What I actually do,in plain words.
Most brands do not have a marketing problem. They have a clarity problem. The team is working hard, the posts go out, the deck gets updated, and still nobody outside the building can repeat what the company stands for. That is the gap I work in.
Alchemyst Consulting is one person, not an agency. I work with startups and small organisations on a growth journey, usually with the founder or the head of marketing in the room. Sixteen years of doing this in-house and alongside teams means I can tell you quickly what will move the needle and what is a distraction.
The work sits in three places. Getting the story right. Building the team and system that carries it. Making the people who own it better at it. Some clients need one. Many start with the story and grow into the rest.
Every engagement is led by me directly, and I keep the number small on purpose. You get senior attention, honest opinions, and work you can put in front of your market without a rewrite.
Narrative Alchemy
This is the work of deciding what your brand stands for, and then saying it the same way everywhere. If you are starting from a blank page, we build the story. If you already have one that no longer fits, we reshape it. You leave with words your whole company can use, not a document nobody opens.
What this includes
- A clear brand story: what you do, who it is for, why it matters
- Message architecture: your core message plus the proof points under it
- Positioning against the others in your market, in plain language
- Website, deck, and profile copy direction so everything reads as one brand
- Content positioning: the themes you own and the ones you leave alone
- Media and spokesperson positioning: what you say publicly and who says it
- Founder and leadership messaging for pitches, panels, and interviews
- A simple messaging guide your team and vendors can follow
Questions about this
How long does a narrative engagement take?
Most narrative engagements run four to eight weeks, depending on how many people need to be interviewed and how much existing material there is to work through.
Do you write the copy or just the strategy?
Both, within reason. You get the strategy and the actual language: core narrative, messaging house, and copy direction for your key assets. Full-scale content production is scoped separately.
We are pre-revenue. Is it too early for this?
No. Early is often cheaper. Getting the story right before you build a website, a pitch deck, and a content calendar saves you from rewriting all three later.
What do you need from us?
Access to a few people who know the business well, whatever material already exists, and honest answers. Usually three to five conversations of an hour each.
MarComm by Design
This is about the people and the plumbing behind your marketing. Either you do not have a team yet and need to build one properly, or you have one that is busy but not producing. We design the structure, the roles, the workflows, and the AI setup so output goes up without headcount going up.
What this includes
- Audit of what your current team or agency is actually delivering
- Marketing communications structure that fits your stage and budget
- Role definitions, hiring briefs, and interview questions
- Support on shortlisting and evaluating candidates
- Who owns what: clear decision rights so work stops stalling
- Workflows and rituals: planning, review, approval, reporting
- Tool and vendor stack rationalisation, in-house versus outsourced calls
- AI platform setup and prompts for research, drafting, and repurposing
- A 90-day plan the team can start on the day you sign off
Questions about this
We are two people doing marketing. Is this relevant?
Yes, and often more relevant. Small teams lose the most time to unclear ownership and rework. The structure is sized to your reality, not to an enterprise chart.
Do you replace our agency?
No. The job is to make your team and your partners sharper, including deciding what should stay with an agency and what belongs in-house.
Will you help us hire?
Yes. You get hiring briefs, role scorecards, and interview support. Anushukaa can sit in on final interviews for senior MarComm roles.
What does the AI part actually involve?
Choosing a small set of platforms your team will genuinely use, setting them up against your brand voice, and building repeatable prompts and guardrails for research, drafting, and repurposing.
Practice & Performance
This is for the people who carry the brand. A marketing or communications lead who has grown fast and needs a sounding board. A senior practitioner whose output has plateaued. A team that needs to get better at writing, positioning, and pitching. Sessions are practical and built on your live work, not on generic frameworks.
What this includes
- One-to-one mentoring for marketing and communications leaders
- Performance coaching for senior practitioners who have plateaued
- Team training in narrative craft, writing, and messaging discipline
- Media, pitch, and stakeholder communication practice
- Working sessions on real, in-flight projects with direct feedback
- Capability roadmaps: what your team should be able to do in six months
- Manager coaching on giving feedback and raising the standard of craft
Questions about this
How are coaching engagements structured?
Usually fortnightly sessions over three to six months, with work between sessions. Team training runs as focused workshops with follow-up clinics.
Is this coaching or consulting?
Coaching, with a consultant's eye. You get honest feedback on the work itself, not only on how you feel about it.
Can you train a whole team at once?
Yes. Team training works best in groups of six to twelve so everyone gets their own work reviewed.
Do sessions happen online?
Yes. Most engagements run online, with in-person workshops possible depending on location and scope.
Let's give your brand its voice.
One conversation is enough to know whether this is the right fit. No deck, no pitch, just a straight read on where your brand stands and what would move it forward.