The Biggest Branding Mistake I see Small Business Owners Make…
The biggest branding mistake I see small business owners making is not understanding the difference between brand strategy & brand visuals…
….and therefore not understanding that there’s no point ❌ in having brand visuals if you haven’t developed your brand strategy first.
If you think back to when you started your business which of these did you write on your to-do list first?
✅ Design a logo & select your brand colours (or search for someone who could design a logo for you)
✅ Spend time working out who your brand is & what it stands for?
We tend to see creating a logo as a non-negotiable task on our “start a business” to-do list (which, of course it is) - but because we don’t often see the work that goes on behind the scenes when other businesses design their logo, we don’t see all the work that has to take place first in order to design a logo that accurately represents their brand.
The whole point of a business having brand visuals (such as a logo design, colours & typography ect) isn’t just to make your business “look good”, “look professional” or “be recognisable” it’s to communicate who your business is & what you stand for in order to attract the right people to you.
Brand visuals are simply a communication tool to tell your potential customers that you’re a good fit for what they’re looking for, but in order to do this you first need to understand & identify what it is that you need to communicate!
🤔Q. So how do you figure out what your logo design & branding needs to say about you & your business?
👉A. By building your brand strategy
Whilst the term brand strategy sounds really overwhelming at first, it’s simply just a series of tasks & questions you can ask yourself to gain clarity over who you are as a business & how you’ll show up in a way that attracts the right people to you.
Although I’d always recommend to work with a designer that also offers brand strategy as part of your branding process, (take a peek at my Small Biz Growth Kit🌱 if this is something you’re looking for 👀) if you’re just starting out or don’t have the budget for this yet, it’s totally possible to create a decent enough DIY brand strategy that will put you miles ahead of the many small business owners that don’t spend time working on the core messaging behind their brand.
🤓 Further Reading & Resources:
📥 How to Build Your Brand in 30 Days