About
Strategy is only useful if it's honest.
MacPherson Marketing is a one-person consultancy. That means every engagement gets my full attention — not a junior team member working from a template.
Alex MacPherson
Founder, MacPherson Marketing
I've spent fifteen years helping companies figure out what they stand for — and how to say it in a way that actually moves people. I started MacPherson Marketing because I kept seeing the same problem: smart founders with genuinely differentiated products who couldn't articulate why they were different.
Before going independent, I led brand strategy at two growth-stage agencies and served as Head of Brand at a Series B SaaS company. I've worked across health tech, fintech, enterprise software, consumer goods, and professional services — which means I've seen what works in a lot of different markets, and what doesn't.
My approach is direct. I don't believe in strategy documents that sit on a shelf. Everything I produce is designed to be used — by your sales team, your marketing team, your founders in investor meetings. If it doesn't change how you talk about your company, it hasn't done its job.
I work with a small number of clients at a time, which means I can give each engagement the depth it deserves. If you're looking for a large agency with a full production team, I'm probably not the right fit. If you want someone who will get into the details of your business and come back with a strategy that's genuinely yours — let's talk.
Background
Philosophy
What I believe about brand strategy.
Differentiation is earned, not declared.
Saying you're different doesn't make you different. Real positioning is built on a genuine understanding of your market, your customers, and what you actually do better than anyone else.
Clarity is a competitive advantage.
In a market full of jargon and vague claims, the brand that speaks plainly wins. The goal is always to say the most important thing in the fewest possible words.
Strategy without activation is just paper.
A positioning framework is only valuable if your team can use it. Every engagement is designed to produce work that's immediately actionable — not a document that requires a consultant to interpret.
The best work comes from honest conversations.
I'm not here to validate what you already think. If I see something that's getting in the way of your brand, I'll say so. That's what you're paying for.
Want to work together?
I take on a limited number of engagements each quarter. If you're thinking about brand strategy work, the best first step is a conversation.