Aeronautical Financial Ireland (AFI) is an international finance start-up with a specialist focus on aviation leasing and helicopters in particular. For their senior management team, we partnered with Tobin Web Design to deliver a complete market entry communications strategy. Thanks to a clear brand strategy including naming, identity and digital, this new market entrant arrived at a whole new level.
Our client knew that because Irish aviation leasing was one of the most respected markets worldwide, a stand-out and unique identity was crucial for the Irish market. In fact, by developing a memorable brand with a clear identity, AFI could position itself as a key player in the Irish aviation leasing sector. Ireland’s location also ensured easier connectivity with American, European, and Asian markets. This process began with naming and they needed a solid brand name and identity that would establish AFI as a trusted service provider. And this would help them build connections and relationships with prospective clients and industry figures in Ireland. AFI also wanted to define a core story and philosophy on which to base this identity. A new website would then bring this personality to the digital world where being found easily through a first-class SEO strategy was a top priority – while also identifying the company as experts in the field of helicopter leasing. AFI were aware of the sector-specific expertise within our team at Ultra Design and they chose us to deliver this full suite of services in just 6 weeks.
Our work kicked-off with a brand sprint workshop and full collaboration with their senior management team. These sessions helped us fully understand the real challenges of new-market entry in this sector – as well as making sure we understood the key issues facing the industry as a whole. In turn, this allowed us to identify that unique brand position in the mind of our audience that would help them stand-out from the competition. Following our workshop and the competitor analysis that followed, we began the brand-naming process using our tried-and-tested creative approach. Once complete, our brand identity work moved into top gear and we set about developing a look-and-feel which demonstrated the company’s ambition and presence with purpose. Additional stationery in the form of business cards gave this emerging brand the confidence to start trading in their new territory. For the final, digital phase of the project, we built a lightning-fast, compelling website that delivered a first-class user experience. SEO Copywriting played a key role in delivering exceptional search-engine visibility. The site itself was built on the award-winning Webflow CMS, which allowed the client to update content as they needed to.
The key to successful market entry for AFI was building trust and a clear connection from the start. Stand-out branding and identity provided a solid foundation in the Irish market, enabling the company to start building market presence with clarity and conviction. And with a project timeframe of just 6 weeks, AFI got to market with remarkable efficiency and impact. Senior executives were very satisfied with the professionalism, creativity and expertise supplied by Ultra Design on this project. The SEO strategy proved very successful with initial statistics showing the site was being found easily by all search engines, ranking highly for the right search terms – and this continued to grow week-on-week.
