You’re so excited to be starting a business. You have the funding lined up. You have great employees and contractors hired on. You’re ready to get out there and start helping people. However, you may not realize that you’ve missed one critical detail: You haven’t taken any time to brand your business.
What does it mean to brand your business?
“Oh,” you’re probably thinking, “I do need to design a logo and get some signs up.” But branding your business is actually about so much more than logos and signs. It’s about strategically orchestrating every interaction that past, present and future customers have with your business. You can do this by laying out everything from the typeface you want on your print and digital content to the tone and voice you want your team to use when interacting with customers.
Three reasons you need some outside help when branding your business
I can tell you that branding your business properly will mean covering a lot of ground, but you don’t have to cover all that ground on your own. Agencies like mine exist to help guide businesses through the branding process. Here are three reasons why you should consider getting some outside help with your branding:
It can help reduce your stress
Branding processes have many moving parts, and this typically leads to lots of stress. Yet branding can be a lot less stressful of a process when you’re working with an experienced branding agency. For instance, I’ve created a branding workshop where your team and I will spend a day going through a step-by-step process of getting down all your thoughts about what you want your brand to be.
This process starts by getting to know your company culture. If you’re a solo entrepreneur, we will talk about what values are important to you. Next, we’ll discuss your customers and the type of impact you’d like to have on them. We’ll also determine your goals for growth in revenue and brand awareness. When these questions are answered, we can co-create a concrete branding plan that truly fits your startup.
It brings experience to your branding process
Experience is important in any field. It took me years of working in the digital marketing and branding industry before I decided to strike out on my own. All that work with various companies helped build my experience. Putting the experience that I and other branding professionals have to work for you can help ensure that you don’t miss anything during your own branding journey.
For instance, you may not have considered the importance of brand messaging such as value proposition, tagline, and key benefits. These brand statements will set the tone for your brand’s website, ads, and brand collateral.
It brings an outside perspective to your branding process
You know your company and its goals very well, and that’s usually a good thing. However, it can also lead to preferences and biases that can derail your branding process. Branding consultants don’t have these issues because they bring a neutral, outside perspective. They will have to take the time to learn about your business goals and your customers’ needs. Often, they will come up with ideas and concepts that your internal team may not have considered as a result.
Heart & Hustle can help streamline the process of branding your business
I know that you may be wary of bringing in outside help when branding your business. That’s one reason why I recently put my own company through a rebranding. I wanted to know what my customers went through. As a result, I’m fully aware of the pitfalls that branding and rebranding can present. I can use my experience from my own rebranding process and my years in the branding and digital marketing industry to help you streamline your own branding process.
Want to find out how I can help your startup create an exceptional brand? Let’s talk.
About the Author
Stacey Harrison is the lead brand strategist and designer at Heart & Hustle Brands and has provided creative direction for healthcare, industrial, and financial services brands for 20 years. She started Harrison Creative Group in 2017 to serve businesses that need a professional brand image on a budget. In 2021, the company rebranded to Heart & Hustle Brands to walk in the shoes of clients that experience a change of name or brand refresh.
