Method Develops Brand Strategy For Start-Ups
Ty McMahan
Branding agency Method Inc. is taking an unusual business strategy with a division called Method Ventures that works on branding campaigns for start-up companies in exchange for an equity stake.
Formed in 2007, Method Ventures focuses on working with entrepreneurs on a hybrid fees and equity basis. Companies are charged cost for the branding work, which is converted to a small equity stake.
Companies are considered just as traditional venture investors analyze potential investments. By identifying promising entrepreneurs with ground-breaking ideas who have recently raised seed funding, and applying Method's strategic and tactical expertise, Method Ventures helps entrepreneurs and investors reduce timelines and put themselves in a better position for a Series A.
"A start-up comes to us right after a seed round and we look at them like we look at any investment," Chris Tacy, Chief Innovation Officer said. "We see if they fit our portfolio and if they have a strong management team and if they fit a need in the market."
Tacy said Method has worked with three companies to date.
The company Method is talking about publicly is boxee, a site that integrates offline and online media with social networking and overlays the platform with a TV-like interface that's controlled by remote. Method developed the company's brand identity and assisted with the user interface.
Tacy said Method's initial objective was to ensure rapid user adoption by creating a brand and identity, and by designing an intuitive product interface. In tandem with boxee management, Method worked to help define the product feature set and validated it against competitive products. Finally, Method created reference examples for developers and integrators to enable better and faster implementation. boxee has yet to raise a Series A round.
"For the vast majority, having this sort of advising before the Series A that you would get from a venture fund post-Series A saves a lot of heartache," Tacy said.
Method also has a roster of blue-chip, paying customers including Sony Corp., Gucci, Microsoft Corp., Visa Inc., Comcast Corp., Nike Inc., Adobe Systems Inc. and Yahoo Inc., among others. Method has offices in San Francisco, New York, and London.
