1558 Brand Agency
Celebrating Five Years as Ellis County’s Full-Service Marketing Agency
The Beginning of a Full-Service Marketing Agency
The Client
From Partners in Life to Partners in Business
When Meredith and Peter Chase started 1558 Brand Agency in 2018, it came down to several factors. At the top of the list was a desire to not only work together in their life as a married couple, but as business partners.
Meredith came from a strong marketing background, working as a marketing executive and strategist at various companies. With strengths in writing and communications, Peter had an extensive education and content development background. Together, they complemented and balanced each other, and knew they could build an impactful marketing agency as partners and co-leaders.
Focusing on distinct areas across branding, communications, and operations, they’ve grown their marketing agency and reputation over time, powered by their unique skill sets and shared vision.
The Challenge
Motivated to Serve Ellis County
As longtime residents in Midlothian, Meredith and Peter also witnessed firsthand the staggering economic growth in Ellis County, and the number of new locally-owned businesses and organizations in the area. Without a single full-service marketing agency serving the region, they knew these businesses weren’t getting the awareness and exposure they needed to reach their full potential.
That’s why they decided to create a marketing one-stop-shop that fills a gap and meets the marketing needs of businesses locally and nationwide. 1558 serves as a strategic partner to clients by providing solutions across all aspects of marketing, including developing and implementing creative elements, messaging, integrated communications, and social/digital media strategy. Knowing that businesses and organizations often cannot cover everything needed for comprehensive communications, they saw an opportunity to use their talents to help meet those needs.
Combined with a drive to be selective and purposeful in their work, they knew it was time to create an agency focused on impact in the community.
The Strategy
An Agency Based on Intention
It was essential to Meredith and Peter to lead an agency based on intentionality, meaning 1558 would never execute projects simply to check a box. They didn’t want their agency to run on autopilot or mindlessly follow marketing trends; they wanted to customize their work to their clients’ needs to make the greatest impact.
This core belief has led to a unique hiring model, in which they base their hiring and team building on the needs of their clients in real-time, allowing them to provide precise professional services. This method ensures they are not implementing a one-size-fits-all approach, and can offer services across the marketing spectrum based on what will drive growth and results for each client.
1558 also builds adaptability into their processes. If something does not work for any given project, they are more than willing to reassess and pivot their marketing approach, ensuring they never lock clients into a project if changes are necessary. This focus on intention allows them to be a true partner to their clients.
Relationships for the Long-Term
Relationship-building has always been pivotal to the agency. Meredith and Peter knew they would better understand who organizations are at their core and develop higher-quality marketing strategies if they invested their time in truly getting to know them. Their desire to drive success by having genuine relationships with all of their clients is why they’ve built regular communication into their processes.
Over the years, building trust has resulted in several long-term clients. For example, 1558 Brand Agency started in 2018 with four initial clients who are still with them today! Many of their clients are under a retainer arrangement renewed yearly. This willingness to return for additional projects and continue a partnership speaks to the trust these clients feel regarding 1558’s processes, team, and results.
“From the beginning, we wanted to be an agency built on relationships. We never wanted to grow in a way that meant clients and owners didn’t know us, or we didn’t know them. We always believed that good work comes from kindness, regular communication, and building trust.”
- Meredith Chase, CEO, Brand and Marketing, 1558 Brand Agency
Strategy Sessions That Go the Extra Mile
The strategy session is another crucial component that Meredith and Peter implemented into their processes. For every client, 1558 holds a strategy session with the client’s team, enabling them to draw out information about the organization with strategic questions and creative brainstorming.
It’s a collaborative process that helps 1558 uncover who the client is, and often results in discussions that the organization themselves have never had! These one-on-one strategy sessions help 1558 pin down each organization’s positioning, audience, goals, and more, so they can develop a custom marketing and/or branding strategy that is results-oriented and aligns with their clients’ ambitions and identity.
1558 implemented these strategy sessions for every client from the start, and believes they are crucial to their approach and outlook.
The Results
The agency is proud of the success stories they’ve shared with all kinds of local Ellis County organizations, and the ways they’ve been able to help others in the process across non-profits, established businesses, and startups.
1558’s focus on results and strategy has led to growth for many of these organizations, and they have even assisted several clients with job listings to help them keep up with their growth and expansion.
In total, 1558 served 75 clients over the past five years, with more than 420 individual projects. These figures reflect the long-term relationships they have built within the community and the number of clients that trust 1558 to deliver results through impactful marketing and branding.
“Being a true partner to our employees and clients defines 1558 Brand Agency and has led to so many impactful projects and relationships over the years. Happiness turned into success: that’s what it’s always been about.”