Roma Singhal · Brand and creative strategist · Sydney
Brand and creative strategy services
Brand, creative and pitch strategy for agencies, brands and founders across AUNZ, APAC, ASEAN, MENA and India. I’m an EFFIE Gold-winning strategist with 20+ years at Ogilvy, McCann, BBDO, Publicis Groupe and American Express, now working independently from Sydney.
Brand strategy + creative strategy
What brand and creative strategy includes
Brand strategy decides who your brand is for, what it stands for and the space it will own. Creative strategy turns that into work people notice: the insight, the proposition and the brief that gets great ideas made. Most briefs need both, and I do both, so nothing gets lost between the strategy deck and the campaign.
Brand strategy
- Brand positioning and brand platforms
- Brand architecture and naming
- Audience, category and consumer insight
- Purpose, values and tone of voice
Creative strategy
- Campaign insight and single-minded proposition
- Creative briefs that inspire teams
- Pitch strategy for agencies
- Channel, content and launch strategy
New to the difference? Read brand strategy vs creative strategy.
Two ways to work with me
Choose how we build your strategy
Every project follows the Smiling Strategist Framework©: the same 4 stages, 8 steps and senior thinking. You choose the format: a classic strategy project, or the Brand Game™ way, where your team plays the journey.
Option 1
Classic strategy project
I do the deep thinking with you and your team, then hand over a strategy you can run with.
- Research, immersion and stakeholder interviews
- Insight, positioning and strategic idea
- A sharp creative brief, presented and handed over
Option 2
My gamified method
The Brand Game™ way
Your brand is a game. Play it to win.
Your team plays through Brand Game™ challenges built around your real brand problem, with me as game master. You get the same strategy outputs, co-created by your team, plus a team that has learned to think strategically.
Real brand, real challenges
Community leaderboard
Strategy your team owns
The Brand Game way is currently available for clients in Australia.
What I can do for you
Pick one service or combine them. Work is quoted by day, by project or as monthly strategy hours.
Happy Strategy Projects
Brand and creative strategy
Positioning, brand platforms, brand architecture, naming and creative briefs, for brand, cultural, creative, digital, design or PR briefs.
Happy Strategy Pitches
Pitch strategy
A senior strategist on your pitch team: framing the problem, finding the insight and building the strategic story, on a budget that works.
Happy Strategy Insights
Consumer and cultural insights
Sharp cultural, consumer, category, company and connections insights, written so a creative team can brief from them.
Happy Strategy Hours
Monthly strategy hours
Top up your strategy team with a set number of senior hours each month for ad hoc briefs.
Happy Strategy Workshops
Strategy workshops
Hands-on workshops that build your team’s strategy skills, from storytelling to Millennial and Gen Z insight.
Happy Strategy Mentoring
Mentoring
One-to-one mentoring for strategists and professionals, guided by the Mojomover, a 12-session personal growth process.
Fractional strategy director
Ongoing senior strategy leadership for your agency or brand, without a full-time hire.
Brand consulting
Brand audits, positioning, brand architecture, naming and brand platforms for businesses and founders.
APAC and India
Brand strategy for brands moving between AUNZ, APAC, ASEAN, MENA and India.
Ways to start
Not sure where to begin? Start small.
Each of these is a focused, fixed-scope way to start working together. Every brief is different, so we’ll agree the scope and fee on a short call.
Brief doctor
48 hours
Best for: marketing managers and agencies with a brief that isn’t working
- Send me one creative or agency brief
- I rewrite it: the real problem, the insight, a single-minded proposition
- 30-minute call to walk you through it
Brand health check
1 week
Best for: founders who feel something is off but can’t say what
- Review of your brand, competitors and communications
- Scored report with your top 5 fixes
- 60-minute walkthrough call
Strategy day
1 day
Best for: founders and marketing teams who need to align fast
- A facilitated day on brand, audience and messaging
- Your team shapes the answer, so they own it
- A one-page strategy on a page to take away
Positioning sprint
2 weeks
Best for: brands that need a sharper, more ownable position
- Stakeholder workshop
- Competitor and customer scan
- One-page positioning statement and brand idea
Pitch strategy sprint
5 days
Best for: agencies with a pitch to win
- Problem framing and the insight
- The strategic story
- Strategy slides for the pitch
Market-entry snapshot
2 weeks
Best for: brands entering AUNZ, APAC, ASEAN, MENA or India
- Category, culture and competitor snapshot
- What to adapt and what to keep
- Positioning options for the new market
Specialist strategy
Specialist strategy, when you need depth
Beyond brand and creative strategy, I bring specialist expertise built over 20+ years across AUNZ, APAC, ASEAN, MENA and India, often in partnership with agencies.
Digital, social and ecommerce
- Digital strategy
- Social media strategy
- Influencer strategy
- Ecommerce strategy
- Content strategy
- Media and channel strategy
Proof: digital strategy for IBM, Hilton and Kodak across ASEAN; SingTel’s first social listening; Intel’s influencer strategy for three years; ecommerce strategy for Kitco’s Bliss, Bliss Pro, Stix and Nice in Kuwait; brand and media strategy for Netflix’s Back to the Outback. I also teach social media strategy at Miami Ad School.
Launch and innovation
- Launch strategy
- Innovation and new product strategy
- Naming and brand architecture
- Design strategy
Proof: Yellow Tail’s light wine launch, the AirAsia relaunch in Australia, Bundaberg new product development, brand architecture for Mad Paws, and naming for Bunnings’ new outdoor brand.
Shopper and experiential
- Shopper and retail strategy
- Experiential and activation strategy
- Events and conference strategy
Proof: shopper strategy for Diageo, Lavazza, PepsiCo and St Hugo; activations for Westpac, Foxtel and Sydney Water; the experiential strategy for VMware’s “Make Your Mark” conference.
Insight and effectiveness
- Consumer and cultural insight
- Research, trends and foresight
- Behavioural science and AI in marketing
- Effectiveness and award entries
Proof: ethnographic research for Bellamy’s Organic; cultural research for Moccona and Steadfast; an AI-driven consumer profiling tool; EFFIE Gold winner, EFFIE Australia judge, and Red Rock Deli’s EFFIE submissions.
How we’ll work together
- Free 15-minute call. You tell me about the brief, the brand and the deadline.
- Proposal and quote. I suggest the right scope and quote by day, by project or as monthly hours.
- Immersion and strategy. Research, insight and strategic thinking, shared with your team as it develops.
- Handover. A clear strategy and creative brief your team can run with, plus support as the work develops.
Across AUNZ, APAC, ASEAN, MENA and India
I’ve led strategy inside agencies in Sydney, Singapore and Mumbai, and worked on briefs for AUNZ, ASEAN, MENA, India and 51 APAC markets. That helps when a brand is moving into a new market, adapting a global platform, or speaking to Australia’s multicultural audiences. See markets and work →
Thought leadership and writing
I write opinion pieces and trade articles for agency leaders, founders and marketers who want to be known for a point of view. My own writing has appeared in Campaign Brief, AdNews and B&T, and I have written guest articles for Manifest.
- Point of view: a strategy session to define what you should be known for.
- Articles: I write the piece with your input, in your voice, for publication under your name.
- Placement advice: which trade titles suit the piece and how to pitch it. Editors decide what they publish, so placement isn’t guaranteed.
What clients say
She deep dives quickly and sifts through data to pull out key cultural insights and category trends. She’s agile and pivots quickly when needed. She was a great asset in helping us frame our approach and in providing us with different ways we could come at the brand positioning.
Lavinia Thurairatnam, Chief Client Officer, Leo Burnett, Sydney
Roma’s brand strategy for Circular Plastics Australia was an invaluable contribution to the project. Her work was very clear, stringent and encompassing. It really helped bring many moving parts together to create a singular positioning to work from.
Gabrielle Peters, Impact Strategist, Republic of Everyone, Sydney
I had the pleasure of working with her on a cultural insighting project, and the insights she provided were both refreshing and invaluable. Her findings significantly enriched our new business pitch.
Lachlan Gill, Founder, Seen Agency
Roma is not only talented but also incredibly respectful and collaborative. She understands the dynamics of working with agency teams and seamlessly integrates as a valued partner in our projects.
Nicola Richards, Director Creative Services ANZ, SGK
Questions
How do you charge?
By day, by project or as monthly strategy hours, depending on the brief. Book a free 15-minute call and I’ll send a quote.
Can you join our agency team for a pitch?
Yes. Pitch strategy is one of my most requested services. I can work as part of your team, under your agency’s name.
Do you work with clients outside Sydney?
Yes. I work with agencies and brands across AUNZ, APAC, ASEAN, MENA and India, and on global briefs, remotely or in person.
What will I get at the end?
A clear strategy your team can act on: usually the insight, positioning or strategic idea, and a creative brief, presented and handed over to your team.
How soon can you start?
It depends on current projects. Book a call and I’ll confirm availability for your timeline.
Can I hire you as a freelance strategist?
Yes. Agencies often bring me in as an independent or freelance strategist for pitches and busy periods, by the day or by the project. For ongoing leadership, see fractional strategy director.
What is the difference between brand strategy and creative strategy?
Brand strategy is the compass: what the brand stands for, who it is for and why it matters. Creative strategy is the sail: the insight, idea and brief that bring the brand to life in campaigns. I do both, so the thinking joins up.
Read more
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“A brilliant strategic mind, and takes a rigorous and well thought through approach to each brief.”
Daye Moffitt, Executive Strategy Director APAC, Landor & Fitch, Sydney
EFFIE Gold winner · EFFIE Australia judge · 20+ years at Ogilvy, McCann, BBDO and Publicis Groupe
