OnDeck is a pioneer in online small business loans, but the competition in their space has been catching — and heating — up. They have a one-to-one service model their competitors can’t match, but found that their brand position and messaging needed strengthening. So they brought Thinkso in to help articulate their brand strategy and create new messaging that would clarify their true value proposition for small business owners. We put that strategy in action with a fresh, client-focused brand voice, website editorial that explained all the details in language a non-expert could understand, and an updated set of brand guidelines for writing on-brand communication materials in-house.
“OnDeck had all these great ingredients that they didn’t know what to do with. We helped flesh them out and turn them into a cohesive brand strategy. From there, we developed a distinctive brand voice.” Elizabeth Amorose, Senior Partner, Thinkso
We built a laddered brand strategy that included an updated brand positioning and promise, messaging pillars, and brand attributes. We also crafted headlines and succinct copy to convey OnDeck’s key benefits in a memorable and easy-to-digest way, along with typographic guidelines that presented these new messages clearly and confidently.
OnDeck had a great story to tell. They needed to not only articulate it better, but also apply it more consistently across the organization and at key client touchpoints. Our updated brand guide provided marketing and sales teams with the inspiration and practical messaging tools to do just that.
When we looked at the marketplace, we found that the other online lenders lacked humanity. That human factor is OnDeck’s differentiating advantage, so we dialed it up with a “real talk for real people” approach that highlighted OnDeck’s hands-on service story and connection with clients, while also communicating that the loan process was quick and low-stress.