Financial & Banking Brand Marketing

Branding for Community Banks & Credit Unions

We know these institutions inside and out—because we’ve helped redefine what they mean to their members. From First Federal’s headquarters launch and brand evolution in McMinnville to Community First Bank’s expansion across state lines, we don’t just design logos. We dig deep into persona development, conduct brand and competitive audits, and shape narratives that balance tradition with ambition. Whether it’s a century-old bank or a new player entering the market, we build brands that are rooted in authenticity but speak clearly to the future.

Our work with Northwest Credit Union and TwinStar—culminating in their merger and the creation of PEAK Credit Union—was more than a naming exercise. It was about stitching together shared values, shaping a new voice, and establishing a scalable system for more than 80 branches. We take mergers personally because your customers do. These brands are not just financial institutions; they’re trusted neighbors, business enablers, and safety nets. We honor that responsibility while making sure the brand is set up to compete—and win—in a digital-first world.

Marketing Campaigns That Drive Engagement

From Umpqua Bank’s dual-track B2B and B2C campaigns to Capital One’s national loyalty and rewards strategies, our work blends behavior-driven creative with measurable outcomes. These aren’t campaigns built for awards—they’re designed for audiences. For CCCU, we launched workplace-targeted activations tailored specifically to employees of Adidas, Columbia Sportswear, and Daimler. That meant working closely with HR teams to meet people where they already are—on internal networks, at staff events, and even in how they onboard.

At Bank of Marin, we turned small business success stories into brand ambassadors for personal and commercial banking. Every campaign is rooted in research—whether that’s stakeholder interviews, employee surveys, or consumer testing. That insight drives not just message and media, but the nuance needed to speak across multiple markets and community profiles. We believe creative only matters when it connects, and connection only matters when it creates movement.

Fintech & Financial Services Innovation

Fintech moves fast—and if your brand can’t keep up, your users won’t either. That’s why we work at the intersection of design thinking and financial functionality. With CapStack, we built a brand and platform from scratch, helping them go to market as the first bank-to-bank loan marketplace. From naming and positioning to interface and onboarding flows, we created a system that feels as solid and trusted as the institutions it serves—but with the clarity and energy of a startup.

For Fidelity National Title, we developed the inHere platform—turning a traditionally paper-heavy, opaque process into a transparent, guided digital experience. We designed everything from the UX to the internal sales toolkits to rollout campaigns for real estate brokers and banking professionals. It’s not about making a slick app. It’s about making tools people actually want to use, and building the brand trust that keeps them coming back.

M&A, Naming, and Strategic Growth Initiatives

In financial services, growth isn’t always linear—it often happens through mergers, acquisitions, and internal evolution. That’s where strategic brand thinking makes or breaks momentum. When Northwest Credit Union and TwinStar came together, we created the PEAK Credit Union name to carry forward both legacy and ambition. That brand is now poised to unify over 80 retail locations across the Pacific Northwest.

We’ve also supported venture-backed firms like WRVI, helping them build a brand that was both credible in the present and desirable for acquisition. The result? A successful sale into Celesta Capital. For Lewis & Clark Bank, we embraced their founder story and helped them coin “Bankapreneurs”—a name and narrative that captured exactly who they are: entrepreneurs who know the stakes because they’ve lived them. Names matter. But what matters more is the context you create around them. That’s where brands either stand still—or stand apart.