A four-week online learning program lifting the lid on the reality of pitching, planning and doing brand strategy in the real world.

There’s a lot of fluff out there when it comes to brand strategy. Everyone’s in agreement that it’s super important, but not many people give you the full low down on how to actually do it. But wait…

Packed with practical content, real-life projects and actionable takeaways that can be applied to working design-based businesses, this is a course for creatives, studios and teams looking to make their work stronger, their value higher and their voice matter more where it counts.

No fluff, no flake, just bare brand strat.

Next program Feb 2025
Waitlist Open

Includes:

  • 4 x live online workshops
  • 3 x group QnA sessions
  • Program Recap Session
  • Access to all recordings and pres slides
  • Miro workshop template
  • BBS Slack channel community
  • One on one Consult Session
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Discover what Bare Brand Strat is all about Watch a quick intro below

Program Outline

The Bare Brand Strat online learning program consists of four live workshops and 3 group QnA sessions running over four weeks, plus a program recap session and one-on-one consult.

  • Workshop 1

    Research

    Week 1
    01

    Starts with hard work, ends with champagne!

    In the first workshop of the program, we’ll be learning how to kick-start your brand strategy properly with an in-depth look at the all-important research and discovery stage of a brand or rebrand project.

    This will include conducting audits, analysing data, exploring your competitor landscape and conducting interviews with internal and external stakeholders – who to ask, what to ask, how to ask it, all that good stuff.

    We’ll also look at the business side of things, including how to scope, cost, pitch and plan your project.

  • Workshop 2

    Workshops

    Week 2
    02

    Get me in a room!

    In week two, we’ll look at how to extract, test, align and impress with a step-by-step guide to organising, designing and facilitating custom brand strategy workshops that hit the sweet spots with the top dogs on any given project.

    We’ll look at how to use your research insights to design bespoke exercises and activities to run during the workshop and how to spark and steer the right kind of discussions.

    We’ll also cover presenting a ‘strategy playback’ to your client or team that documents your research and outlines the path for the next stages of your project.

  • Workshop 3

    Frameworks, Naming and Narrative

    Week 3
    03

    Get ready to hone in on the main meal in week 3.

    No endless decks of waffle, ‘your brand is a Volvo’ or pointless arrows and diagrams. Instead we’ll focus on how to develop a practical and useful brand framework covering personas, positioning, architecture and more.

    We’ll explore the complex world of developing a name for a new brand and go deep into writing a compelling narrative, message and story that forms the foundation of a brand’s verbal identity including how to harness generative AI.

    Finally, we’ll cover how best to present all this work back to those that matter in your project.

  • Workshop 4

    Identity Design, Rollouts and Guidelines

    Week 4
    04

    It’s alive!

    To make sure your brand gets the birth it deserves, in week 4 we’ll be focusing on feeding all your strategy work into the development of your brand’s new or revamped identity.

    In this workshop, you’ll learn how to present the new concept, master the rollout process and develop key brand touch points across on and offline channels.

    We’ll also cover ways to document your strategy, narrative and identity with clear, robust and practical application guidelines to keep it strong, fit and healthy for many, many moons.

  • Program Recap Session
    Week 5
    05

    A recap session going over key areas from all 4 workshops with opportunities for questions and discussion.

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Testimonials

What they say

  • “Bare Brand Strat is the strategy course I'd been searching far and wide for. Straightforward, practical and honest, it delivered the perfect amount of insight, structure and real world considerations to feel confident in better understanding and implementing brand strategy”

    Gabi Fountain Independent Designer

  • “Bare Brand Strat levelled-up our understanding and approach to all things strategy. Each week's workshop was thoughtfully structured, bringing everyone together for practical exercises and relevant discussions. The overall experience was a stand out for us.”

    Ash Stewart Design Director, Bandit

  • “Bare Brand Strategy with Richie is a game-changer for designers and marketers passionate about branding. As designers, we often rush to the visual output, but the course taught me the power of research, workshops, and narrative frameworks. The practical strategies I've learned are now integral to my own branding projects. Highly, highly recommend. ”

    Geordie Launder​​​​ Senior Brand Designer, Always Live

  • “We knew our strategy offering could be improved as our skills had been largely self-taught. Bare Brand Strat plugged the knowledge gaps and showed us how to do strategy properly and thoroughly - beginning to end. You walk away with new tools, confidence and motivation to up your strategy game.”

    Shane Keane Creative Director, Landmark

  • “Hands down one of the most practical (and fun) courses out there, highly recommend to anyone curious about, interested in or deep in strategy work. Plus, Richie teaches in such a direct, down to earth way that you can finally ask that question you’ve been too scared to ask!”

    Emily Shields Account Director & Strategist, Marilyn

  • “Bare brand start was brilliant! Genuinely applicable lessons, taught simply. If you want to learn how to build a repeatable, process-driven strategic methodology, this is the course you need.”

    Laurie Grattan UX + UI + Brand Designer

  • “Richie's course has honestly been one of the most useful courses I have done in my career. His transparency regarding his process, along with super practical content, meant I was able to immediately get value out of the course and apply it directly to the work I am doing for clients.”

    Chontelle Cripps Creative Director, Gloo

  • “It was great to be shown through the complete strategy process step-by-step and being able to see examples of each phase. I love Richie’s holistic and detailed approach to Brand strategy.”

    Georgia Shillington Design Director, Paper Moose

  • “As a branding agency we are constantly looking at outside influences and new ways of working. We have always been a big fan of Richie's work so getting to see inside his process and approach was a privilege. He is a great teacher and an inspiring strategist. Highly recommend for aspiring and experienced brand strategists alike!”

    Jodie De Vries Managing Director, Tiny Hunter

  • “Bare Brand Strat is your guide to the world of strategic branding. From pitching to positioning, you'll gain in-depth insights from Richie as he talks through real life projects and strategy frameworks. I couldn't recommend this program more for the modern marketer wanting to learn more about brand strategy - Richie covers it all!”

    Sarah Taylor Brand and Marketing Manager , batyr

Meet Richie

Hi, I'm Richie, brand consultant and founder of Bare Brand Strat.

I started Bare Brand Strat because I felt people wanted a more practical approach to brand strategy that they could actually pick up and apply themselves.

As brand maker or owner, I really believe that knowing how to pitch, manage and deliver brand strategy makes your work stronger, your value higher and your voice matter more where it counts.

I want to help people cut through the fluff that typically comes with brand strategy, openly sharing my own work, tools and process - warts and all!

It’s brand strat stripped back with time to take it all in and make it relevant to your skills, role, approach and ambitions.

Hope to see you in the sessions.

Thanks! Richie

Got Questions?

  • 01
    What sets this program apart from others?
    Bare Brand Strat is about lifting the lid on the reality of pitching, presenting and delivering brand strategy in the real world. We openly share real life methods, techniques, templates, presentations and more, never holding things back or keeping certain parts under wraps. It's a deep dive into the full picture of brand strategy from go to wo, but with space for personalisation, discussion, interaction and more time to absorb it all.
  • 02
    Who is the program aimed at?
    Bare Brand Strat is aimed at design and communication professionals. You might be a studio or agency owner or director, a designer, account manager, strategist or social media specialist, making and shaping brands for your clients. Or, you could be a marketing manager, business owner or entrepreneur looking to build and grow the brand of the company you work for or own. There is no specific background knowledge required, although experience working on design, brand and marketing projects would give you a little head start for sure.
  • 03
    What are the Group QnA Sessions?
    The three interactive Group Q&A sessions are an opportunity for attendees to ask specific questions they want to know, discuss the answers together and share their own work and experiences to deep dive into what’s most relevant to them.
  • 04
    How will the program be delivered, and what technology or software will be used?
    For both the workshop sessions and group QnAs, we’ll be using Butter a live content platform that gives a more immersive and interactive experience than the traditional video conference only tools. With Butter you can interact with shared content including jumping directly into and using Miro boards, Figma files and websites, as well as doing live polls via Typefrom, asking and upvoting Qs and accessing links and downloads directly from the screen.

    Attendees will also have access to a Bare Brand Strat Slack group where they can get links to resources or websites mentioned, ask questions about the program, chat with others on the program and show off their gif game!
  • 05
    Will there be any assessments and feedback will be provided?
    There are no assessments or exams. In the two Group Q&A Sessions, attendees will have the chance to share their process or the projects they are working on to get feedback and ideas from Richie and others in the group. Additionally, the program includes a one-on-one session with Richie where people can discuss specific questions or topics most relevant to their skill sets, role, approach to branding and more.
  • 06
    Will the slides and recordings of the sessions be made available?
    Yes, links to the recordings of the Workshops and the Group Q&A Sessions will be sent out to everyone to watch/re-watch during the program. They will remain online for 2 weeks after the last workshop. Take-away versions of each week's presentation will also be sent out.
  • 07
    I’ve been to some of Richie’s previous workshops. Should I still attend?
    While BBS does cover some of the content from the workshops Richie has done in the past, much of that has been reworked, revamped and significantly extended to provide a deeper and more comprehensive take on things. There are also many other topics and sections that are 100% exclusive to this program and some new sections being delivered for the first time. So, even if you have done some Richie’s workshops in the past, Bare Brand Strat is very much intended for you.