We are this, but not that

One of my favorite exercises to do when I help teams with their identity is the "We are this, but not that" game. Business owners tend to have difficulty when it comes to owning their brand. They'll usually start with the more visible stuff like a logo, a name and some colors they like. But what about after the "new brand smell" starts to wear off? How do you build a brand that goes deeper than these superficial elements? How do you build one that lasts?

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Before we start any design work for a new or existing brand, I make sure my clients can give me at least five adjectives describing their team. I'll get words like "simple, bright, fun, creative, passionate, bold and caring." In addition, they are also required to give me an explanation of why they chose the words they did. I find this always helps both the clients and me have a common understanding of what they aspire to be.

More recently, I've asked my clients to also share adjectives they'd like to avoid. I want them to think of words they hope their prospective customers never use to describe them. They don't want to be "boring, pretentious, uptight, pushy or crazy."  While this adds a layer of complexity to the branding discussion, I find it extremely valuable for my clients. This seems to be when the message about branding really sinks in.

Your brand is what you do.

The words you want people to use to describe you are not given to you. They are earned. Brand guides are not just places to document what hexadecimal values you'll use to create your logo. A brand guide is where you decide what you need to do to earn your brand.