Alejandro Corpus And Liz Yam Of Keithcity Group: Five Things You Need To Build A Trusted And Beloved Brand
An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
Ultimately, branding is about perception. It’s an opportunity to plant the seed of awareness or trust to inspire future sales.
Keithcity Group is a New York City-based design agency grounded in the belief that strategic multi-platform solutions are key to building iconic brands. Keithcity Group specializes in content creation that fosters consumer engagement and drives creative innovation. The agency was launched in 2016 by Creative Director Alejandro Corpus. Keithcity Group is now helmed by Alejandro and Head of Strategy Liz Yam. Its array of clients includes some of the largest forward-thinking brands and personalities in the world, such as TikTok, Spotify, and Bill Nye.
Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
A: I visited New York once as a teenager, and I was taken over by the bright lights of the city. I immediately knew I wanted to end up here. I remember racking my brain as to what sort of career path could bring me here. Having a love for drawing, I thought, “Why not architecture?” Impatient by nature, architecture proved a rather slow start for a driven creative. After two years of hopping between firms, I decided to look towards graphic design and was hired for a two-day contract with an agency run by the infamous Peter Arnell. The rest, as they say, is history. I became a sponge during my years at the agency before I parted ways. Later on, I sought out Liz Yam, Peter’s previous counterpart, to start a venture of our own.
L: I studied Communication Design and Art History at Pratt. After that, I worked at a few places designing for omnichannel and e-comm. Then, I led marketing and design at a tech startup and eventually landed at Peter Arnell’s NYC-based agency, where I worked my way up from my role as a Digital Art Director to Head of Digital Products. I was working on apps — from user research, to UX and UI design, to development.
Can you share a story about the funniest marketing mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
A&L: Early on, we didn’t know how much to charge clients which led to working on projects that didn’t lead to not much profit. Now that we’ve become successful, we know our worth as an agency.
What do you think makes Keithcity Group stand out? Can you share a story?
A&L: Alejandro always says, “To make things look beautiful is one thing, but to make things look beautiful knowing they will perform is different.” We create at the intersection of beauty and conversion. In the early days of our agency, TikTok as a platform hadn’t transformed into a lucrative stream of income for brands yet. After we had the opportunity to work with Bill Nye and debut him on TikTok, brands saw our ability to create engaging (and viral) content. This sparked interest to work with us because brands understand that to be genuine, but with intent to sell something, is difficult to do. We’re also a young, nimble, and diverse team so it’s natural for us to be immersed in societal trends, tools, platforms, and more.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?
A&L: We’re constantly working on client projects as well as internal ones. Part of staying nimble is looking outside of what conventional agencies do. We have always wanted to venture into architecture, film, and branding — and we’ve achieved two of these three pillars already. Recently, given the experience we’ve gained as a team, we’re working on an idea that will empower more creatives to feel more in control of their talents.
Ok let’s now jump to the core part of our interview. In a nutshell, how would you define the difference between brand marketing (branding) and product marketing (advertising)? Can you explain?
A&L: Brand marketing is paramount for a company’s longevity, while advertising helps momentarily sell a specific product or service. We have found a disconnect between companies’ brand marketing and product marketing, but there shouldn’t be. There needs to be synergy, because copious amounts of time building a brand strategy is often diluted when handed off to a separate advertising agency. Oftentimes companies will bring in two agencies; one to handle the branding and one to handle the advertising, when ultimately these two things go hand in hand.
Can you explain to our readers why it is important to invest resources and energy into building a brand, in addition to the general marketing and advertising efforts?
A&L: Without adequate branding, marketing can oftentimes feel generic. For example, look at any clothing brand that sells basic hoodies, T-shirts, or sweatpants. To stand out, you need to evoke your brand messaging with your art direction, logomark, typography, and infinite other visual, auditory, or physical cues. That’s how you stand out in a competitive landscape.
Can you share 5 strategies that a company should be doing to build a trusted and believable brand? Please tell us a story or example for each.
A&L: 1) Consumers are curious about a company’s origin. They want to know: Why was this brand created and is there a problem that is being solved? Make sure they understand the answers to these questions. 2) Tell us about your product or service: Where are your products made? How are your materials sourced? What do we know about the materials, ingredients, or how they are made? 3) Analyze your competitive landscape so that you can figure out how to stand out in that crowd. 4) Be transparent. If you have a 50% markdown on your products to make it appear like you’re having an urgent sale 365 days of the year, you’re going to lose people’s trust. 5) Optimize opportunities to engage with customers, but don’t inundate them with emails or texts.
In your opinion, what is an example of a company that has done a fantastic job building a believable and beloved brand. What specifically impresses you? What can one do to replicate that?
A&L: A brand that we reference a lot is Aimé Leon Dore, primarily because it is a company that seeks inspiration from the past at its core. And yet the brand is still able to create pieces that feel fresh in a heavily saturated fashion landscape. The brand is also vertically integrated when it comes to brand and product marketing. If we’re looking at companies that inspire legacy, you can look at companies like Gucci, which is celebrating its centennial. The brand has been consistent with its products, which allows for its goods to be passed down through generations. But it’s also pushed boundaries when needed (for example, the Guccy collection as a response to knockoffs). This has helped them stay relevant. By no means are they perfect, but they acknowledge mistakes and pay their dues when they see fit (like with Dapper Dan’s designated atelier in Harlem). Intentional efforts on consistency to establish consumer trust is key.
In advertising, one generally measures success by the number of sales. How does one measure the success of a brand building campaign? Is it similar, is it different?
A&L: While sales are necessary to pay employees and keep shareholders content, we measure success of a brand-building campaign by the notoriety of the brand amongst different demographics. Becoming a household name is the ultimate badge of honor, because it means people that are beyond the intended target demographic are able to recognize your brand as a whole or a specific campaign. Ultimately, branding is about perception. It’s an opportunity to plant the seed of awareness or trust to inspire future sales.
What role does social media play in your branding efforts?
A&L: For our clients, we’ve created and have found so many opportunities for success with social media. It’s one channel where brands are more willing to take risks and explore new ideas, which is always fun.
What advice would you give to other marketers or business leaders to thrive and avoid burnout?
A&L:Surround yourself with a dedicated and talented team. It’s important to empower your team and delegate autonomy to keep everyone motivated. If you’re at liberty to do so, take breaks and recharge in the ways that impact you most and encourage your team to do the same.
You two are people of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
A&L:As our experience has grown, we’ve encountered processes within the creative industry that have an opportunity to be streamlined. Creatives deserve to be fairly compensated, have health benefits, etc. We’re working on a solution for this.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
A: When I first moved to New York, I quickly realized how competitive it was, whether that was getting my foot in the door somewhere or landing my next career move. I always felt that I needed to do more outside of my everyday grind. So much so that I tattooed “Do More” on my arm and “Why Not?” on my contract-signing hand. It’s a constant reminder to never accept complacency in my personal life or within Keithcity as a business. One of the core reasons why our clients have continued to work with us is due to my ability to ideate on concepts and presenting these ideas in a way that is achievable.
We are blessed that very prominent leaders in business and entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world with whom you would like to have lunch or breakfast with? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them.
A: Daniel Arsham because he started an architecture practice and found himself seeking to create art and has been doing what he loves ever since. I relate to that as an architecture grad now leading a creative agency.
L: Jay Z
How can our readers follow you on social media?
You can find us on Instagram @keithcity.
Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational.
Alejandro Corpus And Liz Yam Of Keithcity Group: Five Things You Need To Build A Trusted And… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
