CLIENT
Swift Collective
SERVICES
Brand Identity
Brand Storytelling
Messaging
COLLABORATORS
Liz Valentine
Alicia McVey
Maren Reed
Paul Wille
Building the vision, voice and values for an innovative creative agency.
As a partner and creative leader at Swift, Rick helped shape the agency’s iconic branding and culture. In 2006, when the two founders opened shop, He was the first addition to the creative team, writing, illustrating, and leading creative for early clients like Nike and Starbucks. The agency grew in size and prestige over the next 15 years with Rick as Executive Creative Director and finally Chief Creative Officer. His vision for the brand, values and culture helped establish Swift as one of the premiere social media agencies in the country—and a company people loved being part of.
Swiftology
The five agency partners started with their own list of values for the company, but quickly realized how essential it was to have staff contribute what was most important to them. Over the years this list crystallized to eight truths, each accompanied by a brightly-colored flag that hung in the atrium at the building’s entrance.
Not a wall.
In 2016, the presidential election rocked the agency. The country was divided and conversations about “building walls” dominated the news cycle. Swift leadership formed a committee to create a public work of art addressing this, resulting in “Not a Wall,” a manifesto written in two parts on the corner of the Swift studio that reads as a single statement of welcome when put together.
Branding and Messaging
Throughout Swift’s existence, the brand was known for elevated aesthetics and sharp messaging. As a strategic leader and thoughtful storyteller, Rick was a steward for the company’s cutting-edge point of view. Rooted in social, but built to deliver premium campaign content, Swift was “A creative agency for a social world.” Every brand touchpoint, from pitch decks to social media, communicated that ethos—smart, thoughtful, and ultimately effective.