We ground everything in human understanding.

What we do

Spark + Cinder is a creative strategic consultancy that provides a range of services to help drive businesses through understanding consumers.

Service Gallery

Consumer Research

The best way to know your audience is by talking directly with them via focus groups, surveys, ethnographies, interviews and user testing. We can help with everything from structuring your research to moderating to analyzing the findings.

Brand strategy

What does your brand mean to people? Can you stand for something bigger? We identify your strengths to tell a unique story that truly resonates with your target and moves them to action.

Competitive Analysis

Categories are exploding with new forms of competition yet most ‘advertising’ is still filled with predictable tropes. We can differentiate your brand by finding a white space in the category that’s right for you.

Marketing and Communication

There is a method to the madness. We can help prioritize initiatives, structure communication across the right channels and apply strategic planning for both the short and long term.

Creative evaluation and implications

All creative is not created equal. We leverage our consumer expertise to help determine what messaging is most relevant, what consumer needs are being met through journey mapping and what values need to be highlighted.

General Research

Data is everywhere, but it means nothing if you can’t glean powerful insights from it. We cast a wide net to find data and narrow it down to what’s most helpful for your brand and audience.

Cultural relevance & Trend analysis

What are the kids into these days? It’s a waste to craft a brilliant message that falls on deaf ears – or worse: it blows up on Twitter. We “know what’s up” and can explain why it matters.

Not sure where to start?

Something we missed? Every situation is different, let’s talk it through and see what makes sense for your pet unicorn.

"A point of view can be a dangerous luxury when substituted for insight and understanding."

- Marshall McLuhan

Research + Insights

Listening to people is the best way to get to know them, but it also helps to pay attention to what they don’t say. Every individual is unique and full of contradictions, so while every person’s opinion is valid, we also have to look at the broader picture. Examining culture at large brings underlying themes to light. Whether across regional borders or generations, every group holds up a mirror to their particular culture. When we layer on things like psychology and behavior analysis, insights really start to sizzle. To break it down even further and “check our work” we look to metaphors, symbolism and storytelling to prove what our collective unconscious is trying to tell us. Surveys help too.

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