Our Approach - Counterpoint Creative Solutions

Principles

What guides the work

Every project opens with the outcome, not the output. If the objective is unclear we spend the first session on that and nothing else.

Rules, templates and written guidance outlive any single campaign. We hand over the system, not just the artwork.

You will see why a direction was taken, with the alternatives shown, so you can disagree with reasons rather than taste.

If we set metrics at the start, we report against those metrics at the end — including when the answer is unflattering.

Files, edits and ownership are decided at the start so nothing is locked in a format you cannot open.

Timelines are written down with dependencies. When something slips, you hear about it the same day.

In practice

Principles are only worth writing down if they change what happens on a Tuesday afternoon. These are the three that come up most often.

We show the alternatives. When a direction is proposed, the options we rejected are shown beside it. Clients can then disagree with the reasoning rather than the taste.
We write the tone down with examples. Every positioning project ends with one sentence in the brand voice and one clearly off-brand sentence, side by side.
We decide the handover on day one. File formats, edit access and ownership are agreed before production, so nothing is stranded in a format you cannot open.

Decision making

A simple four-step sequence, used on every piece of work.

Written down and agreed before anything is designed. If it cannot be stated in one sentence, we work on that first.

One recommended route with its reasoning, plus what was considered and set aside.

Each element is checked against the agreed objective, audience and tone rather than personal preference.

The choice and the reason are noted, so the same discussion does not reopen in three months.

If these principles match how you want a creative project to run, send us a brief.