WAIT! Define your Brand before you Design your Brand

You are talented. You have skills that people would pay you for. You've always wanted to be your own boss.

Is this you? That is awesome! So when should you reach out to schedule your branding, logo, website, etc?...

So here's the thing. And maybe this is going to sound counter-intuitive as someone who LOVES working with small business owners to define who they are and how to best represent them. But, now might NOT be the right time for you to contact a branding designer.

Sorry to be a buzzkill but hear me out...

Working with a brand designer is a reflective process.

I will ask you a lot of questions including (but definitely not limited to):

1. Who are your ideal clients? (Age, location, interests)

2. What services do you offer? (Compare your bread and butter projects to your dream projects)

3. What type of voice do you project? (Informative, professional, fun, upbeat, serious, etc)

Now you might know these answers but for many entrepreneurs, these questions change in the first 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, and so on as you really figure out what clicks for your business.

If you brand your company too early you lose that flexibility to change.

And flexibility is vital to your newly created company.

If you've recently spent a sum of money to create your branding materials you may feel stuck with your designs even if your branding does not represent your company. Being in this position stinks. You may make a decision to spend the money (again) to rebrand or try to fit your company into what you already have - thus potentially holding back your growth.

So here's the deal. If you want to be in business for yourself start by telling people about your business. Design cheap business cards and tell friends, tell acquaintances, tell your family what you do. If there is a market for your services, you will find people interested.

Gain some experience having to sell your company without the right branding first.

Then, call me. :)