INSTRUCTIONS
How to best fill in the Briefing Page
If you are not familiar with how a Brand is created, I recommend you read these instructions.
Design and branding can seem daunting and this is why I am here for you! With my 30+ years of experience and your prep-work, we will together create a custom made brand just for you.
To successfully start your journey towards a great Brand, please read the instructions below first on how to best fill in the questionnaire, which will become your brief to me.
If you feel that I am the right person to help you freshen, or design your Brand from scratch, congratulations! So where do you start? First, I will need you to do a little bit of homework so that I can get to know your company, your brand and your wishes better. This is what allows me to offer extremely competitive pricing. Your input works as a factsheet, a basic brief and a blueprint, which in turn, will save you tons of money.
Tell me more about your brand on the Briefing Page when you sign up.
We associate certain colours, fonts and layouts with certain industries. So, will your brand look the same as everyone else's in the industry if you commission me to design it with my magic formula? The answer is "NO", provided that you do your bit first.
The three semi-fixed environmental factors in your market are
COMPANY
CUSTOMERS
COMPETITION
These will be the core of your brand strategy.
You and I need to understand your particular three C’s in order for me to serve you in the best possible way. It all starts with a thorough brand strategy.
YOUR
COMPANY
What is your Company's/brand's name?
First you will fill in your brand or company name, your field of work, as well as your contact details. (This can also be for instance your First + Surname if you want, ideal for a consultant, or personal branding, or why not even a wedding theme!)
I also need to know if your Company/brand is one or a mix of:
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A business to consumer; B2C
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A business to business, B2B
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A service
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A product
B2C brand logos can be embellished and decorative to add “flavour” and feelings.
B2B brand logos tend to be very simple and neutral, and often do not have very much meaning, which allows for the longevity of a logo.
Service brand logos focus on reliability, consistency and professionalism.
Product brand logos tend to be very specific depending on whom the ideal customer is, focusing on age and price points.
What is your Company's/brand's personality?
Brand Personality is a set of human characteristics that are attributed to a brand name. It is important for a company to accurately define its brand personality so it resonates with the correct consumer.
Brand Attributes;
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are the core values that define the overall nature of the company and represent the essence of the brand.
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are the set of unique fundamentals and characteristics that identify the physical, character, and personality traits of the brand in the market and in the minds of the customers.
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are the functional and emotional associations that are assigned to a brand by its customers and prospects.
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are the basic elements for establishing a brand identity.
What is the aim?
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A company's brand should aim to elicit a positive emotional response from a targeted consumer segment.
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Branding aims to establish a significant and differentiated presence in the market that attracts and retains loyal customers.
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A brand is a name, term, symbol, or other feature that distinguishes an organization or product from its rivals in the eyes of the customer.
How? You do this by choosing the attributes from the list that you wish your customers would associate with your brand. You will find several alternatives in the questionnaire.
There are five main types of brand personalities with common traits:
Excitement: carefree, spirited, and youthful.
Sincerity: kindness, thoughtfulness, and an orientation toward family values.
Competence: successful, accomplished and influential, highlighted by leadership.
Sophistication: elegant, prestigious, and sometimes even pretentious.
Ruggedness: rough, tough, outdoorsy, and athletic.
YOUR IDEAL
CUSTOMER
Who is your ideal customer?
Identifying your target customer is the most important stage of your marketing plan.
A wise place to start is to ask yourself “What problem does my product/service solve and for whom?" It is important to define who your ideal customer is. Try not to be too broad as you can't be all things to all people. Find your niche.
How? You do this by choosing the attributes from the list that best fit your ideal customer.
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For certain brands, you might be interested in demographics like age and gender. For other ones, you might be interested more in psychographics like interests and opinions.
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You should try to specify the gender and age, local or global, the problem they have and why you/your company is best suited to do so. You know your industry best.
YOUR CLOSEST
COMPETITION
What do your Competitors look like?
Different companies within the same industry seem to use similar colour palettes, fonts and have a somewhat similar overall feel. This is no coincidence. The feeling that different colours give the viewer have been documented for ages, and are pretty much universal.
In order to avoid any risk of similarity to your competition, you need to share these with me.
I ask you to send some screenshots of 2-3 main competitors' web pages and/or logos. You can upload the screenshots to the questionnaire.
Would it not be devastating if there was another company, even a direct competitor, with the same colours, fonts and a similar logo? Yes, it would. This is why it is so important that you need to do your homework as you know your industry best.
Colours and fonts hold a significant meaning in marketing and human psychology.
If you want, you can choose the colour system and font family you feel will work best to convey your chosen Company/brand attributes/personality. You can also leave this up to me.
Colours can help you stand out while a poor colour choice can have a negative impact on your business. Colours broadly align with specific traits and aligning your colours with the type of personality you want to portray for your brand can help boost conversions. In addition, colour trends for men and women are also different. Hence, depending on your target audience you can choose which colours you want to use in your logo and your look and feel and associate with your brand.
You can choose one, two or three colour schemes and/or font families, as I will make three routes for you. If you feel very sure about a colour scheme, you can also choose just one. You can also leave it completely up to me.
If you want to learn more and give a more precise brief, have a look below at what meanings and psychological effects colours and fonts have on the viewer!
BONUS Nr 1
YOUR
COLOUR PALETTES
These examples are just a few colour systems.
Elegant, refined, classy, harmonious, quality, calm
(Variations and shades of one colour)
MONOTONE PALETTE
Harmonious, fresh, easy on the eye, gentle, positive
(Variations and shades of two adjacent colours)
ANALOGOUS
PALETTE
Strength, energy, vitality, playful, youthful, naive
(Combines opposite colours from the colour wheel, such as blue + orange, or red + green)
COMPLIMENTARY PALETTE
FONT FAMILIES
Font family examples (there are thousands of fonts within each family!)
minimal, versatile, clean, straightforward, informal, legible, innovative, objective, authoritative, reliable
SANS SERIF
Modern, geometric, simple fonts
sophisticated, expensive, delicate, stable, warm and welcoming, respectable, reliable, high-end, glamorous, luxurious
SERIF
Elegant, refined, classic fonts
classic, sophisticated, expensive, delicate, natural, artistic, unique, warm and welcoming, respectable, mature, reliable, high-end, glamorous, luxurious
SCRIPT (or Handwritten)
Creative, personal, elegant fonts
Get a FREE 12-page downloadable PDF to help you avoid typical pitfalls when it comes to Branding Design. Simply go to the CONTACT page and fill in the form.
BONUS Nr 2
YOUR
You will get the guide in your email. You can opt at anytime from the list. I never sell or show the list to any third party.