As tenacious brand strategists and designers, we know that those brands focused solely on visuals and aesthetics only take a business so far. Don’t get me wrong sweet friends, brands that are beautiful are a necessity. But if pretty is all they are, and they are missing the brand strategy built into them to truly deliver results, then how are we as designers serving our clients well? And how are we equipping our clients to serve their own clients well?

To be a designer who is ready to take your business to the next level for not only yourself, but also your clients, you have to be willing to take an approach to your branding processes in a way that deliver lasting results for your clients. And I believe that all begins with brand strategy.

The Benefits of Brand Strategy

Today in this post, I want to talk through how brand strategy influences design. On top of that, I want to share how you are able to leverage more of the heart behind your client’s brand in order to build a brand that empowers them to do their best work.

The benefits I’ve seen over the past six years as a brand designer is that taking this brand strategy approach will truly change your own design process.

Really first and foremost, it gives you the ability to create a brand that goes much deeper than just the surface. It gives you the chance to create something with longevity built into it. It empowers you to connect with your client’s ideal clients and design with them in mind.

So how do we leverage brand strategy?

Brand strategy ultimately is the strong foundation behind your client’s brand.

It’s one thing to start the design process and choose pretty colors or hone in on the right typefaces to pull together a brand identity. But it’s another thing to strategically dig into what exactly should influence the choices you as a designer make in building a brand identity. It will reflect the heart of your client’s brand, the message behind their work, and, ultimately, the value they bring to the table through their work.

And when you are able to build a brand around those foundational components, then you are able to elevate the kind of results you can deliver for your clients.

The Core Foundation To Success

Brand strategy, in my experience, is the core foundation that will set you up for success. As a designer, it’s going to help you create a process that’s different and delivers results. It will help you create brands that are built to last. But most importantly, it will set your own clients up for success. Because it’s going to transform the kind of results they can expect to see from their brand!

This is the reason why brand strategy is such a big deal. Trust me, it’s not just this cool description we use about our work. It’s not empty words we use to gain more clients. It truly is a deep, intentional process to leverage within our work as designers in order to really get to the core of our clients’ brands.

My Own Brand Strategy Success

Within my own process, really figuring out how to allow brand strategy to influence the design I create for my clients took time. Once I was able to find that sweet spot and create a signature approach to my brand strategy, I then was able to allow that strategy to permeate the design choices I was making for my clients. And that my friends, is when I started to see some big results for my clients.

I’m talking about the kinds of results where we were able to craft brands for my clients who brought in $50k in a month after launch or those who booked an ideal client 24 hrs after their site went live. But most importantly, it gave them the confidence and the encouragement they needed to know they absolutely can connect with their ideal client time and time again. Why? Because we designed their brand with that ideal client in mind.

Rather than diving straight into the design process with your branding clients, I highly encourage every graphic designer out there to invest in crafting a brand strategy process that really delivers results. Because brands that only go skin deep won’t cut it anymore, friend. It’s time to craft purposeful, profitable brands that are built on clear strategy and tons of heart! If you are looking for a quick way to dive into this approach, I’m sharing a page straight out of my signature strategy process to elevate your design business here.

My Strategy Process As A Designer

Before I guide my clients through the design process, we start with brand strategy. We take time at the very beginning of our work together and we dive into the strategy behind their brand. This helps me so I can move forward with clarity. A few things I want to deeply understand throughout this time together:

• Who their ideal clients are?
• What their brand message is?
• The heart behind their work…
• The value they bring to the table…
• How their work is truly different?

Once I’m able to understand those values and concepts, then I’m able to pull in color palettes that resonate with who their ideal clients are and their values. I’m able to make visual choices when it comes to type, icons or other graphics that will honor the overall experience and aesthetic my client is trying to make in the first place.

On my end, as a designer knowing these things truly equips me to do my best work. It also equips my clients to see the kinds of results that will not only positively impact their bottom line, but also, their sense of ownership and confidence in the work they are doing. Because now, they have a brand that is an authentic reflection of their life’s best work.

Here’s How You Can Implement This Brand Strategy

If you want to up-level your business and guide your clients through a proven brand strategy process that delivers results time and time again, then let me introduce you to the Brand Strategy School. The Brand Strategy School is my signature brand development process that I’ve spent the past 11 years honing, refining and perfecting. And I’m sharing it with you in this top-selling course!

The blueprint of my signature process will guide you to create your dream design biz and connect with your ideal clients all while standing out in a saturated industry. Instead of going through a surface-level design process, you will learn how to craft heartfelt brands that are designed to endure.

Doors aren’t open just yet, but be sure to add your name below to be the first to know when registration launches.