The 3 C’s of a good brand, and why they are important.
Are you thinking color is one of the C’s?
Nope, good branding is something deeper than the facade of a company. Great branding is often confused with pretty branding, which is something you don’t want for your company. A pretty logo is just that, visually appealing with no depth and no meaning. There is no reasoning behind their color choices, their type selection, or their emblem, it is an empty shell. That is something you do not want to be associated with the business that you have poured your life and soul into, am I right?
So, how do you make sure your business’ identity is beyond beautiful?
Let me tell you the secret.
1 - CLARITY
You need to know exactly who you are wanting to reach. The more specific you can get the better. The way to do this is to set values and a mission statement for your business. The next step is to have a long list of values (here is one to get you started) and narrow it down to 5. Now you ask me, how can I just narrow it down to 5 from this amazing list? First, you need to pick the top five values that you will go to battle for; the ones that you are extremely passionate about. The values that you choose will be ideal for when you feel your business is misaligned, which will happen. So choose the five values that are more important than money.
PEOPLE WANT TO WORK WITH GENUINE PEOPLE AND TRUST ME, THEY KNOW WHEN YOU’RE AFTER THE MONEY AND NOT PASSIONATE ABOUT THE PROJECT!
So yes, your business needs clarity! Your brand needs to showcase these values and not go against them.
2 - CONFIDENCE
You know that first time you told someone your price and they looked shocked so you made your voice a little bit smaller? That is lack of confidence in your business and your services. Your brand needs to exude the confidence that you carry. You have worked your butt off to get this business going. We all know it has been a rollercoaster ride but to your clients and potential clients you need to portray that you know what you are doing because you do. You know when you dress in sweats and feel comfortable but not like you are ready for a photoshoot? That’s what an empty brand feels like. A great identity with clarity and confidence is like showing up in your best outfit and the wind is just working in your favor, you feel like “Damn! I need to run into all my ex’s today!” Yeah, that’s your brand with confidence! Next time you say “yes, my price is __” you will have a brand to back you up even if you are a little shaky.
3- CONSISTENCY
This is the killer. You know what you are doing, who you are doing it for, you feel flawless and like a boss ass b*tch… now you just have to do that every day. Easy peasy? Not so much. Great branding looks consistent over all platforms from print to digital to even how you speak in your social media captions. The more consistent you are with your brand the more people will start to recognize you. This does not mean that you have to use the same graphic across everything, DO NOT DO THAT! Let me repeat that again, DO NOT DO THAT! Brands that are done well will have consistency as well as variety. You don’t want all of your graphics to look the exact same because that just gets lost with all of your other amazing content. You want things to look cohesive and specific to you and your voice without looking cookie cutter. This is where developing a system for your brand is key.
Now that you have the keys to having an amazing brand identity, time to ensure your brand meets these standards! Many of you may be thinking: “My logo is fine… I think…” “I don’t really need to be too in-depth with my branding, I have enough clients now.” or even “Okay, I made it through the values list, and now I don’t know what to do.” Let me just tell you this, if you don’t think your brand is hitting these 3 things, then it’s lacking something. If you think you have enough client work and don’t want to deal with this, totally get it. Yet, it’s still is important, don’t you want to grow an empire? It’s time to level up your branding and get serious about making this side hustle a real money-making thing.
You may be thinking, why can’t I just keep the logo I have now and move on with my life? Your brand is the first thing a client sees before meeting you. Are you giving off the “I am amazing, know what I am doing, and will do that for you” vibe or are you portraying “I kind of know what I’m doing, and will try to help you if I can” attitude? The difference between the two can be a game-changer in your business. You always want to come off as the expert, the go-to person in your field. A good brand can be that small difference. Imagine logging onto a website of someone you hear is amazing and their website looks like it still runs on dial-up.
Be honest, aren’t you already a bit cynical of this person’s expertise? And that is without you knowing them. That is the power of branding.
