About
Our Agency
We're a small, nimble, marketing agency and creative studio located in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Since 2016, LIFT has served clients in our local market, throughout the United States, and abroad. Our studio is a short walk from one of the most beautiful white sand beaches in the Northern hemisphere. We live a laid-back and happy lifestyle, surrounded by other highly-creative people and far from the concrete jungles where we forged our earlier careers. It's a transformative environment that recharges our batteries quickly and shines through to everything we do.
Our Approach
Despite our beach lifestyle, we have (at least) one foot firmly planted in reality. Our true value lies in our ability to solve real-world business problems. Marketing, design, and website development, are simply the tools we use to do this. We're sharply focused on our client's ROI and on minimizing the risk to their marketing investment. Fads, gimmicks, and fluff, aren't our style. Our work works.
Our Goal
Our ultimate goal is for you to outgrow us and replace us with a larger agency. We want to share in the applause with you. Successful businesses grow and launch more successful businesses. We want to come along on that ride.
Our Studio
We operate a full commercial production studio where we create photography and video for our clients. We're equipped to shoot subjects as large as a motorcycle and as small as single-cell organisms. We maintain a photographic library of more than 30,000 original stock photography images covering subjects and events spanning the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Leadership
Bill Weckel
My main focus at LIFT is on branding and marketing strategy. I enjoy helping startups and pre-capitalized ventures develop foundational branding—creating the tools they need to confidently enter their markets. I have broad corporate experience and I've held positions with NCR, Progressive, General Electric, and Signet.
I graduated from Kent State University with a degree in Computer Science. I served as an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Navy where I specialized in Soviet and Warsaw Pact militaries. I'm a lifetime member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and a member of the Art & Design Society of Fort Walton Beach.
Troy Ruprecht
Much of my time is spent designing and perfecting our clients' brands. I enjoy the creative process of developing a new brand identity to be proud of and ultimately help a business succeed. I also enjoy creating the necessary images through photography, illustration and graphic design.
I graduated from Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan with a bachelor's degree in Graphic Design and an associate's degree in Visual Design and Web Media. I've worked as a creative for companies including The St. Joe Company, Wolverine World Wide, and Global Forex Trading.