Background

In 2021, Stafford Capital Partners commissioned a perception study, in order to better understand what its key stakeholders and investors think of the firm, its strengths and weaknesses, and its points of differentiation. To follow on directly from the perception study, MJ Hudson were instructed to perform a brandstory exercise in which the key deliverables would be clear positioning for Stafford against its competitors, revised and refined key messages, and a creative direction for its brand.

Our approach

The perception study started by asking the Stafford Capital Partners team what they would like to get out the exercise, as well as their views of the business. Based on these discussions, MJ Hudson interviewed a sample of 19 new and longstanding clients to get their views of Stafford.

After conducting the interviews, we evaluated the importance of the outputs, looking at who said it (how many people said it and how important they are to Stafford’s business); what was said (how likely it is to benefit Stafford); and how well it resonates (how well it is supported by other structured and unstructured data collected).

Once the data analysis was completed, we presented our findings back to the Stafford team in the form of six key insights showing what the market thought about Stafford, compared against the views of the Stafford team, followed by the actionable steps Stafford would need to take in order to address these insights.

After researching the perceptions of the Stafford team and its key stakeholders, MJ Hudson led a number of brandstory workshops.

Through a variety on online exercises and two virtual workshops, MJ Hudson helped Stafford to identify and articulate the “personality” and value proposition of the Stafford brand, drawn from the firm’s values, ambition and other relevant attributes.

Using this information, we were able to identify the optimum positioning for the brand, considering its investment strategy, brand attributes, the audiences it seeks to partner with and the competitive and market environment; build a messaging framework that expresses Stafford’s positioning and value proposition, in a way that is compatible with its ambitions and the opportunities in the marketplace; and develop a creative direction that supports all of the above.

Results

As a result of this project, Stafford Capital Partners has been given a clearer direction for its brand and its positioning in the marketplace. To continue from this work, Stafford has also engaged with MJ Hudson to support with some of its fundraising materials, as well as its imagery and website design.