High Tide
Evolving a creative agency's identity through a unified brand system that better reflects its purpose, people, and portfolio
Role: Strategy Intern
Tasks: Competitive audit, information architecture, stakeholder workshops, positioning, wireframe, content structure planning
Duration: June 2025 - Present
Tools: Figma, Notion, Otter
Context
High Tide is a full-service strategy and design studio, based in New York, and the agency had last updated its website in 2018. The existing site no longer effectively balanced the needs of prospective collaborators with the studio’s evolving style and identity, creating a disconnect between external expectations and internal vision.
Approach
As a summer intern, I joined the team working to redesign the website. The initial phase involved a strategic deep dive to clearly define High Tide’s authentic identity and how it aligns with client expectations, competitor positioning, and the broader cultural context—laying the foundation for a website that better reflects where the studio stands today.
What I did
Competitive Landscape Audit
I conducted a comprehensive competitive audit and current site analysis to identify gaps and opportunities. By comparing competitor websites, I highlighted missing or underrepresented content on the site, using those insights to guide strategic improvements. To support ongoing decision-making, I built databases tracking competitor positioning and categorizing internal case studies by scope and industry.
Restructure and Refocus
I redeveloped the site map and consolidated priorities based on strategic importance and implementation difficulty. I presented a research-backed roadmap for the refresh to the leadership team, outlining initial recommendations across site structure, user experience, content, and visual design.
Refine Positioning and Capabilities
I guided internal workshops to define the agency’s capabilities and perspective to shape a refreshed positioning based on client needs, category trends, company values, and cultural context. I also developed a case study wireframe designed to effectively showcase High Tide’s strategic offerings and diverse project portfolio.
Next Steps
As the project progresses into its next phases, we plan to collaborate closely with the design team on a brand sprint to shape the component library. At the same time, we’ll continue refining the navigation structure and narrative architecture to clearly communicate who High Tide is and what they offer.