About Slugline.

What is Slugline?

Slugline is a communications company that helps companies figure out the right story to tell, prove it against the market and turn it into content.

We do positioning, messaging, video, executive content, social and more. We use technology to see and test more, with experienced people making the decisions and creating the work.

Why is it called Slugline?

The name comes from journalism.

A slugline identifies a story before it’s written, so everyone working on it knows what the story is.

We work the same way. Know the story before you start making things.

What does Slugline actually do?

We help companies answer three questions:

What should we say?
Why should anyone care?
What should we make from it?

That can mean positioning and messaging. A company video. Executive articles. Social content. Or a full library of content built around one clear story.

How does Slugline work?

Five steps: Listen. Test. Develop. Capture. Create.

We listen to your leaders and what the market is telling us. We test ideas against competitors, audiences and other data. Then experienced people develop the positioning, messaging and story.

From there, we can capture it on camera and turn it into content.

Who is Walter?

Walter is the interview and analysis system we built to help us understand what a company should be saying.

Leaders talk to Walter in their own words. He asks questions, digs into their answers, compares what different people are saying and helps us find the ideas worth testing.

But importantly, Walter doesn’t decide your story. We do.

How does Slugline use AI?

To see more and test more.

We use AI to analyze interviews, company materials, competitors, market information and audience response at a scale that would be difficult to do manually.

Then experienced people decide what matters, what doesn’t and what story you should tell.

Is Slugline a PR agency?

Not exactly.

We do work PR agencies have traditionally done, including positioning, messaging, executive communications and content. But we don’t work like a traditional agency.

There are no big account teams, long discovery phases or layers of project management. You work directly with experienced people doing the work.

Is Slugline a creative agency?

Partly.

We make videos, photography, social content, graphics and editorial content.

But we don’t start with What should we make?

We start with What should you say?

Does Slugline do positioning and messaging?

Yes.

We develop positioning, messaging pillars and the story your company should be telling right now.

You can hire us just for that work or use it as the foundation for video, editorial and social content.

Does Slugline make videos?

Yes.

We make company videos, executive interviews, Q&As, social videos and other film content.

We can make a single company film or capture enough material in one studio day to build a larger library of content.

Does Slugline write content?

Yes.

Executive articles. LinkedIn posts. Q&As. Social copy. Messaging. Scripts.

The same team that helps find the story can help write it, so you’re not handing a strategy deck to another team and starting over.

How do you know which story is right?

We test it.

We compare potential messages against the market, competitors, audiences and other signals before recommending what you should lead with.

That gives us evidence for why one story is stronger than another, who it matters to and where it may fall flat.

Who works on my account?

The people doing the work.

Our team includes experienced journalists, strategists, writers, filmmakers, photographers and other specialists. Our backgrounds include The Boston Globe, CNN Radio, NBC, Omnicom and Publicis.

There isn’t a junior account team sitting between you and them.

How long does Slugline take?

A Story Foundation can take about two weeks.

Larger story and content engagements can go from the first interview to finished work in about six weeks.

Do I have to hire Slugline to make content?

No.

You can hire us just to figure out the story.

Our Story Foundation gives you positioning, messaging pillars and a clear story direction. Your team can use it, another partner can use it or we can turn it into content with you.

Who is Slugline for?

Startups, growth-stage companies and public companies that need to get their story right.

Companies including Alloy, Artyc, Bluesky, Datavant, Doximity, Easel, Exnaton and Rapid Micro Biosystems have gone through the Slugline process.

Some needed positioning and messaging. Some needed video or a library of content. Some needed to figure out what they should be saying before they made anything at all.

What makes Slugline different?

We start one step earlier.

There are plenty of agencies and tools that can help companies make more content.

We help companies figure out what’s worth saying in the first place.

Then we test it. Then we make it.

Has Slugline’s approach worked?

For Doximity, Slugline’s analysis ranked one message above the others. Weeks later, its CEO cited that same proof point on an earnings call.

For Bluesky, Slugline recommended a core story around distribution. CEO Toni Schneider later made that argument publicly on The Verge’s Decoder.

Rapid Micro Biosystems went from narrative work to a finished film that opened its flagship customer event.

When should I call Slugline?

Before you spend a lot of money making something.

Before the company video. The new website. The big launch. The CEO interview. The content calendar.

If you’re not sure what the story is yet, start there.

How do I get started?

Start with a conversation.

Tell us what you’re trying to do, what you’re making and where you’re stuck.

We’ll tell you where we’d start.