How Penji Helped a Small Business Compete With Industry Leaders on a Fraction of the Design Budget

TL;DR – Penji’s graphic design services helped a local coffee shop compete with multi-national coffee companies by producing marketing materials that advance its brand narrative and boost community engagement, all while staying within a predictable budget. 

Is brewing a delicious cup of coffee enough to build and maintain a thriving coffee shop business? 

If only it were that simple. 

The coffee shop industry is dominated by giants, and the most-searched coffee chains in the U.S. prove it. With household names like Starbucks, McCafé, and Dunkin’ being the go-to chains of consumers for their caffeine fix, how does a local brand compete?

That’s exactly the dilemma faced by Brew & Co., a locally owned specialty coffee shop with two locations in an urban area. The brand takes pride in offering ethically sourced coffee beans and offering handcrafted beverages.

Let’s take a look at how professional graphic design services helped Brew & Co. compete with enterprises and see why many choose Penji for growing businesses.

What Challenges Did the Business Face Before Launch?

Problem Statement

Brew & Co. is known for its high-quality coffee and a community-focused atmosphere. As a local small business, its team is small, and the owners themselves handle marketing. Ever since it expanded to a second location, however, its marketing efforts struggled to keep up. It also doesn’t help that a few major chains have opened locations in the same metropolitan area. 

Client’s Goal

Brew & Co.’s major goal is to be able to compete with major coffee chains within its area by:

• Improving and maintaining the quality of its brand assets
• Boosting online engagement with more social media content
• Offering merch to nurture its community and add a revenue stream

After weeks of looking at outsourced graphic design options, the owners decided to subscribe to Penji’s on-demand graphic design services.

How Did Penji Help the Business Compete with Industry Leaders?

The first thing on the agenda was building a design system for a small business. Though Brew & Co. already had a logo, the application was not consistent, and neither were the other brand visuals.

The owners asked their Penji design team to put on their branding and graphic design agency hats and document their brand guidelines.

Once the brand guidelines were in place, the owners used their creative solutions subscription to roll out their planned campaigns:

1. In-Store Marketing Materials

Before getting professional graphic design service, the coffee shop’s in-store marketing materials were designed separately, mostly using Canva.

Taking advantage of Penji’s creative solutions for businesses, the owners requested the following designs from their Penji design team:

• Updated menu design
• Promotional posters
• Loyalty program cards

Impact: Surveyed customers said they experienced up to 90% stronger brand presence the moment they entered each of Brew & Co’s locations.

2. Social Media Campaigns

The coffee shop owners requested social media materials through Penji, including posts for:

• Product launches
• Customer spotlights
• Loyalty rewards
• Giveaways
• Seasonal promos

Since they could batch requests in one project, they were able to schedule social media posts in advance and with consistent quality.

Impact: Brew & Co. increased its regular social media posts from an average of two per week to five per week (150% more content). The added number of posts and the improved quality also raised engagement rates by up to 50%.

3. Merchandise Designs

To boost loyalty, Brew & Co. released a collection of branded merchandise, including:

• Reusable tumblers
• Coffee bags
• Tote bags
• Stickers

These products turned customers into instant ambassadors and became collectibles for people visiting the area looking for a local souvenir.

Impact: The branded merch created a new revenue stream for the coffee shop and increased its brand visibility.

The Lowdown

Competing with enterprises in branding and design doesn’t require an enterprise-level marketing budget. With unlimited graphic design services, you can have professional visuals that can compete with industry giants without draining your budget. 

Ready to brew a stronger brand for your business? Let Penji pour you a fresh dose of creativity!

Visit Penji’s portfolio and see why Penji is the creative agency for clients craving for the perfect blend of quality and practicality. 

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