There are strategy questions we’ll ask at the start either way, about what the brand is, why it exists and where it’s going. If you can answer them clearly, we can move to design; plenty of clients already know all this, it just hasn’t been written down anywhere. If the answers aren’t there yet, we’d recommend working the strategy together first, since that’s what every design decision rests on. Learn more about our approach.

Often, yes. If the foundations still hold and the problem is inconsistency, dated execution or a system that never covered enough applications, a refresh keeps your recognition and repairs what’s failing. We’ll tell you honestly which of the two your situation calls for after we’ve looked at it.

It depends on scope and how many people need to weigh in. A visual identity typically runs two to five weeks; a project including strategy and naming runs longer. Send us what you need at [email protected] and we’ll give you a rough timeline from conception to delivery.

Yes. We land on a name that’s meaningful to your vision, eligible to use in business and as a web domain, and strong enough to hold its place in the market. Naming works best alongside strategy, since a name is easier to judge once you know what the brand is meant to stand for.

Enough to shape it, not enough to run it. We’ll need access to what already exists, whoever knows the business best, and a clear view of who makes the final call. From there we work in scheduled feedback loops, so you’re involved at the points where your input changes the outcome.

Our brand building process is designed to avoid that. We start by understanding your needs and creating a clear brief. You’ll see multiple concepts and stay involved through regular feedback loops, so your input shapes the final design. Disagreement early is useful; that’s what the loops are for.

Yes. After the identity is complete we create a brand manual with guidelines on how to use your visual and verbal elements. This keeps your brand consistent across platforms and gives future collaborators a reliable tool to keep it on track.

The identity has to meet reality, which is where most of them come undone; we wrote about a brand that lives in a folder for that reason. We can stay on to handle the rollout across your website, social profiles, packaging and print, or hand over to your team with the manual and a walkthrough. Either way, the point is that the system survives contact with everyday use.

Yes, and it’s usually the better way to run things. Branding sets what everything else has to be consistent with, so when the digital, social and creative work is built on the same foundation, it stops looking like it came from different companies. We can take on a branding project alone, but the brand will still shape whatever marketing work follows.