All of Your Branding Questions Answered | A Q&A with BrandWell's Design Team
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Show Notes
I am so excited to share this interview with you because you're going to get to hear from two of my favorite people in the world, my brand designers, Libby and Lauren. These two graphic designers are exceptionally talented. They helped me produce more than 65 brands for clients in 2020 and we have even higher hopes for this new year. You're going to get to hear all about branding, what it is, why it's important, and some common branding mistakes.
Meet Libby & Lauren
Libby went to Liberty University where she studied graphic design and strategic communications. She graduated in December of 2019, but before that, in her junior year of college, Libby started working at a gym where Victoria also happened to work as a spin instructor. At the gym, they had a mutual friend who knew that Victoria needed a brand designer and asked her if she was looking for any help. The friend also knew that Libby was a graphic designer and was doing some freelance work here and there. One thing lead to another and the rest is history.
Many don’t know this buy Libby & Lauren are actually great friends and roommates.
Lauren also went to Liberty University, studying strategic communications with a cognate in social media. They met in one class but didn't see each other much after that. “So it's really cool that we reconnected and became good friends.” It wasn't until this past summer when Lauren and Libby were on vacation that Lauren saw that Victoria posted she was looking for another brand designer. Lauren asked Libby if she should go out for the position and Libby said, “yeah why not!” So I reached out and again, the rest is history. Lauren actually didn't have a minor in graphic design in school, but Libby has taught her a lot, and she definitely feels like her skill set has improved by just working for BrandWell in the last six or seven months.
Our Conversation
Victoria: So let’s break down branding for our audience. What is it? There are a lot of definitions swirling around on the Internet with what branding is and what it isn't. So why don't can you tell us what is branding? How would you define it?
Libby/Lauren: I would jump in and say that branding is definitely a mixture of not only design but messaging, too. That's something that BrandWell, specifically has really taught me, branding is more than just creating a logo. Your logo is not where your business stops. It's evoking emotion. When people see your branding and keeping things consistent. You definitely want someone to look at your brand, whether it's in person or on social media, and you want it to be remembered. You want cohesiveness across all platforms, whether it's the colors, fonts, even a connection between your primary and secondary logo. You definitely want to be remembered.
Victoria: Yeah, I couldn't agree more. I think where some of the confusion is going back to the original meaning of branding. It was always identified as just a symbol or a sign, something to distinguish the maker of a product. I think this shift has happened with social media and we have been able to give brands so much more personality and a feeling now that we can evoke with our brand. We're able to personify brands in a way that we never could before through social media and that's why you have to be so intentional with your brand. So, Libby, you've been with BrandWell now for over a year and you have designed more than half of all of the brands that we did in 2020. What is the process look like when we start working with a new branding client to build a brand for their business?
Libby: Yeah, so the first thing that we do is we send our clients a logo questionnaire and a Pinterest board. The questionnaire askes them about their business, what makes it unique, and just a few other questions to get to know them a little better. Then Pinterest, where we ask you to pin images or logos that you like, color palettes that you like, just to get us a little jump start on the process. Once we have those two things, we create a custom mood board and color palette. The custom board color palette really sets the tone for where your brand is going to go with imagery and the fonts and the colors and stuff like that. After the mood board, we jump into your initial primary concepts and then we repeat the process with the secondary logo. After those are finalized we move on to your brand’s look book, which is just a collection of your logos, tips on how to use your logos, and has all the hex codes for your colors. We even create a custom email signature for you.
Victoria: Even before all of that it always starts with a phone call, and that's where I get to really hear the heart and soul of the business owner and what makes them unique. That’s why on our questionnaire, the second question we ask is: what sets you apart? Branding is the only thing that's going to set you apart from hundreds, if not thousands of other people that are offering what you offer. That's why we start there and then we start to bring in the design elements and the mood board, the color palette. I think it's really important to have a cohesive brand, but also a brand that works in a lot of different ways.
So we get that question a lot: what is a secondary logo? Lauren, can you kind of explain the difference between a primary and a secondary logo?
Lauren: Sure, absolutely. A primary logo is definitely your full business name. So when it comes to differentiating the two, a secondary really goes back to that. Just being a symbol that represents your brand, whether it's the first letter of your business name or just a graphic element, the secondary is very much condensed compared to the primary, but both should still go together. They should typically have the same colors and fonts and again, just be recognizable. They should both be able to stand on their own, but be recognizable to anyone viewing either.
Victoria: We're giving the client everything that they need to utilize their branding the way it was intended to be utilized. But, if you're not using your branding the way that it was intended, then you're going to create confusion. I think any brand that has stood the test of time that sticks out in our minds is something that we recognize, we're loyal to it. It's because they've been consistent in their branding and in their brand message too. Lauren, as a branding expert, what are some of the common branding mistakes that you see people making? And do you think any of these mistakes have consequences?
Lauren: Sure. So people don't always recognize good design. But they will always recognize poor design. Going back to just keeping it cohesive, if you are mismatching fonts or just pairing colors that don't go together, you're disrupting the cohesion of your brand. Obviously, when it comes to design, it's a very opinion heavy business, and that can just be difficult.
Victoria: A lot of people will say the brand is the gut feeling that somebody has when they interact with your business. I think it's Jeff Bezos who said your brand is how people talk about you when you're not in the room. I think all of those are good definitions and I think they definitely apply to what branding is. Going back to mistakes with branding people may not always commend you for a beautiful logo or for a well-designed website, but let me tell you, they will recognize poor design. I think that everyone has to start somewhere, so I know that not everybody can invest in a custom design or custom branding right out the gate. But, it's something to keep in the back of your mind because if you truly want to see your business get to that next level and you want to see it grow, branding is so important. A poorly designed website is actually going to repel your clients. Your website is a lot of times that very first impression that people have when they interact with your brand. So if you don't have a well-designed, functional, and aesthetic website and logo, I do think you repel a lot of people. So I think branding is so incredibly important. Libbey, something that we say a lot at BrandWell is good design equals trust. Can you elaborate on that a little bit?
Libby: Yeah. So if you want somebody to trust your business, you need to appear professionally incredible. Good design equals trust. If you have a good logo, if it looks professional, if it's clean, that'll bring people to your business. Having a good logo and branding for yourself will help give you the confidence to show up online as an expert in your field.
Victoria: I think that's the really cool thing that we get to see in a lot of the clients that we work with is, like Libby said, the confidence change that happens once we give them that branding guide and we give them their new website and we take it live, it's like all of a sudden now they can't help but share about their business and drive traffic to their website. There’s a shift when you have a website or brand that you're really proud of, that you're confident in, you're going to come across so much more naturally because you believe in what you're doing and you've invested in what you're doing. I think that once you can do that, as we said, good design equals trust. If somebody lands on a website and it looks well put together, it's clear that they hired somebody that knew what they were doing. When it comes to web design or even just branding, they're going to be more likely to invest their money with you. So, Lauren, are there any brand trends that you've noticed that you would encourage people to stay away from in 2021?
Lauren: That's a great question. I wouldn't necessarily say a specific brand trend, but I would just encourage people to maybe not follow trends so closely at all. You know, trends come and go even within the last few months. Obviously, we've learned within this past year that things are just unpredictable. So my advice would be to just stay unique, stay true to your business, tell a story that's personal that people will remember. And, that's what when it comes down to it, when you want someone to remember your brand, what's going to set you apart from other businesses and other competitors? It's going to be what again evokes that emotion in people viewing your brand.
Victoria: Yeah, I couldn't agree more. I also want to kind of just bring it back to the brand messaging, because I think that's really important as well. So if you're listening to this and you are considering doing branding or you want to take your business in this new year of 2021 and focus on branding and actually have a brand that you can be confident in, it's all going to start with that brand mission statement. When you're creating your brand mission statement, you need to convey both what you do and why you're different. I think it can be as simple as that. You don't want to get too drawn out with your brand mission statement where you're never going to remember it because I think when things are too long, you forget it. Then it's useless if you're not going to remember it and repeat it to yourself. Also, make sure that it's broad enough to encompass where your brand may go. All right, Libby, what about rebranding? When should somebody consider rebranding their business?
Libby: Yeah, we get a lot of people who actually come to us for a rebrand. The first thing that I usually notice is that the stuff that they have is outdated. You know, as Lauren said earlier, people tend to follow trends and those go away, obviously. So that's why it would be a good reason for you to rebrand your business; if your fonts are outdated, the colors are outdated. And, then also if your business is starting to grow, maybe that would be a good time for you to rebrand your business. Like we said earlier if you have a DIY logo that you made in Canva or you made in Word, it's really time for you to invest to give you a logo that you feel really confident in and that you're proud of. So, yeah, we do get quite a few people who come to us with rebrands and it's typically because they have an outdated look or they really just want to take their business to the next level.
Victoria: I love that you said if they had something that was too trendy. I want to caution everybody who is going to start by DIYing their logo because I know we all have done it right. So if you are going to do that, try to not get sucked into the Pinterest whole of everything has to look the same. I think, especially in each industry if you look at hair salon logos on Pinterest, they all look the same. And if you look at real estate logos, they all look the same. So I would even challenge you to look at a different industry and take bits and pieces of design elements that you see in other industries and bring them into yours, because, again, in a really saturated market, the only way to stand out is to have branding that's on point, that set you apart, that's different. It's going to catch somebody's eye.
Now for both of you guys, what was your favorite brand design of 2020? And for our listeners, I will link this in the show notes. You guys can go look at it.
Libby: So my favorite brand of 2020 was Hardcastle’s Photography that I had at the end of the year. We were wrapping up things and then we had this repeat client come in and Leah was just literally so incredible to work with. I had worked with Leah and her sister's business, S&A Co. Leah and her husband have a photography business, and working with them honestly, they have such great style, and working with them is so easy because they know what they want. So, yeah, I would have to say the Hardcastle’s, and I love what we came up with and they're just the best.
Lauren: You know, this was hard when I really thought about it, but when it came down to it, I think my absolute favorite design was Jenn Knarr. She was one of my first few clients when I started working for BrandWell and she again was just a dream client to have. I remember when we were in the early stages of designing her primary logo, she reached out to call me about some revisions she had, and then when we actually got on the call, she was like, you know what I thought about it, and I have nothing more to say, I love what you made. So she was just a dream and her logo, I know Victoria, you posted about it on Instagram and it's just always a fan favorite. It was truly the first logo I designed with BrandWell that I thought, “you know what? I can do this.” I really believed in myself. I really love what we came up with. And I'm still obsessed with that logo.
Victoria: That logo ended up being our number one logo of 2020. Crazy for that being one of the very first logo designs that you did since coming on at BrandWell. But, this was so fun! Thank you, guys. If you want to hear more from Lauren and Libby, just follow us on Instagram @BrandWellDesigns. I hope that this has encouraged you and given you a little bit more confidence when it comes to branding your business.
