AWS
Brand voice
When I joined AWS, there was no defined brand voice—this is not unusual for a startup, but AWS was no longer a startup and could not have the founder attending every creative review to infuse his personality. And so, the voice became safe, full of jargon, and often lacking humanity or clear messaging.
I was hired to lead the development of the brand voice. I led a research phase including competitive analysis, internal audits, and stakeholder interviews to identify what was working and where we could evolve. Without a full brand positioning workstream, we knew a bold shift in tone would be premature. So we focused on identifying what was true and credible to AWS, and what was achievable for the teams adopting the new voice.
Creative Direction—Brand Voice, Copy, Creative strategy
AWS
AI marketing
Our AI marketing was one example of how we applied our brand voice to a segment of the business that had its own distinct needs and challenges. Staying under the umbrella of the core brand voice, we developed a copy direction that leaned into the creative confidence principle, aiming to stand out and be bold in the suddenly saturated AI landscape. We delivered a creative guide which included visual and verbal direction and copy examples that teams could copy and paste into their campaigns.
Creative Direction—Brand Voice, Copy, Creative strategy
STARBUCKS
Sustainability
Starbucks teams across the globe quickly had been developing work ranging from brand level messaging to local store signage, without a holistic creative vision. Our job was to develop guidelines that would help create consistency throughout the broad range of campaigns and messages. Our visual approach was contemporary, optimistic and inviting. Our voice was respectful, optimistic and human—with specific guidance to help avoid messaging that could mislead the customer or be seen as greenwashing.
Creative Direction—Brand Voice, Art Direction, Creative strategy
STARBUCKS
Social media
After years of lo-fi content on our channels, a new leader stepped in and had a more sophisticated vision. This was a challenge for many teams who built the social platforms from scratch over the years and believed in the original creative approach. My job was to develop a creative direction that both teams could get behind. I aimed to capture the best of both ideologies—elevating the fidelity and polish of our creative, without losing the real world settings and human touch.
Creative Direction—Brand Voice, Art Direction, Creative Strategy
STARBUCKS
Frappuccino
Not a structured brand evolution, but one that happened naturally over several years of honing in on the Frappuccino personality and what resonated with customers. Post by post, we created a brand for Frappuccino that's confidently quirkier and more playful, but retains the attention to detail and sophistication of the main Starbucks brand.
Creative Direction—Concept, Copy, Photography, Art direction, Video Direction
