DDB Canada is embarking on a national rollout for DDB Ignite, its accelerator model for startups, after successfully piloting the program in its Vancouver office for more than three years.
Ignite uses DDB’s various brand-building resources including Tribal Worldwide Canada and Karacters Design Group, to help launch what it describes as “disruptive” startups in exchange for an equity stake in the business.
In addition to Vancouver, DDB Canada plans to work with startups in Edmonton, Montreal and Toronto. DDB Canada president and chief operating officer Lance Saunders tells Marketing the company will work with two-to-three startups per office per year.
“We want to make sure we work with [companies] that have the greatest chance for success and that we have a great understanding of,” says Saunders. “We’ve seen some incredible product ideas in sectors like mining and oil and gas, but it’s less our area of expertise. [Working with companies in a consumer category] makes it easier for us to apply that expertise.”
A made-in-Canada business unit, Ignite grew out of the agency’s involvement with the University of British Columbia’s e@UBC program, which works with entrepreneurs to provide guidance for everything from ideation to business model creation and company building. DDB Canada’s Vancouver office provided internships for students enrolled in the program.
“It was great for us to see new emerging technologies and see how enthusiastic people are when they’re starting up companies and watch them iterate and beta test their ideas and products really quickly,” says Saunders.
Ignite provides startups with branding, design and communication expertise and mentorship through a three-tiered program: Brand Founding Workshop, Brand Inflection Project and Brand Growth Partnership.
The Brand Founding Workshop is a free day-long session for validated startups aimed at helping them build a communications strategy capable of driving business growth. More than 25 ventures have participated in the program to date, says Saunders.
The Brand Inflection Project supports startups ready to scale up their business through a strategic partnership with Discover House Media, which provides media placement in exchange for an equity stake or deferred payment. DDB is the official creative agency for Discover House Media’s Inflection Program.
In the Brand Growth Partnership stage, DDB Canada provides access to the resources of a full service agency in exchange for an equity stake in the company. DDB develops a communications strategy focusing on early adoption and advocacy from seed customers and influencers.
Ignite has worked with several fledgling businesses since its inception, including brand positioning and creating a pitch and story for the nanny/babysitter finding service MyBestHelper.com, as well as information architecture, web design and build for the supplemental education provider STEM Village.
It provides its services in exchange for deferred fees, equity in the company and what it describes as valuable exposure to innovative new ideas and “category breaking” businesses.
Saunders says Ignite isn’t expecting to invest in the next Uber, but didn’t rule out aligning with a potentially lucrative startup. “We’re not betting that this is going to make our financials for the year, but in 2017 or 2018 we might have a really nice surprise,” he says.
He says one of the benefits is the agency’s exposure to the “fail faster” model employed by modern entrepreneurs. “What we’ve done is taken some of that thinking and applied it to some of our clients, saying ‘We can do new product development faster if we wish,’” he says. “Most of our clients have a systematic way of going to market that’s been in place for the last 20-30 years, so this is quite interesting.”
Saunders says working with entrepreneurs also provides valuable insight into how fast products can be developed and taken to market. “Some of the people we embedded in our company were with us for eight weeks, and they went from concept to product development to getting venture capital money in that time and we’re saying ‘We’re still working on the brief and creative development.’
“You cant’ help but think we really have to re-think how we’re doing it.”
In addition to e@UBC, DDB Ignite has also formed alliances with local business accelerators BC Tech Association, Startup Edmonton and Ontario Centres of Excellence, and is currently seeking a Montreal business accelerator to partner with.
The next series of Brand Founding Workshops take place in Vancouver, Edmonton, Montreal and Toronto this fall. DDB Canada is inviting would-be entrepreneurial partners to visit the DDB Ignite website to learn more about the venture and determine which of the Brand Founding Workshops best suit their needs.
