Whether speaking to the Canadian Club or at a business retreat, we wordsmith speeches and remarks on any and every topic for any occasion. A DART speech writer is more than a scribe—they’re a personal confidant, mentor and crafter who knows that ideas are the currency of the twenty-first century, and you want you to leave a mark, persuasively and respectfully. Whether by phone or Zoom or in-person, we’ll get your core message, intended impact, related information and anecdotes, assessment of the audience, venue and delivery style and we’ll get to work. We’ll deliver a draft in quick order and work through edits until its pitch perfect. Speeches come in many shapes and sizes—Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address was less than 275 words whereas the perfect TED Talk length is 18 minutes which is long enough to be serious and short enough to hold people’s attention. That’s not a list: it’s just experiences and insight.
Style is substance. Yes, you heard it right: you never get a second chance to make a first impression. DART not only helps with the visual design and narrative structure but with the delivery. We can advance the venue in person or by phone, so you know what you are walking into. Stand up or couch chat? Podium mic, held mic, or lavaliere? Do you have a comfort monitor or just a backdrop? What’s the tempo and timeframe? What’s the context and who’s on the rostrum before or after? PowerPoint or wave of the hand? Hand out or download? And, most important: how much time have you got? We have both your Advance and your Design consultants who can help shape memorable messages and deliver an impact that connects with the audience. That’s not a list: it’s just experiences and insight.
We write. That’s it. DART has craft masters who’ve been media writers and editors who know how to grab and keep people’s attention. The common length of an Op-Ed—a guest column opposite the Editorial page in a newspaper—is 550 words. A feature article can end up being 2000 words or more. Somewhere in between are submissions of varying length based on the publication design and topic. First turn welcome page with photo and title? Two columns with six paragraphs. A monthly essay for an industry magazine on leadership or something smart? No more than two pages with bold stake it in the ground claim, an anecdote that makes the point, a personal experience, two lessons learned, three points of advice and a rejoinder to the intro finish. A regular update to employees from the bridge? Concise, clear and credible. That’s not a list: it’s just experiences and insight.
The employee Town Hall is like an assembly at high school—except it really, really matters. Especially the tone in its delivery. Employees can often be filled with emotion: anticipation, excitement, speculation and even dread. And the pressure on the Executive to either deliver an impeccable message or just use big listening skills and be in the moment, can and should be palpable. Because calling a Town Hall meeting has to have a strategic point to it all with a meaning and a message. So, first, DART gets at the why. Are you there to deliver or listen? We validate the content and visualize the potential impact. We help design the script and we rehearse until you’re in your comfort zone. In some cases, we’ve had to do multiple forums in a day or prep for a tour across the country so timing and logistics mean everything: it’s the impression conveyed that sets the tone and the memory: was it casual clothes, a suit, inside, off-site, refreshments, questions and answers, a video? Is your IT going to work, do you need a sound system, is there a follow-up or an “ask”? Is there a limo or taxi outside, an itinerary and plane ticket? That’s not a list: it’s just experiences and insight.
DART uses a creative team of producers, editors, scriptwriters, and animators with more than 20 years of experience working with clients for event, corporate, institutional broadcasting, and web development videos and other applications of a similar nature. These productions encompass high-end cinematography, studio audio, 2D and 3D graphics, animation and special effects and have brought 200 corporate and institutional testimonials, staff motivational launches, fund-raising cornerstone pitches, brand stories and television commercials to life. That’s not a list: it’s just experiences and insight.
We have an expert team who deliver web design and content quickly and effectively. Whether a site start-up or refresh, DART has every dimension of a web communications platform at our fingertips. We also build them so that you and your staff can add or update content on a continuous basis. Like with podcasts—from the soundtrack to the professional interview style, we do it all—remotely via Zoom so you don’t even have to leave your desk or your den, or anywhere else you may be in the world. And, we write. Lots. So, we can establish a blog and fill it with content and feedback on a topic that enhances your corporate or personal brand. Blogs that capture any subject—like food and eating right, the importance of vaccines, the key steps in leading change management, managing finances or the retail click consumer expectation—can not only provide a platform for point of view but, most importantly, engages consumer-citizens that matter to your entity.
We can create and run conferences and events—from theme to moderators to speakers to logistics to set up to takedown, from sun-up to lights out. DART has organized and executed galas (even two for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee), conferences (from the UN in Mali to Indigenous Rights to Financial services), Annual General Meetings, private dinners (with top political and corporate leaders), Executive Retreats, corporate celebrations, and farewell plant closures. We’ve even produced and co-ordinated the largest military aircraft parade ever in the history of Canada. And we’ve done very discreet meetings where regular corporate colleagues and staff need not know about ahead of a business merger or acquisition. We also know venue availability and pricing, amenities and extra busses that need to be rented, and entertainment of literally any kind. That’s not a list: it’s just experiences and insight.
Follow Us