POSITIONING, COPYWRITING & DESIGN FOR ARCHITECTS
If buildings could talk, we’d be out of a job.
But (luckily for us) your beautiful work can’t speak for itself. You need copy that sells you and your approach.
So the right clients find you
Impatient?
Zip to it:
Our Services
Our Process
Why Nikita
“Gasp! I must hire the architect who designed this beautiful edifice!”
— No client ever ( at least, if your initials aren’t F.L.W.)
Thanks to Google, potential clients are finding your website. But what are they finding ON your website?
99% OF ARCHITECTURE WEBSITES LOOK AND SOUND THE SAME:
“We are an award-winning, multidisciplinary studio with… [insert more generic copy that lacks strategic direction here].”
^ Put that on a stark white background with a few aerial photos, and there you have it — every architecture firm’s website, created 5 years ago, and never updated since.
Here’s the problem:
#1
Your website is just a project portfolio with not a single word in sight…
#2
Your website has copy, but the messaging feels stale, stuffy, or stilted.
#3
You’d rather go back to Introduction to Revit 101 than hammer out a paragraph on your design approach, client service, and ideal projects…
Then the right clients won’t recognise you even when you’re right in front of them.
To get a steady stream of the work you want, you need to position your practice in its best light. (And who knows more about great light than architects?)
Writing your own website copy can feel like you’re banging your head against a brick wall.
YOU’RE OFTEN “TOO CLOSE” TO YOUR OWN PRACTICE, IT FEELS NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO ARTICULATE WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT YOU STAND FOR.
Like great design, our services are complementary.
Not free — but well worth pairing.
We take on a select number of clients each month for:
Service 01 .
Core Positioning
Service 02 .
Website Messaging and Copywriting
Service 03 .
Visual Branding & Website Design
There’s beauty in the details.
SEE HOW WE CAN HELP BELOW, OR GET IN TOUCH HERE.
Brand Messaging Guide
For when you need to get clarity on your messaging and positioning so you can attract more aligned clients.
Together, we get clear on who you work with, how you solve their problems, and how you do it differently (aka you X factor).
Think of the brand messaging guide as your “guiding light” — you can refer to it when making business decisions, hiring new talent, or communicating to clients. It will ensure brand messaging consistency, which’ll lead to greater trust and confidence amongst prospective and existing clients.
Unlike generic brand guides, everything in this PDF is actionable. I promise it won’t collect digital dust.
Perfect for you if:
- Your firm looks, feels, and sounds the same as every other architecture firm.
- You know the power of a consistent brand message but don’t know how to identify or clearly communicate it
- You don’t know what you really stand for (… perhaps you’ve lost sight of what it stands for or your firm in moving into a new chapter) and want to move in the right direction
- You want to simplify your marketing efforts (get to your brand messaging strategy right and marketing becomes A LOT easier!)
- You’re establishing a new firm and want to lay a solid brand messaging foundation.
PACKAGE INCLUDES:
- Questionnaire
- In-depth Research & Discovery (includes interviewing past clients)
- 90-min Discovery Workshop
- Brand Messaging Guide:
- Brand promise — your purpose
- Idea client profile — who you’re targeting
- Brand values — your beliefs & what they look like in action
- X factor — the one thing you stand for
- Elevator pitch — summary of your value
- Tone of voice — summary of what you sound like
- 60-min brand messaging strategy presentation & Q&A
- Recording of the presentation
Website Messaging & Copywriting
For strong positioning, memorable messaging, and website copy that attracts (and converts) the right clients.
You need to pull together all your ideas and notes to create a clear, cohesive message — but you don’t have the time or headspace, or perhaps writing is not your strength. Let me take the reins. I’ll craft clear, engaging website copy that makes your firm unforgettable — so you can ditch mediocre projects and get a steady stream of your dream projects. I only take on one website copywriting project at a time so I can give you my full attention… so this means I only have scope for 7 or 8 a year.
Perfect for you if:
- You’re about to refresh your website and have the visuals sorted, but the website messaging is lacking.
- You haven’t updated your website copy in a long time and your message doesn’t align to your firm.
- You know what you want to say… but don’t know how to say it concisely with the right words.
- You want your ideal clients to think, “I only want to work with this practice” the second they land on your site.
- You keep pining over your competitor’s website and wish yours was half as good.
- You want your website to generate ridiculously good leads. (Say goodbye to tyre-kickers and penny-pinchers.)
PACKAGE INCLUDES:
- Questionnaire
- In-depth Research & Discovery (includes interviewing past clients)
- 90-min Discovery Workshop
- Brand Messaging Guide
- Website copywriting:
- Homepage tagline
- Homepage scrolling content
- About page
- Services
- Process
- Biographies
- Project descriptions
- Contact page
- Footer
- Navigation bar
- Two rounds of revisions
- Professional proofreading
ADDITIONAL ADD-ONS:
Website Design & Direction
Detailed direction for your designer or developers, including navigation, font sizes, and recommendations for layout.
SEO
Collaboration with an SEO expert — to ensure your copy is optimised for the Google gods.
WEBSITE DESIGN & VISUAL BRANDING
For a Pritzker-worthy website design. Available only alongside your website copywriting engagement.
The brand voice guide is a remarkably powerful tool — it’ll help you know what to say, how to say it and how to present it so that it always looks, feels, and sounds like you.
Use the guide yourself or share it with your marketing team, consultants, designers etc. so that everyone can confidently communicate your message, positioning and values with a clear and consistent voice across all your communications — from your website to proposals to social media posts, and award submissions.
Perfect for you if:
- You sound like every other architecture firm (and want to create a unique voice that sounds like “you” and “feels right”)
- You’re clear on your visual identity but haven’t defined your verbal identity
- You want your team to have the tools to make sure your voice is consistent across every communication channel
- You know having a distinctive voice is the key to attracting more aligned clients, but don’t know identify or apply a consistent voice
package includes:
- Questionnaire
- 60-min Discovery Workshop
- Research – analysis of existing marketing material
- Brand voice guide:
- Voice archetypes — defining your voice
- Brand voice pillars — how your brand sounds
- Language & writing guidelines — stylistic choices, grammar, punctuation, etc.
- Tone & style analysis — defining your tone
- Examples of your voice in action
- Additional resources
- Custom Video Walkthrough
- 45-min Q&A video call
Website Audit
For when you need fresh expert eyes on your website messaging, layout, and user experience.
Your gut feeling tells you your website could be improved. My advice: trust your gut. I’ve studied 663 architecture websites, so whether your website is (over)due for a refresh or you’ve just launched a brand-new website, let my expert eyes take an objective look.
I’ll identify potential areas of weakness on your website and give you recommendations on your copy, layout, and user experience. I’ll give you actionable feedback that you (or your designer/developer) can implement quickly and easily.
Perfect for you if:
- You want to add some personality to your website — so you become unforgettable.
- Your website designer wrote placeholder website copy, but it doesn’t truly reflect your practice.
- You keep pining over your competitor’s website and wish yours was half as good.
- You want your website to generate ridiculously good leads. (Say goodbye to carrot-danglers and penny-pinchers.)
package includes:
- Questionnaire
- 45-min Discovery Workshop
- 30-45min page-by-page video walkthrough of your website
- My analysis will focus on:
- Copywriting – how engaging and persuasive is your messaging? (I’ll also include example copy edits.)
- Branding – how does it look and feel?
- Visitor experience – how is the overall navigation and flow? (includes page structure, layout etc.)
- Project portfolio – is the presentation of your projects effective? (includes project storytelling, layout, etc.)
- My analysis will focus on:
- Custom action plan of recommended changes and things to consider, so you know exactly what you need to do to improve your website.
- 45-min post-audit Q&A video call
90-Minute Strategy Session
For when you need quick access to my expertise (without the big investment).
It’s hard to see your firm objectively. (I often run into the same problem with my own business!) Sometimes you need to know if you’re heading in the right direction. During the 90 minutes, you can pick my brain on anything you like. We can discuss bigger-picture things (like what makes your firm different) or the finer details (like what to include on your About page). It’s completely up to you. Whatever we discuss, you’ll walk away from our session with clarity and confidence that you’re moving in the right direction. We’ll map out a clear action plan so you know exactly what you need to do next.
Perfect for you if:
- You need help articulating who you are, what makes your firm different, and your ideal clients.
- You want guidance on your website message.
- You want to work on a specific part of your website (i.e. your about page, homepage etc.)
package includes:
- Questionnaire
- 90-min strategy session via Zoom
- We can discuss things like:
- X Factor: what makes your firm different from any other firm
- Ideal clients: which marketing tactics you need to use to target your ideal clients
- Naming ideas: if you’re starting or thinking about starting your own firm
- Social media strategy: which platforms and what content you should post
- Website messaging: homepage, about page, bio etc.
- Put simply, we can discuss ANYTHING you like
- Recording of our conversation
- A customised action plan
“I think you can help me, but I’m not sure yet.”
THERE’S ONE GREAT WAY TO FIND OUT:
Kind Words
Nikita listens. From the start she listened to our brief, quickly understood how we operate, and wrote about our work in a manner that is consistent with who we are.
We put passion into our work and enjoy working with others who feel the same way. Nikita is a rare find. We love her genuine excitement and enthusiasm. Nikita is very good at what she does and is easy to work with — it’s as simple as that.
JONATHAN RICHARDS
FOUNDER, RICHARDS STANISICH
Kind Words
BRANDS WHO TRUST US
Strategy and intention before a single word.
You wouldn’t start building without a plan. Well, neither do we.
Here’s how we’ll work together:
01 .
02 .
03 .
01 .
Digging deep
Research & Discovery
Before we put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), we spend time laying the foundations. Together, we’ll do a discovery workshop (so we can understand your practice better). We can also interview your past clients, review your existing marketing collateral, study social media/online conversations, and analyse your key competitors.
02 .
Building up
STRATEGy & Creation
Once we’ve got a solid sense of your practice, it’s time to define your positioning, build your strategy, and draft copy that supports the practice YOU want to be running. Should you choose to hire us for design and/or development, our in-house designers will bring your new website live with all the fanfare it deserves.
03 .
Handing over the keys
REVISIONS & DELIVERY
Finally, we’ll go through revisions to ensure everything reads as clear as Philip Johnson’s Glass House. One small request: please stay in touch. Feel free to share the results of our work, ideas for future projects, or photos of shadows falling on your building. (Your partner might not see the beauty, but we do.)
Why us?
TRIED & TESTED INGREDIENTS FOR SUCCESS
Eight reasons why you’ll be glad you chose to work with us:
01 .
I know the ins and outs of the architecture industry.
I have 10+ years in sales, marketing, and communications within the architecture and design industry. I studied 663 architecture websites. (Want to see what I found? See the results here.)
02 .
My years as a sales executive for an architecture magazine equipped me with a secret weapon: I know how to sell creative work (without the sleaze). I know how to persuade prospective clients to hire you with… the right words. In short, I know how to make your practice the ONLY one your ideal clients want to work with.
03 .
I think architects are brilliant. You can “see” spaces that don’t even exist. (Talk about superhuman!) Some days, I’m devouring architecture news, stalking the r/architecture subreddit, and binge-watching YouTube interviews of Bjarke. Other days, I’m on a personal mission to make sure clients see you, value your work, and give you the recognition (and premium fees) you deserve.
04 .
I have a thing for architects.
Just like you only want to work with clients who understand your vision, I only want to work with good humans. If you’re someone who tries to do your best every day, treats others with kindness, and can kill a tub of hummus in one sitting, we’ll get along great.
05 .
You don’t need another document collecting digital dust on your hard drive. Or more generic “marketing advice”. I only deliver personalised strategies that you can *actually* implement and get results from. From the minute you hire me until we’re all finished up — I’ll show up as a member of your team. Someone who is genuinely invested in your success.
06 .
I believe in no empty words. This means every single word I write for you is intentional and grounded in research. I literally call your favourite past clients to get an objective perspective of your practice and to see what language they’re using (so you can get more clients just like them).
07 .
If I think something can be done better, I’ll tell you (in a nice way, of course). I’m a straight shooter and I’ll tell you if you shouldn’t hire me. (But you won’t know until you reach out!)
08 .
I’m flexible.
I’m guessing website copywriting is prioritised on your to-do list somewhere between “get root canal” and “file tax return”. And that’s cool. I get it. But unlike a large copywriting agency, I’m small, nimble, and flexible. (Metaphorically and physically… you saw the image of me doing the splits, right?)
If you’re still here…
we should definitely talk
Keep getting enquiries from brain-pickers and penny-pinchers?
I know why.
I spent 14 months combing through 663 architecture practice websites to find the good, the bad, and the best in our industry. Let me show you what I found — so you can avoid making these mistakes.
Enter your email to get your FREE guide.