Strategy and voice for an innovative chess brand
Working as both brand strategist and copywriter, we helped the NY-based creative agency Otherward develop and hone both the positioning and voice for their wildly innovative chess brand, Nymzo.
The Brief
Tagging in as a strategist on Otherward's first-ever physical product launch, Nymzo, we assisted the internal team with market research, brand and competitive positioning, and voice development.
The Approach
For these campaigns we played a true utility role as producer, director, and editor. Not only did we manage all aspects of production — from location scouting and permitting to equipment sourcing, security, and on-set art direction — but also directed the shoots and edited the videos.
The Outcome
The result was a comprehensive analysis identifying dominant and emerging competitors and positioning Nymzo as the chess set of choice for discerning players who yearn for a more aesthetic and functional chess set. We also developed voice guidelines to set Nymzo apart from the otherwise stodgy world of chess brands.
“Steve's insights gave us clarity at a time when everything felt up in the air. What a relief. He also just so happened to be a true pleasure to work with throughout the project. Grade-A human with talent to boot.”
Chess as a category has been frozen aesthetically for about a century, which is both why this was hard and why it was fun. The work was less about positioning Nymzo against competitors and more about noticing the small permissions chess players had quietly been giving themselves to want something different.