Daly

Want to work together?
hi@daly.nyc

Soho,
New York

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We are Daly

In 2014, Alex Daly founded a first-of-its-kind crowdfunding services company. She has since raised over $20M from 100,000 people worldwide, managing some of Kickstarter’s most groundbreaking campaigns. Dubbed the “Crowdsourceress,” Alex built a team that led the industry in activating communities to launch new ideas.

After hundreds of successful campaigns, clients began asking for support for their ongoing publicity and events efforts. These companies knew that to thrive, they needed a way to maintain their communities long after their campaigns ended.

Enter Daly.

Joan Didion

The Joan Didion Documentary

Greenery NYC

Standards Manual

Pentagram

The Underline

Freitag

Girls’ Night In

Marina Willer
Joan Didion

The Joan Didion Documentary

Greenery NYC

Standards Manual

Pentagram

The Underline

Freitag

Girls’ Night In

Marina Willer

How we work

As people who understand communities, we value strong relationships, especially the ones we have with our clients.

 

We get cozy

We immerse ourselves in getting to know you and your vision. We’re dedicated to really getting it, because that means we’ll be able to make the best plan for finding and engaging your community. To us, it’s personal.

We act with urgency

We’re used to the ultra fast pace of crowdfunding and we can deliver under pressure. We hustle.

We get our hands dirty

And we’re honest. If your website needs a makeover, we’ll let you know. If your social media needs a rehaul, we’ll tell you. We look at your brand from top to bottom so that you’re set up to succeed.

A modern approach

We come from documentary film, creative writing, and journalism backgrounds, which means we understand good storytelling. And in today’s world of saturated media, that’s important. But we’re never just interested in telling one story. We’re dedicated to getting to the heart of who you are, so we can tell many powerful stories that reach far beyond your community.

Old PR

Community-based PR

One big story

Many story angles

Waits for news cycle

Creates its own news cycle

Blitz of excitement

Sustained impact

Daly.PR

No one does PR like us.

Our approach comes from our background in crowdfunding, where we’re experts at winning people’s attention. When we launched a campaign, we couldn’t rely on the news cycle. We had to grab a community’s attention at that moment, no matter what else was going on. We became really good at that, and now we apply the same approach to PR.

Here’s how we do it:

 

We create trust

A community that doesn’t trust you doesn’t take action. So we tell stories that people want to read. (And we only launch them when you are ready. Need to think up exciting messaging for a landing page? Need branding feedback? We do that, too.)

We pivot

We won’t oversaturate a loyal community with different versions of the same message over and over. We find new angles and stories—plus new communities to talk to.

We deliver irresistable pitches

We send super targeted, beautifully constructed pitches that generate results. Put simply: journalists read our emails (and we’re told they really like them). Did we mention our modern approach?

Daly.Events

Real human connection happens offline.

We’re not interested in over-the-top, Instagrammable corporate parties.

We create a chance for your community to gather, share, and connect.

Here’s how we do it:

 

We curate intimate dinners, cocktail parties, panel discussions, and meetups where people can actually talk to one another. Communities are made up of people, after all. When those people are well connected to one another, that makes for a more powerful, energized community. We think that matters—and can have a big impact. Plus, our parties are a lot of fun.

Daly.Crowdfunding

We consult with teams who are crowdfunding to offer our unparalleled expertise. We listen to your needs, become immersed in your story, and formulate a packaged plan to get you prepped for launch.

Here’s how we do it:

 

We set up a series of hour-long calls. We can use them to talk big picture plans, or we can dive into the nitty gritty and edit your campaign copy, brainstorm press angles, discuss email marketing strategies, make introductions to the best crowdfunding platforms, conceptualize your video script and design assets, strategize exciting incentives, and more. Some clients ask us to prepare a project management sheet and custom press kit, too. We want you to get funded, and we will position you for success.

Team

Alex Daly

Alex Daly
Founder

Alex Daly is the founder of Vann Alexandra, DalyPR, and, now, Daly. She is the industry’s “Crowdsourceress,” a member of the Forbes 30 Under 30 class of 2016, and a frequent speaker at festivals and events for designers, innovators, women entrepreneurs, and big thinkers. Having been referred to in the press as a “Kickstarter queen,” “crowdfunding guru,” and a “wunderkind,” she has managed crowdfunding and PR campaigns for Oscar-winning filmmakers, Pentagram partners, MIT Media Lab inventors, Neil Young, Joan Didion, and the female-led musical sensation TLC.

In 2017, Alex authored her first book, The Crowdsourceress: Get Smart, Get Funded, and Kickstart Your Next Big Idea, published by Hachette. Originally from Miami, Alex holds degrees in Spanish, Philosophy Honors, and Film from Vanderbilt University.

Théo Münch

Théo Münch
Senior Project Manager

Théo Münch specializes in bringing creative projects to life. As senior project manager, he’s executed campaigns with Hong Kong watchmakers Anicorn, design doc legend Gary Hustwit, the creators of ELIA, the makers behind comp, and many others. He has managed PR for clients like Huddle, For All Womankind, Hello Mr., and Keap candles, and has played a part in developing influencer lists, backer communication strategies, and media relationships for dozens of clients.

Before joining the Daly team, Théo worked as a research assistant at the University of Michigan’s developmental psychology lab, teacher for Freedom House Detroit, and volunteer for the Detroit Partnership, a community engagement organization. His first book of original poems, Corporal, will be published in 2019. Théo is fluent in French and holds a Bachelor’s degree in psychology and creative writing from the University of Michigan.

Ally Bruschi
PR Manager

Ally Bruschi is passionate about creating powerful, well-crafted messages for the companies, products, and people that inspire her. Before joining Daly as PR Manager, she worked as a book publicist at Avery, a division of Penguin Random House, where she led national and local publicity campaigns for acclaimed authors in the health, wellness, food, psychology, and business space. Ally has secured features for her clients in everything from The New York Times and The Atlantic to Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday and national NPR shows. And as one New York Times Magazine article put it, her press release “managed to concentrate the zeitgeist of contemporary female celebrity into its purest form.”

Ally has previously contributed to Bustle, Plated, Borgen Magazine, and The Daily Meal. She received her Bachelor’s degree in political science from Kenyon College.

Bec Speakman
Coordinator

Bec Speakman is an experienced coordinator with an international perspective. Before joining Daly, Bec worked in film and television production in Australia on notable projects including Amazon’s Picnic at Hanging Rock, and the BBC’s The Cry. At award-winning production company Carver Films, she managed development and production slates, supporting filmmakers, networks, and financiers from conception to delivery. Stepping across to technology and training, she successfully managed an international hackathon event, which connected over 30,000 kids worldwide through coding.

Bec received her Bachelor’s degree in Media Production from the University of Technology, Sydney.

Julia Nguyen
PR Assistant

Julia Nguyen is experienced in combining the power of communications and strategy to elevate mission-driven brands, companies, and organizations. Prior to Daly, Julia interned at NPR in the marketing, branding, and communications department where she wrote social media copy for live events including Code Switch Live, Tiny Desk Talks, Creative Mornings with Invisibilia, Audie Cornish Live, and the How I Built This Summit with Guy Raz. She also served as the Internal Communications Specialist at Jacht Advertising Agency—a student-run advertising agency that offers a wide-range of creative services including: strategic branding, integrated marketing communications, campaign concepts, videography, photography, social media strategy, content creation, print design, and public relations.

Julia is fluent in Vietnamese and a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism.

Partners

We are a small and nimble team so our clients always have direct access to us. With every job, we also build custom engagements with partners in the graphic design, film, copywriting, and social media spaces, so clients are supported by top-notch expertise.

Some of the people we work with:

Order
FAY
Christian Mroczka
Gary Hustwit
Kelly Shetron

Select press

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+ show three more

Select clients

Our past and present clients are respected firms, fast-growing startups, and crowdfunding creators—some who are fresh off the launchpad and some who are preparing to launch. All of them have a powerful vision, prioritize great design, and offer community-driven ideas worth sharing with the world.

Showing

Crowdfunding
Events
PR

Pentagram

The world’s largest independent design studio, operating across over two dozen partners, who are all personally committed to their clients and execute diverse design work spanning five decades in all industries.

Heilala

A New Zealand-based women-operated vanilla company that employs and empowers hundreds of women workers to cultivate the world’s most awarded vanilla, grown on the Vava’u island of the Kingdom of Tonga.

Standards Manual

NASA Graphics Standards Manual

After raising $2M on Kickstarter reissuing out of print graphics manuals, two designers open the first graphic design bookstore in New York.

The Underline

The Underline

A people-powered civic design project transforming Miami’s metro path into a 10-mile linear park and art destination.

Neil Young

Neil Young

After Neil Young’s Kickstarter becomes the most successful technology project on the platform, TIME names it one of the most artfully managed campaigns ever.

Freitag

Freitag

A collective of sustainably-conscious designers giving truck tarps new life as functional bags and accessories in Zurich, Switzerland.

Two Chairs

Two Chairs

A new model for mental health redefining how people access and experience therapy.

TLC

TLC

The “CrazySexyCool” female-led musical sensation turns to its loyal fans to help fund and support its final album.

Didion Doc

Joan Didion documentary

After tapping into a group of devout fans on Kickstarter, the Joan Didion documentary has its world premiere on Netflix and earns an Emmy nom.

Girls’ Night In

Girls' Night In

An online newsletter and community of over 100,000 women that reimagines the importance of self-care.

RAMS

Rams

A community-funded documentary by design doc vet Gary Hustwit about the “greatest designer alive” gets a NYT Critics’ Pick and goes on a 50-city screening tour.

Keap

Keap

The twice crowdfunded public benefit corporation uses pure, sustainable materials to make better candles.

Doberman

Doberman

A design agency with studios in Stockholm, New York, and Berlin that uses radical collaboration to embetter the organizations they partner with.

Anicorn

Anicorn

Born on Kickstarter, the Hong Kong-based independent watchmakers create high-quality timepieces that reframe our perceptions of time.

Order

Order

The graphic designers that launched a frenzy around standards manuals on Kickstarter pivot into a branding business of their own.

For All Womankind

For All Womankind

A design initiative that went viral at the Women’s March on Washington, and
raises money for not-for-profit women’s organizations.

Pioneer Plaque

Pioneer Plaque

A campaign to create an exact replica of the oldest artifact of mankind, honoring the original design by Carl Sagan for space enthusiasts for years to come.

Ministry of Supply

Ministry of Supply

The team crowdfunding the future of menswear launches the first intelligent heated jacket, which then becomes a Fast Company Most Innovative Idea.

IA Collaborative

IA Collaborative

Two back-to-back fully-funded campaigns, one to reprint an iconic design book, and another to build the most awarded at-home coffee roaster.

AIGA Eye on Design

AIGA Eye on Design

A blog and magazine that highlights both emerging designers and established work from the international community.

Today

Today

A revolutionary 24-hour timepiece that started on Kickstarter and ended at the MoMA design store.

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The Daly ripple effect

Standards Manual

We managed designers Hamish Smyth and Jesse Reed’s first Kickstarter campaign in 2014 to reissue the 1970s NYCTA Graphics Standards Manual. It became an overnight sensation, invigorating a niche design community and surpassing its goal by over 700%. Ever since, Daly has overseen the brand’s subsequent campaigns, publicity, and events—witnessing the incredible ripple effect of that very first launch.

September 2014

The NYCTA manual campaign goes viral and is fully funded by lunchtime on Day 1.

New York City Transit Authority Standards manual

August 2015

The New York Times Science section showcases the NASA Graphics Standards Manual campaign on its front page.

August 2015

The NASA manual becomes the most successful graphic design campaign on Kickstarter ever.

NASA Graphics Standards Manual

April 2016

The Standards Manual online shop launches to support the continued demand for the manuals.

May 2016

Vanity Fair runs “Meet the Guys Turning Old Graphic Design Manuals into Kickstarter Blockbusters.”

April 2017

Hamish and Jesse open their own design office, called Order, and New York City’s first graphic design bookstore. New York magazine hails it a “Best of New York.”

Standards Manual shop

May 2017

Fast Company runs “Order: The New Design Office That Spun Off A $1.9M Kickstarter Business.”

Heart

October 2018

Standards Manual hosts an oversubscribed book launch for legendary designer Michael Bierut’s Now You See It.

Launch party for Michael Bierut's book Now You See It.

Joan Didion Documentary

+ view case study

For years, the producers of the first-ever Joan Didion documentary were self-funding their project. Then they approached Daly to get it crowdfunded. Within hours of launching, the campaign blew up, hitting its funding goal within the first 24 hours. Daly went on to manage the film’s social media accounts—growing them organically from zero to thousands of devout followers—and returned to manage community updates and press once the film was released.

October 2014

The Guardian, New Yorker, LA Times, NPR, Vogue, New York magazine, Time, Jezebel, and many other media outlets cover the campaign’s launch and success.

Joan Didion

October 2014

The campaign is shared thousands upon thousands of times on social media. Daly orchestrates #takeovers by leaders in the art, fashion, and film worlds, including Laura Brown, Gia Coppola, and Christopher Niquet.

November 2014

By the end of the campaign, there is a lineup of newly interested investors and even offers of a book deal with the director. It is complete Didion mania.

January 2015

Vogue announces Céline has chosen Joan Didion as its latest poster girl.

December 2015

The New York Times proclaims “Fashion’s Gaze Turned to Joan Didion in 2015.”

January 2016

Netflix acquires the film.

Joan Didion

October 2017

Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold premieres at the New York Film Festival to sold-out audiences and receives a New York Times Critics’ Pick.

Heart

July 2018

Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold is nominated for an Emmy.

TLDR

“Crowdsourceress” Alex Daly gained a reputation for managing some of the world’s most successful crowdfunding campaigns. After these campaigns ended, clients began asking if her team could handle their PR ongoing. At first she said, No, thank you. She didn’t really like PR agencies :) But then she thought: What if we did PR our way—applying what we learned from crowdfunding over the long run? What if we took a quicker, more flexible, and more intimate approach? That’s how Daly was born. We offer PR, Events, and Crowdfunding consultation services. If you have a big vision, believe design is important to what you do, and agree that community is power, we would love to work with you.