Bravery. Innovation. Authenticity. Does your brand have all 3? With Chris Danton & Kirsten Ludwig
As a part of our quest to champion purpose-driven entrepreneurs across the world here is the story of Christine Danton & Kirsten Ludwig, the seventh of our Humans of Happy Startups Series.
The Happy Startup School first met Chris & Kirsten at our Summercamp 2016. We were inspired by the duo’s purposeful agency — In Good Co. set up to turn the agency model on it’s head, and love their energy. Listen to their story…
Christine Danton & Kirsten Ludwig
Co-founders of In Good Co.
Based in Los Angeles, CA
Tell us what your personal driving force was behind setting up your culture-conscious brand consultancy, In Good Co?
We wanted to start IN GOOD CO because we had various experiences in the agency and brand world and nothing lived up to the way we envisioned it. We were as interested in working with great brands and clients to create thoughtful, purposeful and impactful work as we were about turning the agency model on its head.
We want to prove you can start with the opposite of what everyone tells you — the inspiration, the space, a great team — and the numbers would follow.
You’ve worked with some big Fortune 500s and small startups in your careers which makes me curious to hear what the magic ingredient is for building a great brand. Is there a magic ingredient??
Bravery. Innovation. Authenticity. Having a larger purpose than whatever you are selling. And not be an asshole.
Have you seen startups make any branding mistakes? How can we avoid them?
Of course, but they also sometimes do incredible things because they don’t have the baggage of “how it’s been done before”.
The biggest thing is really understanding how powerful a brand can be and knowing you need to start with that. Ultimately, it is all about brand and product no matter what you are doing, making or creating. You only get one chance to put it out there and make an impact. Don’t discount and assume it will come later, as everything you are putting out there is your brand, whether you know it or not.
What are your thoughts on the relationship between branding and marketing.
Brand is the living, breathing external soul of the company. Marketing is really how you express that. For us, we opt to bypass proper “marketing”. The best marketing is a good brand experience. And everything the brand does, says and is to a customer should be an experience.
Have there been any pivotal hurdles thrown at you since you began In Good Company, what did you learn from it?
YES! We will write a book on it one day, but most of it has taught us what not to do. Know your purpose, question everything, try harder than everyone else.
Finally, I’d love to hear what an average day looks like for you. How do you stay motivated, energized and connected with friends and family?
Honestly, we love what we do. The team. Our clients. We are excited to get up every day and do what we do.
As a company, we prioritize inspiration and make it a daily conversation so it’s never forgotten. When it comes to family, we both try to be as present as possible. Our families are an extension of us and we honor that as part of the company, there’s a lot of support within the team and within our policies to support that side of ourselves. It takes work though, don’t be fooled!
Thanks so much for sharing your insights Chris & Kirsten!
At The Happy Startup School we help startups make those important first steps to release their brand to the world. If you enjoyed this post, please click that little green heart and follow our Humans of Happy Startups publication.
