MICHELLEMcGOVERN STEWART

Selected stories

The work.

A credit union, a community bank, a school-facilities report, a proposal practice, a government-finance firm, a TEDx stage, and a lifecycle assessment for a fast-growing company. Each started by seeing a familiar challenge from a new angle.

Not just for firefighters., Brand voice

01Brand voice

Not just for firefighters.

Firefighters Community Credit Union

The name said firefighters, so everyone assumed the credit union was only for them. A brand voice discovery uncovered the playfulness to prove otherwise, and that voice went on to shape everything from campaigns to branches to hiring.

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A different kind of proposal., Experiential branding

02Experiential branding · 2019–2026

A different kind of proposal.

Ruhnau Clarke Architects

I traded corporate identity branding for experiential branding, and taught my team to execute it. Every proposal reflected the client's own vision back to them. Volume more than doubled, the success rate held, and no staff were added.

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Less labor, more wins., Systems for professional services

03Systems for professional services

Less labor, more wins.

NBS Government Finance Group

Retained to define the brand voice, make proposal development more efficient, and build a digital lead funnel.

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Seeing it from their side., Narrative development

04Narrative development

Seeing it from their side.

Ruhnau Clarke Architects

Just Imagine is a series of campus futures reports. Each one starts with a school district's toughest facilities challenge, told in the district's own words.

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A much bigger idea., Campaign strategy

05Campaign strategy · 2010

A much bigger idea.

Croghan Colonial Bank

During the financial crisis, competitors advertised that they were still lending. This bank spent its ad budget on its customers instead.

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Built for the buyer., Marketing systems

06Marketing systems · 2017–2019

Built for the buyer.

National Merchants Association

Four business lines, one buyer journey. I built the personas, the content plan and the SharpSpring automation that carried leads from first click to sales, so the team spent its time on people ready to talk.

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Predicting the future without a crystal ball., Data-based positioning

07Data-based positioning

Predicting the future without a crystal ball.

TEDxTemecula

On using U.S. birth rates to predict consumer trends, and why the size of a generation tells you where to compete.

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Knowing where they stand., Lifecycle assessment

08Lifecycle assessment

Knowing where they stand.

A fast-growing company (anonymized)

A sample marketing assessment that starts with where the company sits in its lifecycle, so the opportunities, the challenges, and the priorities are clear from the jump.

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