Creator.
Product Marketer.
Brand Builder.

About Me

I’m Mark Taniguchi, a designer, product marketer, and co-founder building companies at the intersection of technology, creativity, and mental health.

I’m the co-founder of Erly, a platform that brings a child’s favorite stuffed animal or drawing to life as a digital emotional support companion, growing with them from early childhood through the teen years. Erly helps young people express feelings, reduce anxiety, and build resilience. I built it for my daughter. I’ve faced anxiety myself for 40 years, medication-free, and watching her face her own battle with anxiety over the past 7 years, I wanted to build something that could actually help her, and kids like her. Erly is built alongside my co-founder who is a neuroscientist, and designed to work alongside therapists, Erly strengthens the connection between families and care providers by preserving emotional context between sessions. It’s designed to strengthen, not replace, human care.

I’m also the co-founder of FifthGT, a brand factory that builds high-performance websites, develops brands from the ground up, and helps local businesses grow through strategy, design, and SEO.

I spent the past two decades launching products that reached customers globally, working across design, product marketing, and brand building. I’ve built websites for local and national companies, led rebrands that transformed perception and performance, and ranked businesses at the top of search results in competitive markets

Design is my craft, but impact is my focus. I’ve learned that great design without strategy is decoration, and strategy without great experience is noise. The best work happens when design is balanced with value, and both come together to create something people actually feel.

I’ve also experienced failure along the way, and those failures taught me more than I could’ve ever learned elsewhere. They taught me to focus less on noise, and build from the heart, so I can bring value and help people.

Outside of work, I’m a mental health advocate. Over 40 years of living with anxiety, I’ve faced several forms of anxiety (separation, agoraphobia, existential), and a range of other mental health obstacles. I’ve spent a lot time supporting others through their mental health struggles. I’m not a therapist, but my experience has let me walk alongside a lot of people, including my own young daughter, as they work through their own anxiety.

I’m also a husband, father, pug dad, ocean enthusiast, and minimalist typography designer. I find clarity through design, prayer, meditation, architecture, and understanding how the human mind works. I’m constantly exploring how creativity, anxiety, and purpose intersect in the lives of builders and creators.

If you’re building something meaningful and want to bring it to life with clarity and purpose, let’s connect.