The ROI of Brand Design
3 Key factors that help you maximize the roi when investing in design
An entrepreneur recently told me that she had spent so much money on design, but all she got was a logo. What she actually was looking for was clarity on how to move her brand forward.
If you invest in brand design you naturally wanna see a return on your investment (ROI)—so what is the ROI of brand design? The answer unfortunately is: It depends. There are so many individual factors that make or break the ROI, but let’s look at 3 key factors that you, as the client, can influence:
No 01 / 03
Brand design doesn’t exist in a vacuum
If your product/service is falling short, your photography or copy is mediocre, you don’t show up for your audience or your messaging is muddied, then chances are that the design alone won’t create the transformation and the ROI you’re looking for. The design is creating a visual impression, but if the rest doesn’t follow people will see right through it. Design is not a quick fix for bad business and inconsistent branding. Branding is so much more than the design, and it all needs to be cohesive and high quality.
no 02 / 03
It won’t work unless you do
This is a hard truth, but the more you invest in your brand, the more likely you’ll see that ROI. And I’m not just talking about money here (although you shouldn’t expect to get a full brand transformation for a few hundred bucks), but mostly about your time and effort. You are a key ingredient to the success of your brand. And if you don’t show up for your brand, the design won’t do a thing.
How much time are you willing to put into the brand design project? If you just want to hand everything off so you get it off your plate, you probably won’t see big results. Sorry to burst that bubble. If you want to grow, you have to get involved. That doesn’t mean that you have to design anything yourself, but it means taking time to prepare for the project (your designer most likely will give you tasks to prepare), it means taking time to give your designer good feedback and to carry your load in the project. A branding project is a collaboration.
And then, when the project is done, what are you going to do with your new design? How are you implementing it? Your willingness and ability to show up and make good use of everything that you and your designer worked on before is going to have a huge influence on your ROI. The best design won’t do you any good if no one sees it.
No 03 / 03
Not every Brand Designer is a Brand Strategist
It’s crucial to find the right person for your goals. If you have big goals, then you’ll need someone who’s going to help you uncover the underlying problems you’re facing. You need someone who doesn’t just understand design, but branding as a whole – nope, they are not the same. In short, branding is the process of intentionally shaping your business‘ reputation. The design plays a big part in this, but it’s just one piece of the puzzle.
What you’re looking for then is a brand strategist, but not every brand designer is a brand strategist. This is really important to understand and it can be confusing as heck – because strategy has become s buzzword in the design industry and what the strategy contains is different from designer to designer and strategist to strategist. And some designers, like me, are also brand strategists. Complicated, I know.
So how are you supposed to find the right designer/branding expert for you? By getting clear on what your goals are. What are you hoping to achieve? How do you want to feel after the project? The clearer your goals are, the easier it will be to find the right person to help you get there.
If you’re ready to actually transform your business with a cohesive brand, let’s chat!
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