Pursuing a new brand design for your small business can feel like a big undertaking. What should your brand design look and feel like? What colors or patterns are right for your business?  Luckily, when you hire a professional brand designer, your designer will likely gather your vision, goals, and preferences in order to carefully create and present a purpose-driven brand design for your business. 

So, what should you prioritize during your brand design process? What will allow your brand designer to create the best possible design solutions for you and your business? Today, we’re sharing 3 things to prioritize before and during your brand design process, to ensure you come away with a long-lasting, purpose-driven brand design rooted in your success.

What to Prioritize During Your Brand Design Process

Journeying through a professional brand design process can be overwhelming. You’ve likely worked for years to build and grow your business, and you know your business better than anyone else. You’ve likely entered the brand design process with at least a few hopes regarding what your brand design will look and feel like once your design process is complete. 

So, what can you do before and during the design process to create a smooth process? What should you prioritize to ensure your brand is really rooted in purpose and designed to last?

1. Prioritize your Ideal Client. When it comes to brand design, it’s essential to prioritize your Ideal Client — or your audience. To more consistently book your prospective clients, your brand design, web design, and online presence as a whole truly have to connect with and serve your audience. So, when approaching the brand design process, keep your Ideal Client in mind. The details of your brand design should be designed to appeal to your audience. This may mean certain aspects of your brand design are unexpected, or different from what you would have chosen for your business. In the end, your brand should truly work on your behalf and connect with your audience — so as challenging as it may be, try to blend your personal preferences with a desire for your brand to resonate with your audience above all. 
2. Prioritize the business you want to have. Maybe you’re wondering if certain aspects of your current brand design can be carried over to your new brand design. Though every business and every situation is unique, we believe brand design is about creating the visual foundation for the business you want to have, rather than carrying over details from past versions of your business and brand. By beginning with a completely blank slate, your designer can ensure every detail of your brand is rooted in purpose. To experience a fresh, new season in your business — or to ensure your online presence really connects with your audience — we recommend beginning from a blank slate and prioritizing the business you want to have.
3. Prioritize your designer’s expertise and approach. It’s likely your chosen designer has experience and expertise in brand design — in creating purpose-driven designs for businesses. No matter how your designer approaches or journeys through the design process with you, your designer is dedicated to your success — dedicated to creating a design you love, and more importantly, a design your prospective clients and customers will feel connected to. At With Grace and Gold, for example, we like to say your brand design will be a blend of what you love and feel connected to, what your Ideal Client loves and feels connected to, and what is forward-thinking in your field. You may come away with a brand design you don’t expect — and that can be a good thing! Doing what has been done before — or doing what has worked well for another business owner — can be doing your business a disservice. Instead, trusting your designer to create a brand rooted in your unique business, values, and goals can better ensure you come away with a unique and long-lasting visual foundation for your business.

Prioritizing all of the above will help your brand design to not only be rooted in your goals for the future, but it will also help your brand design to be forward-thinking, modern, and creative. 

About Brand It, Build It Podcast, Hosted by Kelly Zugay

Hosted by Kelly Zugay, co-founder of With Grace and Gold, The Brand It, Build It Podcast is a leading small business marketing podcast for small business owners, creatives, founders and entrepreneurs. Enjoy weekly, actionable episodes to build a successful, sustainable small business from the inside out.