Applied Brand Science
Applied Brand Science is a Boulder-based, founder-led boutique consultancy founded in 2019 by Ethan Decker, PhD that delivers evidence-based brand strategy consulting, team training, and speaking services to consumer brands, advertising agencies, and corporate marketing teams.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersBoulder, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Applied Brand Science does
Applied Brand Science is a privately held, founder-owned brand strategy consultancy founded in 2019 and based in Boulder, Colorado. The firm is led by Ethan Decker, PhD, who holds a doctoral degree in urban ecology from the University of New Mexico and brings 20 years of brand strategy experience from senior roles at 72andSunny, Crispin Porter Bogusky, and Integer Group. Its core offering is an evidence-based brand science methodology distilled from 50 years of academic and empirical research on buyer behavior, brand growth, and advertising effectiveness, packaged as bespoke consulting engagements, team training programs, and public speaking for consumer brands, advertising agencies, and corporate marketing teams.
The company's product portfolio centers on three core professional services (Brand Consulting, Team Training, and Speaking/Keynotes) plus a dedicated offering for advertising agencies ('Brand Science for Agencies'). It also operates a content ecosystem — the Cover Brand podcast (70+ episodes), a weekly blog, Brand Science Shorts on YouTube, 'The Irregular Newsletter,' and a forthcoming book, 'The Little Book of Brand Science' — alongside two self-service tools (DIY Social Strategy Tool and Sensory Branding Audit Tool) and the Science AF print-on-demand merchandise store. Distribution is sales-led and event-driven, with no channel partners, resellers, or self-serve product motion; engagements are quote-based and acquired through the website contact form, inbound from conference appearances, and referrals.
The business model is professional services revenue, supplemented by e-commerce merchandise (print-on-demand, $5.50-$70 per item) and a free newsletter. Enterprise client logos include La-Z-Boy, Whirlpool, Procter & Gamble, Ferrara, Wolverine, Harvard University, Transamerica, Diageo, Elanco, and Leo Burnett, with the company claiming engagement across North America and Europe. The firm is bootstrapped, has no disclosed employees beyond the founder, has raised no external capital, and reports no software, AI, or platform product.
Applied Brand Science firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Applied Brand Science
- Legal name
- Applied Brand Science Inc.
- Website
- https://appliedbrandscience.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Applied Brand Science is a Boulder-based, founder-led boutique consultancy founded in 2019 by Ethan Decker, PhD that delivers evidence-based brand strategy consulting, team training, and speaking services to consumer brands, advertising agencies, and corporate marketing teams.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Applied Brand Science industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Brand Strategy Consulting
- NAICS
- Marketing Consulting Services (541613), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising (7310)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Brand Consulting, Audits & Research (Brand Health, Equity, Competitive) (BPAFAEAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Product & Innovation Research (Concept, Pricing, Packaging, Conjoint) (MPAAALAI), Custom Market Research (Ad Hoc Studies, Segmentation, U&A) (MPAAALAC)
Keywords
Where Applied Brand Science is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Boulder
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Applied Brand Science business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Brand Consulting: Hands-on strategic consulting engagements helping brands fix positioning, segmentation, targeting, brand DNA, brand assets, and campaign development. Engagements are bespoke and customized per client. Referenced as the primary revenue-generating service.
- Team Training Programs: Bespoke training programs that equip organizational teams to think in evidence-based principles rather than opinions. Programs are customized to the company's industry and challenges.
- Speaking / Keynotes: Keynote speeches and conference presentations delivered by founder Ethan Decker at industry events. Serves both as a standalone revenue stream and as a primary GTM channel for acquiring consulting clients.
- Science AF Merchandise Store: E-commerce storefront selling branded merchandise including t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, tumblers, hats, jackets, and polo shirts. Products are print-on-demand, sourced globally, and priced at $5.50-$70 per item.
- The Little Book of Brand Science (Book): Upcoming book expected to be available for pre-order. Expected to serve as both a revenue stream and a content marketing asset.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Merchandise items ranging from $5.50 to $70 |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Consulting and training engagements — custom pricing |
| Freemium | Monthly | Newsletter subscription — free |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels9 records
Applied Brand Science product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Applied Brand Science is a brand strategy and training consultancy that sells bespoke brand consulting, team training, and keynote speaking services grounded in evidence-based brand science — a methodology synthesizing 50 years of academic and empirical research on buyer behavior, brand growth, and advertising effectiveness. The company helps consumer brands and marketing agencies replace opinion-based marketing with research-backed frameworks for segmentation, targeting, positioning, brand DNA, and campaign development.
Product overview
Applied Brand Science is a brand strategy and marketing consulting company founded by Ethan Decker, PhD in 2019. The company offers a portfolio of services including Speaking/Keynotes for public events, Team Training programs, and Brand Consulting for strategic brand development. For agencies, they provide specialized Brand Science for Agencies training. Content products include the Cover Brand Podcast (a business call-in show), The Little Book of Brand Science (upcoming book), The Irregular Newsletter (weekly insights), and Blog content. Tools include the DIY Social Strategy Tool and Sensory Branding Audit Tool. The Science AF Store sells branded merchandise including apparel and drinkware featuring the company mascot 'frelk'. The company does not offer a software product but rather delivers consulting, training, and educational content based on evidence-based brand science principles.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Frelk: A magical creature mascot and brand identity element created based on Kepler's Somnium (1608). The frelk appears on merchandise and is a distinctive brand asset.
- Cover Brand
- Science AF Store
- The Little Book of Brand Science
Products and services
- Brand Consulting Hands-on strategic consulting engagements that help consumer brands fix positioning, segmentation, targeting, brand DNA, brand assets, and campaign development. Customized per client.
- Team Training Bespoke training programs that equip organizational teams to think in evidence-based principles rather than opinions, customized to each company's industry and challenges.
- Speaking/Keynotes Keynote speeches and conference presentations delivered by founder Ethan Decker at industry and corporate events that rewire how leaders think about brands.
- Brand Science for Agencies Specialized training and consulting for marketing and advertising agencies, including team upskilling, building an agency data point of view, and teaching planners to speak C-suite language about brand value.
- Cover Brand Podcast A business call-in podcast show where founder Ethan Decker answers audience questions about brands, shoppers, marketing, and advertising, featuring expert guests and occasional cover songs.
- The Little Book of Brand Science An upcoming book by Ethan Decker distilling 50 years of research into the universal laws of how buyers shop, how ads work, and how brands grow.
- DIY Social Strategy Tool A structured PDF tool/framework that provides a step-by-step method to pinpoint the right social influence group, spotlight appropriate behaviors, and leverage social proof mechanics for brand growth.
- Sensory Branding Audit Tool A tool that assesses brands across the five senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell) and creates a plan of action for multi-sensory brand experiences.
- Science AF Store An e-commerce storefront selling branded merchandise including t-shirts, hoodies, hats, mugs, tumblers, glassware, and other apparel featuring brand science themes and the company mascot 'frelk'. Items are print-on-demand and priced from $5.50 to $70.
Quantifiable outcome
- VP of Marketing at $50MM Grocery Brand: 'The new strategy is smart and clear, and the team loves it. It's the only strategy presentation I've ever attended that got applause.'
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Applied Brand Science
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Applied Brand Science technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Applied Brand Science partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Applied Brand Science competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Prophet: Larger global brand and marketing consultancy serving enterprise clients on brand strategy, customer experience, and growth. Overlaps with ABS in offering evidence-driven brand strategy work, but at significantly greater scale and broader service portfolio.
- Interbrand: Global brand consultancy offering brand strategy, valuation, and design services to enterprise clients. Direct competitor for evidence-led brand strategy engagements but at much larger scale and with global delivery infrastructure.
- Lippincott: Established brand strategy and identity consultancy advising Fortune 500 companies. Competes for the same enterprise brand-strategy budgets as ABS, though typically with broader identity/design capabilities and larger account teams.
- Siegel+Gale: Global brand strategy, design, and customer experience consultancy with a 'simplicity' philosophy. Competes for the same CMO brand-strategy budget and serves many of the same enterprise verticals (CPG, financial services).
- Kantar (Millward Brown / BrandZ): World's largest brand effectiveness, tracking, and valuation research firm. Overlaps with ABS in providing evidence-based brand measurement and advertising effectiveness research to enterprise clients.
Direct peers
- Hall & Partners: Boutique brand and communications research consultancy serving enterprise marketers. Shares ABS's research-led, custom-engagement model for brand strategy and effectiveness work.
- System1 (formerly BrainJuicer): Evidence-based advertising and brand effectiveness research firm built on academic behavioral science. Direct conceptual peer to ABS's brand-science methodology, with overlapping target buyers (CMOs, brand strategists) and similar research-backed positioning.
- Ace Metrix (iSpot.tv): Advertising effectiveness research firm applying data-driven measurement to creative evaluation. Operates in the same evidence-based advertising effectiveness space as ABS, though with more productized SaaS delivery.
- Maslansky + Partners: Specialized strategic communications and language strategy consultancy advising Fortune 500 brands on messaging and positioning. Similar boutique scale and evidence-driven approach to brand strategy consulting.
Others
- Effie Worldwide: Industry organization and awards program promoting marketing effectiveness. Adjacent to ABS — it sets the language and benchmarks for evidence-based marketing effectiveness rather than directly competing for consulting engagements.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Applied Brand Science social profiles
Digital presenceApplied Brand Science financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Applied Brand Science leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Applied Brand Science funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Applied Brand Science M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Applied Brand Science
What does Applied Brand Science do?
Applied Brand Science is a brand strategy and training consultancy that sells bespoke brand consulting, team training, and keynote speaking services grounded in evidence-based brand science — a methodology synthesizing 50 years of academic and empirical research on buyer behavior, brand growth, and advertising effectiveness. The company helps consumer brands and marketing agencies replace opinion-based marketing with research-backed frameworks for segmentation, targeting, positioning, brand DNA, and campaign development.
Is Applied Brand Science a public or private company?
Applied Brand Science is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Applied Brand Science founded?
Applied Brand Science was founded in 2019. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Applied Brand Science based?
Applied Brand Science is headquartered in Boulder, United States, in the North America region.
How does Applied Brand Science make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Brand Consulting is the primary driver. The others are team Training Programs, speaking / Keynotes, science AF Merchandise Store and the Little Book of Brand Science (Book).
Who are Applied Brand Science's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Prophet, Interbrand, Lippincott, Siegel+Gale and Kantar (Millward Brown / BrandZ). Direct peers are Hall & Partners, System1 (formerly BrainJuicer), Ace Metrix (iSpot.tv) and Maslansky + Partners. Effie Worldwide is listed as an others.
Does Applied Brand Science have an API?
No public API is recorded for Applied Brand Science.
What industry is Applied Brand Science in?
Applied Brand Science's product category is Brand Strategy Consulting. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAFAEAJ, Brand Consulting, Audits & Research (Brand Health, Equity, Competitive), with a secondary code of MPAAALAI, Product & Innovation Research (Concept, Pricing, Packaging, Conjoint). Its NAICS code is 541613 and its SIC code is 7310.