How to start your brand project properly

We get it. It’s the fun bit. The shiny bit. The thing you can show people and say, “Look, we’ve got a brand, isn’t it nice!” But if the first thing you do is open an Illustrator file (or get your designer to do it while you say “I think I’d like it to be yellow…”), you’re skipping the bit that actually matters.

Your brand is the story people tell about you when you’re not in the room. It’s what they believe. It’s how they describe you. It’s the feeling they get when they use your product or hear your name. The logo? That’s just the shortcut. But it only works if it means something. And to mean something, you need to do the strategic work first.

Too many startups fall into the same trap, hiring a designer before they’ve nailed the basics. The result? A slick identity wrapped around a fuzzy business that doesn’t even know who it’s for yet. A website that looks great but doesn’t say much. Messaging that’s styled but not sharp. You end up redoing the work six months in or, even worse, confusing the people you’re trying to reach.

Strong design can’t save a weak story. And if you build your identity before you’ve built your thinking, you’ll waste time and money trying to retrofit meaning into something that was never built for it.

So what should come first?

Strategy. But not the kind that takes six months, 87 slides and people falling asleep on the Teams call (Gavin, we knowyou’re not having camera problems).

We’re talking about the fundamentals of your business. What problem are you solving? Who are you solving it for? Why does it matter? What do you believe about the world that others don’t? What’s the tension you’re here to resolve?

That’s your foundation. It’s the stuff that shapes your story, drives your decisions, and gives your brand its reason to exist. When you’ve got that in place, everything else gets easier –naming, tone of voice, visual identity, messaging. They all have something to hang on.

Propositions 101

A good early-stage strategy should be sharp, simple, and shareable. You should be able to say your proposition out loud to a potential customer, a new hire or an investor, and have it land. Not just “we make mittens for kittens.” But “we believe in warm feet for all cats, we’re making a change with super special grippy soles, and that matters right now because the winters keep getting colder.” You know, for example.

When that story’s clear, you attract the right attention. You get people nodding – well, maybe not for kitten mittens, but for . You pull in customers who actually align with your thinking. You get investors who get the point. You find your people faster. And the brand you build reflects what you stand for, not just what you sell.

We’ve seen too many brands start with aesthetics and reverse-engineer a story. That’s how you end up with visual identities that look nice, but say nothing. Copy that reads well, but means little. A brand that’s forgettable, because it wasn’t built with intent. Start with meaning. Build the story. And then… and only then, put your mouse to monitor and get designing.

The bottom line

Don’t let your brand journey start with a logo. Start with the stuff that shapes your business. The story. The edge. The belief.

Build from the inside out, and you’ll end up with a brand that actually works, not just looks good.

We can help you get it all nailed down from the start – so say hi to James on our live chat or drop us an email.