You’ve got the big idea and you’re excited to hit the ground running. The adrenaline is there, the support is there (and even if it’s not you’ll be damned to not see this through) and your brand is … not there.

Yet.

There’s a lot of aspects when it comes to branding. I look at it like mixing ingredients and how it fills the air with experience and aroma. A strong brand can set you part from your competitors, create a unique identity and help you build a stronger, more authentic connection with your audience. I’ve got a pretty straight forward approach that I take my clients on when we work on their brand strategy, which I call the 3 D’s: Discover, Define, Design.

Discover:

This is the first step in evaluating your brand is to actually evaluate it. Discover (or rediscover) why you want to have or start your business. Not sure where to start? Try these very easy going questions:

1. What is your name? (yes, start with this – identify this is you and your business)
2. What’s the name of your business?
3. Why did you choose that name and what does it mean?
4. Write a sentence about your business. One sentence that explains what you do and who you help. One sentence that’s less than 15 words. If you can’t do that, then you likely don’t know what your business is actually about and how it helps (yet). Or you’re in your head overcomplicating it.

This discover section is also where we dig into your mission, vision and values. What are your goals, who do you want to serve and why, and what are your values?

Define:

This D is mostly dedicated to your target market and your competitors. Who is the ONE person you want to help always and forever all the time and take all their money because you’re serving your purpose and they love you and you love them. This is called you ideal client. Create an avatar for this person. What’s their name, how old are they, what are their hobbies, where do they hang out at, are they married, do they have kids etc. Create a whole-ass profile on this dream client.

Then write who this client represents as a whole. What group of people does this client speak for? Who does this client represent as a whole?

Take some time to dig into your competitors. If you don’t have any – try looking elsewhere nationally or internationally. Competitors do not have to be local. And if you still don’t have any because you’re a ground breaking bad ass – then figure out the alternatives that people are currently using or going to use that would prohibit someone from coming to you.

Examine what they’re doing, who they’re helping and what they’re good or bad at. Set yourself apart from these fools because you’re the bomb[dot]com.

Design:

Once you have the first two categories, now let’s mix it all up and see what it starts to make. We’re talking colors and environment. How do we grow a flower that will attract all the right bees? What color does our flower need to be? What scent does it need?

Create a mood board (Pinterest is a great place for this) and start pulling your favorite 50 images that embody exactly what your brand needs to be and who your audience is. What your audience likes and what pieces of that ‘likeness’ can trickle into your brand? Textures, colors, fonts, images, vibes, rooms, websites – you name it. Anything that embodies this flower you’re trying to grow, add it to a mood board.

Cut that mood board down to 25 images.

Cut it down again to 10-15.

That’s your direction for your brand.

This is how you build your brand based off of strategy. You can DIY this all yourself if you like, or team up with a professional brand strategist/designer to get this the way it needs to be.

Remember that your brand is a reflection of you but it’s not you. It’s not your favorite football team color or logos just because you like it, it’s about connection with your audience.

If you’d like help with this process, book a call today!