Brand strategy
Brand strategy.
Before the first line is drawn, three things get decided: what the company stands for, who it is talking to and how it speaks. Not a hundred-page deck. A few pages, written with you, that every design decision afterwards can be checked against.
Naming for AMAIÒ, brand architecture for the Silk Way group and its two sub-brands, positioning for Taak and Geo Office Berlin, and the same short work at the start of most identities since.
What you get.
01Positioning in one page
Who you are for, what you do that the others do not, and the one sentence a customer should repeat. Written plainly, agreed with the founder, and then used, not filed.
Naming
When the company needs a name, or a product does: a shortlist with meaning, pronunciation in the languages that matter and a first check of domains and trademarks. AMAIÒ carries Shona and Gallo in five letters.
Brand architecture
How the parent, the sub-brands and the products relate, so the system holds when the third product arrives. Silk Way needed one group brand and two operating brands that stay apart and belong together.
Tone of voice
A short guide to how the company writes: which words, which length, which jokes. It makes every later text, from the website to the packaging, sound like one person.
Strategy and naming.
02
Questions.
03Is this a workshop?
One or two conversations, in person or by video, with the founder and whoever decides. I ask questions, you answer, I write it down and send it back for corrections. No sticky notes on a wall.
Do we need strategy if we only want a logo?
A short version, yes, and it is part of every identity job. A standalone strategy makes sense when several people have to agree first, or when the name is still open.
Do you check trademarks?
A first check in the public registers and domains, yes. The legal search and registration are for your trademark attorney, and I will tell you when it is time to call one.
How long does it take?
That depends on your deadline, and I plan around it. The first concepts come within a week; you can pick one, combine two, ask for changes or for new directions. Most projects are done in three to five weeks.
What does it cost?
After the first call you get a fixed quote for the scope we agree on. No price list, and no surprises on the invoice.
Who will I be talking to?
Me. No account managers, no hand-off to juniors. You talk to the person who designs.
A name, a position, a plan? Write to me.
Two sentences are enough: what it is and by when. The rest comes out in the conversation.
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