially on mobile. As part of a larger marketing overhaul, we launched a new responsive website for a great experience on desktop, tablet and mobile.

C R E A T I V E  C O N C E P T

MWE already had a bold logo and color palette. We embraced the angle of the “3 sails” logo and the saturated red, yellow and black throughout the new site.

Home Page

Results

3 months before launch (old site) vs. 3 months after launch (new site).

Increase in website sessions

41%

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Increase session duration

53%

i

Total pageviews

2x

Increase pages per session

53%

We are very happy with the site and get lots of positive feedback from clients, recruits, and employees. It’s been very beneficial to our business  especially during this time when we can’t interact with folks in person.”

–Michael Wall, PE, Principal

Brand Foundation

T H R E E  U N I Q U E S

Lecoursdesign led a half-day workshop with firm leaders to generate a lengthy list, then narrow firm attributes to three unique differentiators:

Electrical Engineering – We are singularly focused on electrical engineering, not mechanical and plumbing.

Southern California – We understand the ins and outs of the Southern California marketplace.

We’ve Done That! – With deep expertise in a diverse range of electrical capabilities, it’s easy for us to say, “we’ve done that!”

P O S I T I O N I N G  S T A T E M E N T

From the three uniques, we developed a positioning statement that differentiates MWE from their competition.

B R A N D  P E R S O N A L I T Y

Before designing the website, we created five brand personality attributes to guide all future marketing communication materials.

Approachable

Dependable

Accomplished

Imaginative

Sophisticated

Market Page

Project Page

About Pages

Contact Page

Old Site (Before Redesign)

Bullivant

Bullivant

BRANDING / CASE STORY

Bullivant

/ SERVICES

Discovery & Recommendations
Brand Foundation
Brand Identity
Collateral
Voice & Messaging
Digital Marketing
Web Design & Development

VISIT WEBSITE

/ OBJECTIVE

With significant transformation in the last 10 years, this law firm’s brand was stuck where it had been; not where they’re going.

New offices, strategic plan, core values, vision, purpose, positioning, and a refined brand name — this was the time to create a new visual identity.

/ IDEA

We created new branding grounded in this positioning: West Coast, Defense Lawyers, and Collaborative Teams.

New Logo

Logo Meaning

Branding Process

S T R A T E G Y,  T H E N  B R A N D I N G

A strong brand is rooted in brand strategy, which means having well-articulated Purpose, Vision, Core Values and Positioning statements.

During a half-day workshop with the branding committee, we engaged in group prioritization exercises to narrow a lengthy list of firm attributes to three unique differentiators:

West Coast – We have deep knowledge of the law in CA, OR, and WA.

Defense lawyers with hands-of trial experience – We actually go to trial,

Collaborative Teams – Many minds contribute to resolve our client’s challenging legal issues

P O S I T I O N I N G  S T A T E M E N T

From those three unique differentiators, we developed a positioning statement that defines the firm type (West Coast defense lawyers), how it is unique (hands-on trial experience and collaborative teams).

We are a West Coast firm of defense lawyers with hands-on trial experience. Our collaborative teams guide clients in resolving challenging legal issues.

C O R E  V A L U E S

We Are a Team
By working closely together, we achieve the best possible outcomes for our clients.

We Are Respectful
Mutual respect is the cornerstone of how we interact with each other and our clients.

We Are Tenacious
We rise to every challenge —perseverance, determination, and grit define us.

We Are Fun
We are serious about our work, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously.

We Are Creative
Partnering with clients, we explore all possibilities to achieve successful outcomes.

B R A N D  P E R S O N A L I T Y

Before developing the visual brand identity, we established five brand personality attributes to guide all future marketing communication materials and activities.

Authentic/Relatable
Innovative
Reliable/Trusted
Tenacious
Fun/Playful

Custom Patterns

Website

Bullivant Website About Page

Before

After

Bullivant Website About Page
New Home Page

Social Media

SC Builders

SC Builders

WEBSITE / CASE STORY

SC Builders

/ SERVICES

Website Planning
Prototyping
Design
Custom Illustrations
Development

VISIT WEBSITE

/ OBJECTIVE

We needed to create a site to hire and retain top commercial construction talent, establish branding for the website that becomes the benchmark for all SC Builders’ marketing communications, and boost repeat business from existing clients.

/ IDEA

By developing an evolved Careers section featuring outstanding SC staff to attract talent. We utilize video to allow prospects to hear directly from SC Builders staff.

Before

After

Results

6 months after launch of new site vs. 6 months before

i

Increase in Careers section pageviews

880%

Increase in top young hires

30%

Increase in Projects pageviews

422%

Increase repeat business revenue

9%

illustration for SMPS Awards Program

SMPS National Marketing Communications Awards – Award of Excellence, Best External Website

Anna Black and David Lecours holding trophy for best website

From SC Builders’ Client

The new website looks AWESOME!!!!! It is honestly, hands down one of the best ones I’ve seen in the past few months. Vibrant, easy to read fonts, easy to move through it, great employee testimonials – I’m using it as an example for a couple clients in the next two weeks. Seriously – great job! I hope you get huge kudos and positive response because I was blown away. And I’ve seen a lot of websites.”

Project Pages

Careers Page

From a Prospective Hire

I was already familiar with SC Builders, but the website made it much easier for me to make the decision—it reinforced my decision. I’ve noticed that other construction companies have unclear or inconvenient websites with hodgepodge information, but I really appreciated your clear user interface. It felt like the content had a natural and logical flow. All the questions I had were answered.

About, Before

SC About Before

About, After

SC Builders About page

Office Page

Team, Before

SC Builders Team Before

Team, After

SC Builders Website Team Page

News Page

Graphic Elements, Buttons

Murraysmith

Murraysmith

BRANDING / CASE STORY

MSA becomes Murraysmith

/ SERVICES

Discovery & Recommendations
Strategy
Brand Foundation
Voice & Messaging
Brand Identity
Print Collateral
Digital Marketing
Website Design & Development

VISIT WEBSITE

/ AWARDS

SMPS MCA Awards:
✶ Best Rebrand
✶ Best Website
✶ Best Recruiting & Retention Promotion

/ BACKGROUND

After speaking at the SMPS Pacific Regional Conference in Portland, David was approached by Irina, the marketing director at Murray, Smith & Associates, Inc. (MSA), a nine-office, 155-person civil engineering firm in the Northwest. Handing him her business card, she confessed,
I know, we need your help.

/ CHALLENGE

While MSA marketing team members understood the value of branding, several owners were reluctant to invest in a rebrand. Business was strong and memories of a failed attempt at DIY rebranding and a false start with a consultant unfamiliar with A/E/C marketing lingered.

/ SOLUTION

To help MSA make an informed decision, we proposed the firm commit only to the Discovery Phase, including a review of its strategic plan, a brand audit rating 75 brand touchpoints, personal interviews with recent hires, and a competitive audit.

/ LOGO MEANING
/ COLOR PALETTE

/ TYPOGRAPHY

/ CUSTOM SERVICE ICONS

Brand foundation & messaging by LecoursDesign.

/ BRAND PERSONALITY

Imaginative


Fun


Dependable


Relateable


Sincere

/ THREE UNIQUES

Just the right size – We are large enough to employ diverse talent to solve your biggest challenges, yet small enough to genuinely care.

We’re Invested – We live where we work; we take project success personally.

We keep great company – We take care of our people, so they can take care of you.

/ CORE VALUES

We workshopped seven core values, which we later expressed on craft beer coasters. Each coaster is letterpressed with a value on the front, and more detail about its meaning on the back.

We make it happen. (Service)

We invest in us(Improvement)

Our work goes on the fridge. (Quality)

Multiple Minds > 1 (Collaboration)

Work that works for you. (Flexibility)

We Engineer Fun (Fun)

We Give a $#!T (Passion)

Murraysmith Core Values
/ POSITIONING STATEMENT

We are a public infrastucture engineering firm, crafting the communities we live in.

/ BEFORE REBRAND > BUSINESS CARD

/ RESULTS

Nine months after the rebrand, Murraysmith had a 40% increase in staff growth, a 30% increase in gross revenue, & 12+ new clients.

Increase in Earnings

42.5%

Increase in Staff Retention

6%

increase on LinkedIn

32%

Increase in Project Hit Rate

10%

/ CLIENT TESTIMONIAL

“You always have been so fantastic in what you did for us; more so, the story behind Murraysmith and how you went about the process, and how we are able to align where we are going. The story, foundation, and process are more important than anything else. You are and have been amazing so it is easy to give you great recommendations.”

–Chris Rayasam

Chief Executive Officer, Murraysmith

* A / E / C = Architecture, Engineering, & Construction (but you already knew that)
© LecoursDesign 2023