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Services — the full tree, down to every craft
This page is generated. Do not edit it by hand — run
scripts/atlas-vocab.py.
This tree is the one vocabulary in this system that is finished. All 95 live entries carry a complete written rulebook: what it is, when to tag it, when never to tag it, what it is confused with and how to tell them apart, and at what size it applies. Every other vocabulary on this site is measured against this one.
Where it is stored: the disciplines table, joined to work through a credit or a tag — 15,511 tags over 29 distinct entries.
The three levels
The top level is a service — what a client buys, like creative production or brand strategy. At the bottom sit the crafts themselves — the rulebook level, where every entry says exactly when to tag it and when never to. Between them sits a middle level — animation, design, photography, video production — whose name is the one part still being decided, on the review agenda.
AI-Driven Marketing & Personalization
A brand hires this when it needs personalization at scale — dynamic creative that adapts per audience segment, AI-driven media and message optimization, or marketing automation it cannot staff internally; typically boug…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| AI-Driven Marketing & Personalization | 0 | A brand hires this when it needs personalization at scale — dynamic creative that adapts per audien… |
Brand Strategy
A brand hires this at inflection points — launch, rebrand, repositioning, M&A, portfolio sprawl — to define what the brand stands for before anything is made: brand positioning, brand naming, brand architecture, guideli…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Brand Strategy | 0 | A brand hires this at inflection points — launch, rebrand, repositioning, M&A, portfolio sprawl — t… |
| Strategy | 0 | Brands hire strategy before making: to define the brand platform, sharpen positioning, plan the cam… |
| Brand Architecture | 0 | Portfolio rationalization, M&A brand integration, and sub-brand or product-line launches — hired wh… |
| Brand Naming | 0 | New brand and product launches, renames, and portfolio naming systems — hired when a name must be c… |
| Brand Positioning | 0 | Repositioning engagements, challenger-brand launches, and category entry — hired to sharpen differe… |
| Brand Strategy | 31 | Brand launches, repositioning, brand refreshes, and M&A rebrands — hired to define the platform bef… |
| Campaign Strategy | 0 | Integrated campaign development and launch campaigns — hired to plan one campaign end to end: what … |
| Communications Planning | 1 | Product launches and brand repositioning — hired to orchestrate consistent messaging across channel… |
| Creative Strategy | 0 | Campaign development and brand refreshes — hired to land the 'big idea' or creative platform and wr… |
| Employer Branding | 0 | EVP development, recruitment marketing campaigns, and careers-site/talent-attraction programs — hir… |
| Media Strategy | 0 | Multi-channel campaigns and targeted advertising — hired for media planning and buying engagements:… |
Creative Production
A brand (or its agency) hires this to get work MADE: an animated spot from a BUCK/Hornet-class studio, a live-action shoot, a design system executed, photography, titles, edit and finish. Bought per-project against a br…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Creative Production | 0 | A brand (or its agency) hires this to get work MADE: an animated spot from a BUCK/Hornet-class stud… |
| Animation | 3 | Hired when a brand needs moving image that is built rather than filmed: explainer videos, animated … |
| Character Animation | 75 | Hired for character-led brand storytelling: mascot and brand-character spots, explainer videos with… |
| Motion Graphics | 631 | The workhorse animation hire: explainer videos, product-launch and feature-announcement films, bran… |
| Title Design | 3 | Hired for Main Title Design and title sequences — the market's own words are 'Titles', 'Main Title … |
| Copywriting | 0 | Hired when a brand needs its verbal side made deliberately — a verbal identity and tone of voice, c… |
| Advertising Copywriting | 0 | Hired for campaign and performance copy: taglines and campaign lines, headline/body/CTA systems for… |
| Brand Copywriting | 6,287 | Hired to build and express verbal identity: tone of voice systems, brand manifestos, website and la… |
| SEO & Content Writing | 0 | Hired to grow organic search traffic and own a topic: content marketing programs, SEO-driven blogs … |
| Scriptwriting | 0 | Hired when a piece will be spoken: commercial and brand-film scripts, VO narration, dialogue-driven… |
| UX Writing | 0 | Hired for digital product work: product microcopy and content design, onboarding and activation flo… |
| Design | 0 | Brands hire design studios and in-house design teams for identity programs, campaign graphics, prod… |
| 3D Design | 89 | Brands buy 3D design for CGI imagery, surreal brand worlds, and immersive content where photography… |
| Art Direction | 0 | Brands and agencies buy art direction to set and hold a consistent visual point of view across a ca… |
| Brand Identity Design | 0 | The core branding-studio engagement, bought at founding, rebrand, or refresh (Koto's Visual Identit… |
| Character Design | 1 | Brands hire character design for mascots, campaign characters, and character development for games … |
| Concept Art | 0 | Bought in pre-production for games, films, and ads: studios and brands commission concept art to de… |
| Data Visualization | 39 | Hired when a brand needs numbers to persuade: data-driven marketing, explainer videos, corporate pr… |
| Digital Ad Design | 0 | Bought for always-on paid media: display campaigns, paid-social creative, banner adaptations and re… |
| Graphic Design | 2,403 | Bought for social media graphics, print ads, web visuals, and campaign asset systems — the day-to-d… |
| Iconography | 3 | Bought for web design, mobile apps, and product design systems — the product-icon-system engagement… |
| Illustration | 81 | Bought for brand identity, advertising, and editorial content — a named sell-side service in its ow… |
| Logo Design | 530 | Hired for new marks, logo refreshes, and logo-system work at founding or rebrand — the logo-special… |
| Motion Identity | 0 | Commissioned at rebrand or brand-refresh time, usually alongside brand identity design: motion iden… |
| Print & OOH Creative | 0 | Bought for OOH and print campaigns: billboard and poster creative, press-ad executions, and print a… |
| Product Design | 3 | Brands hire product design for physical/industrial product development and digital product definiti… |
| Product Renders | 0 | Bought for product marketing, e-commerce imagery at scale, launch visuals, and virtual showrooms/co… |
| Storyboarding | 0 | Bought in pre-production for commercials, animation, and live-action: agencies and studios commissi… |
| Type Design & Lettering | 0 | Brands commission custom type and lettering for an ownable verbal-visual voice — bespoke typefaces … |
| UI Design | 1,867 | Bought for app and website design, e-commerce experiences, and design systems — sold inside 'UX & U… |
| Generative AI Production | 0 | A brand hires generative AI production to get concept-to-screen film, imagery, or synthetic product… |
| Photography | 0 | Brands commission photography to build campaign stills, e-commerce and catalog imagery, brand image… |
| Architectural Photography | 1 | Hired for real estate marketing, branded-environment and retail-display documentation, workplace/HQ… |
| Conceptual Photography | 0 | Hired for brand-platform and big-idea campaigns, artistic and inspirational advertising, and though… |
| Editorial Photography | 277 | Hired for brand lookbooks, magazine-style features, website heroes and headers, press and campaign … |
| Event Photography | 839 | Hired to cover conferences and keynotes, product-launch events, experiential activations, and spons… |
| Lifestyle Photography | 2 | Hired when a brand wants relatable, human, in-context imagery: social media feeds, ad campaigns, pr… |
| Product Photography | 356 | Hired for e-commerce PDP imagery, catalogs, product feature sections, and launch assets — when a br… |
| Still Life Photography | 0 | Hired for elevated product advertising, editorial spreads, packaging and campaign imagery — when a … |
| Post-Production | 0 | Brands hire post-production when the material exists but the finished piece doesn't: cutting a camp… |
| Color Grading | 0 | Hired to give a film its final look: grading commercials and brand films to a cohesive palette, mat… |
| Compositing | 0 | Hired to make separately produced elements read as one: green-screen keying and background replacem… |
| Editing | 0 | Hired to turn shot material into a story: cutting commercials and campaign films from dailies, rhyt… |
| Retouching | 0 | Hired to make photography flawless for market: beauty retouching for fashion and cosmetics campaign… |
| Visual Effects | 66 | Hired when footage needs what can't be shot: CGI product effects in commercials, set extensions and… |
| Print & Physical Design | 0 | A brand hires this discipline when its identity has to exist in the physical world: launch packagin… |
| Environmental Design | 1 | Hired for experiential marketing and retail: trade show and exhibit design, retail experience desig… |
| Packaging Design | 0 | Hired at product launches and rebrands to make the pack the brand's shelf-front asset: retail shelf… |
| Print Production | 0 | Hired for campaign print and OOH creative: posters and billboard artwork, brochures, annual reports… |
| Video Production | 0 | Brands hire video production when they need live-action work made — a commercial shoot, brand film,… |
| Branded Content | 0 | Hired when a brand wants entertainment-value storytelling it funds and owns — series, short films, … |
| Cinematography | 1,842 | Hired for brand films, commercials, and experiential videos where the photographed image itself car… |
| Commercial | 0 | The core hire of advertising video: TVC and online spot production for launches, campaigns, and pai… |
| Direction | 6 | Brands and production companies hire direction for commercials, brand films, and social content — t… |
| Documentary | 0 | Hired when a brand wants credibility through real stories — founder documentaries, athlete profiles… |
| Experiential | 0 | The moving-image and production craft built around constructed experiences: installations, activati… |
| Film & TV | 0 | Production companies sell it as a named division (Smuggler 'Film&TV'; Titmouse 'original TV shows, … |
| Live Action Production | 1 | Hired as the production-company / service-production layer behind commercial shoots, brand films, i… |
| Live Event Capture | 0 | Production of moving-image work whose subject is a real event as it happens: multi-camera live capt… |
| Music Video | 0 | Labels, artists, and brands hire music-video production as a first-class market bucket — Smuggler's… |
Digital & Interactive Experiences
A brand hires this when the deliverable is something an audience USES rather than watches — a launch microsite, an immersive/AR activation, an interactive brand experience, a real-time 3D configurator — typically from a…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Digital & Interactive Experiences | 0 | A brand hires this when the deliverable is something an audience USES rather than watches — a launc… |
| Creative Technology | 3 | Hired when a brand needs an experience the audience can DO rather than just watch — launch microsit… |
| AR | 0 | Hired for AR product try-ons and demos, social lenses that carry a campaign, and in-store or packag… |
| Gaming & Virtual Worlds | 0 | Hired for in-game brand activations, branded mini-games, virtual venues and drops — reaching audien… |
| Interactive Installations | 0 | Hired for pop-up shops, trade-show and retail experiences, brand-space and exhibit builds — when a … |
| Projection Mapping | 0 | Hired for live events, product launches and brand activations — facade takeovers, stage visuals, ma… |
| VR | 0 | Hired for immersive brand storytelling, virtual showrooms and test-drives, event and training exper… |
| Web / Interactive Development | 0 | Hired for launch microsites, product configurators, interactive campaign hubs and award-grade brand… |
Market Research & Consumer Insights
A brand hires this before committing spend or strategy — to understand who its consumers are, segment its market, track brand health over time, test concepts and creative before launch, or ground a repositioning in cons…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Market Research & Consumer Insights | 0 | A brand hires this before committing spend or strategy — to understand who its consumers are, segme… |
Marketing & Advertising Campaigns
A brand hires this when it needs a CAMPAIGN, not just assets — a launch campaign, an always-on program, a rebrand rollout across TV/OOH/social — buying concept, creative direction, and orchestration from an agency of re…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Marketing & Advertising Campaigns | 0 | A brand hires this when it needs a CAMPAIGN, not just assets — a launch campaign, an always-on prog… |
Media Strategy & Buying
A brand hires this to get its campaign SEEN — media planning & buying across TV, OOH, digital, and social: channel mix and flighting strategy, negotiated rates, programmatic execution, and spend optimization; typically …
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Media Strategy & Buying | 0 | A brand hires this to get its campaign SEEN — media planning & buying across TV, OOH, digital, and … |
Music & Audio
A brand hires this for how it SOUNDS — an original score or track for a film, a sonic identity/audio logo alongside a rebrand (the sonic-identity line brand studios like Koto name), sound design and final mix for a spot…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Music & Audio | 0 | A brand hires this for how it SOUNDS — an original score or track for a film, a sonic identity/audi… |
| Audio Production | 0 | A brand hires this discipline when the work has to sound as considered as it looks — sonic identity… |
| Audio Engineering | 0 | Hired for recording sessions and capture quality — studio VO and music sessions, location sound on … |
| Audio Mixing & Mastering | 0 | Hired for audio mixing & mastering / audio post — the final mix on films and spots, loudness-spec d… |
| Music Composition | 0 | Hired for composition & scoring — an original score for a brand film or campaign, a bespoke musical… |
| Music Production | 0 | Hired to produce a commissioned track, re-record or cover a song for a campaign, produce an artist … |
| Sound Design | 64 | Hired for cinematic brand films, product films, trailers, and interactive or experiential work wher… |
| Voice & Talent Direction | 0 | Hired for voice & talent direction on VO-led work — casting the right voice for a brand, directing … |
| Voiceover | 6 | Hired when a brand needs a voice to carry the piece — explainer and product films, ads and campaign… |
Physical Activations & Experiential
A brand hires this when the deliverable is a PLACE or EVENT audiences attend — a product-launch event, a festival activation, a trade-show booth, a retail installation, an immersive live experience; bought from experien…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Activations & Experiential | 0 | A brand hires this when the deliverable is a PLACE or EVENT audiences attend — a product-launch eve… |
Product Design & Development
A brand hires this to make or remake the product itself — a new app or platform (UX & research, human-centered design, design systems, development), an industrial-design program for hardware, prototyping & engineering; …
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Product Design & Development | 0 | A brand hires this to make or remake the product itself — a new app or platform (UX & research, hum… |
Public Relations & Communications
A brand hires this to shape coverage and reputation — press strategy and media relations around a launch, crisis communication when things go wrong, corporate communications and executive thought-leadership programs, sp…
| Service · middle level · craft | Work carrying it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Public Relations & Communications | 0 | A brand hires this to shape coverage and reputation — press strategy and media relations around a l… |
Retired crafts
63 crafts are retired. Work classified before they were retired still carries them, so they stay listed rather than disappearing.
2D Animation, 3D - Photo Real, 3D Animation, 3D Compositing, ASMR Style, Animated Live Action Hybrid, Branded Entertainment, Cel Animation, Character Animation, Cinematography, Collage Style, Commercial, Commercial Production, Communications Planning, Content Production, Customer Success Story, Day-in-the-Life, Direct Address, Documentary Style, Documentary-Style Production, Editorial - Commercial, Editorial - Content, Editorial - Long Form, Event Coverage, Experiential/Immersive, General, How-To/Instructional, Illustrative, Influencer-Driven Content, Interactive Storytelling, Interactive Video, Interview Production, Interview-Style, Lifestyle Scenario, Lighting, Live / Experiential, Live Action - Post-Production, Live Streaming, Long Form, Media Strategy, Minimalistic, Mockumentary Style, Modeling, Motion Graphics, Motion Graphics, Music Video Style, Product Demonstration, Public Service Announcement, Reality-Based Dramatization, Reality/Behind-the-Scenes, Rendering, Rigging, Short-Form Content, Simulation, Social Experiment, Stop Motion, Stop Motion Animation, Strategy, Strategy, Testimonial, UX Design, User Stories, User-Generated Style
How complete this page is
Of 95 live crafts, 95 carry a full rulebook (100%). Every number was counted from the live database when this page was generated — none is stored.
Where to look next
- Every other vocabulary — the vocabulary index.
- How work gets credited to a craft — the entities chapter.
- What is still undecided — the open questions.