Fechtor Advertising

Strategy as common sense, then creative work

Fechtor Advertising is a branding, advertising and digital design firm based in Columbus, Ohio. Its founding principle is that great advertising depends on a sound strategy. The firm describes its own method as common sense rather than a branded framework: it sets the client's goals and the way success will be measured, learns about the audience and what motivates it, studies the category and its competitors, and then implements, evaluates, refines and repeats. It says strategy is itself a creative task, requiring research and knowledge along with the insight and creative twist that connect with the customer on both a rational and an emotional level.

Advertising defined by what it does

The firm treats every message a business sends as advertising, whether that is a television spot, a video online, a social post, a web page or a landing page. Its definition of great advertising starts from a strategy that separates the client clearly from its competitors and builds a lasting identity and relationship with its audience. The work is meant to be single-minded, to reward people for engaging with it, to take intelligent risks and to change how people think, feel or act. The firm argues that work of this kind sells more and is therefore good for business.

Brand strategy rather than a logo

Branding is described as the total of what people think, feel and experience about a product, service or organization. The firm says the logo, the typeface and the color palette are brand signals that point to those impressions rather than the brand itself. It gives branding its own strategy, covering purpose, values, positioning, personality and promise, and it says it has built brands from nothing, developed existing ones and revived old brands that had lost their appeal.

Digital work that follows the strategy

The firm argues that digital experts are not always marketing or branding experts, so strategy and concept should lead the work and digital solutions should be built to fit inside them. Everything produced is meant to reinforce the brand and connect with the audience in the most relevant way. Design is valued for its effect: the firm says design for its own sake is art, while design in the service of advertising is what gets results.

Experience across large and smaller accounts

The firm presents itself as bringing the experience of a large agency and large brands to a smaller, more direct team, with fewer steps between a brief and finished work. It says its partners bring decades of big agency and big brand work, and that its client base has ranged from food brands and property developers to schools, regional development bodies, banks and pet care businesses. Partners are said to have won industry awards and appeared in trade publications for their campaigns.

Work for a range of clients

The firm states that it gives every client its best thinking, whether the project is a first commission or a repeat one. Recent work on the site includes branding and campaign projects for consumer brands, and the firm describes its own culture as one that works hard, values partnerships with like-minded clients and seeks emotional connections with audiences.

Fechtor Advertising is an advertising and branding firm in Columbus, Ohio. Its partners bring years of big agency and big brand experience, delivered through a smaller team with fewer steps between idea and finished work.

Products and services

• Advertising: television, video, social and web campaigns built on a clear strategy.
• Branding and brand strategy: defining how people think and feel about a company.
• Digital marketing and design: websites, landing pages and graphic design.
• Video production: filmed content for campaigns.
• Copywriting and content: written material for corporate and retail clients.

Who it serves

Clients in food and beverage, real estate development, education, economic development, financial services and animal care, among other categories.

Key facts

• Based in: Columbus, Ohio, USA
• Leadership: partner-owned, with strategy, art direction and copywriting led by its principals