At Smith & Connors, our strategic brand and communications work is rooted in a rigorous and empathetic approach that prioritizes listening and fosters clarity and alignment across your organization. We refer to this unique methodology as “design therapy,” where we work collaboratively to uncover and articulate your core messaging and brand attributes.
Talie Smith smiling at a work session with others around a table.

Working With Us

Our approach goes deeper than a logo or message or CMS platform. While these things are vitally important, we must begin with a clearly defined story. No matter the project — website, marketing, or brand — we always start with understanding and clarifying an organization’s vision, audiences, personality, strategic priorities, and its biggest barriers to growth. We start at the center and work our way out.

The people inside an organization are perhaps the most critical audience because they contribute directly to the mission and are its biggest evangelists. But if they’re not aligned with the vision and story, that can be a big barrier.

We’re experts at change management

Change—whether it’s new leadership, a shift in vision, or external market dynamics—can trigger identity crises within an organization. At Smith & Connors, we view these moments as opportunities to redefine your brand story and strengthen your brand positioning.

Our expertise lies in navigating the complexities of change to create something exquisitely effective and visually compelling. Through our “design therapy” we overcome barriers by getting to the root cause in a safe and inclusive environment. This ensures that the entire organization embraces the new brand, website, or communications.

We customize our engagement to each client

Every organization is unique, and so is our approach. We tailor our brand messaging workshops and strategic communications plans to fit your specific needs and objectives. Our intentional and empathetic engagement style, honed over more than a decade, ensures that we collaborate effectively with your team. We prioritize values such as warmth, inclusivity, vulnerability, empathy, collaboration, and fun, fostering a productive and enjoyable working relationship.

Who we work with

Billboard for Third Nature
Oregon Community Foundation logo over photo of people walking
Berkeley Lab logo over building photo
The Boston University logo overlaid on top of a photograph of the Boston city skyline.

Smith & Connors was such a good fit in part because of the approach we took in the project. It required removing the sense of urgency, breathing through challenging moments and tasks, being inclusive of many ideas, and supporting diverse approaches. We shared values that truly added to the ease of working with them and the quality of the end project.
Headshot of Carol Cheney

Our Values

Everything we do is guided by our core values. We aren’t in this to just make cool stuff. People come first — you, your audiences, our team. The experience starts there. Our three partners founded Smith & Connors a decade ago with a mission to help values-driven institutions become more effective in their brand and communications through these values:

Let’s make something great together.