Branding is Not a One Shot Deal

When starting a new company or rebranding an old one it’s important to budget for design beyond the initial branding project for those unexpected extras. While it may seem that design beyond the initial branding is ‘that thing you’ll do when you start to make money’, most clients find that it quickly becomes an immediate necessity. This finding usually comes about upon the institution of a marketing plan.

Back in the old days, i.e. 30 years ago, location was everything for your store. Setup shop in the center of a busy street with enough walk-by traffic and visibility and you'd have customers in no time! But now it seems that few people are walking, Main Street is empty, and if you're not online, you don't exist. This means that the challenge of getting people to see your nicely branded product is a bit more complicated and requires more marketing.

A good business plan should have a great marketing plan, and any marketing plan usually involves some needed design work. Perhaps you plan to place ads in local newspapers or on related websites, distribute coupons, hock your rebranded goods at a trade show, or hit the streets to distribute menus. Almost all marketing activities involve design and while you can certainly make a flyer in Microsoft Word, if you're paying thousands of dollars for branding only to display it in a shoddy booth or brochure you've done both your wallet and your brand a disservice.

This same theory applies to websites. Don't make the mistake of believing that you just need to create an online presence and 'people will find you'. The internet is more crowded than a grocery store shelf, therefore it takes some serious work to draw traffic. SEO, linking, social media, and ad placement are all time consuming (and often money consuming) marketing methods that are neccessary for success.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that your product will sell itself. No one is as excited about your company as you are. Creating a marketing plan that will spread that enthusiasm is essential.

Photo by ToastyKen.