YOUR BRAND
IMPLEMENTATION PARTNER
June 2023
So, your branding agency did a magical job on your logo, colour palette, graphics, and some brand touch points. They handed over your brand assets to you. Then what? Did the fairy godmother's magic only last until midnight?
Branding agencies do amazing work; I cannot speak highly enough of them. But time and time again, we see brands that showed great potential coming out of a branding agency fail to deliver after the handover of assets to the client.
This outcome is more common than it should be, and can be avoided.
While there could be several contributing factors to this issue, let’s explore some of the more common causes, specifically relating to brand strategy and visual brand implementation.
Psuedo designers.
Appointing anyone but a mid- to senior-level graphic designer to implement your visual brand is a risky cost-saving measure that can have consequences. While design might look easy, there is a lot of nuance, training, agility, and honed skill involved in being a designer. It takes years for designers to reach a level where they would be truly successful in an autonomous role undertaking brand implementation. They would have technical experience across a variety of media channels including supplying finished artwork for both print and digital, experience with a multitude of software platforms that are constantly evolving, and the technical skills that go into making amazing art at a commercial pace. This skillset simply cannot be replaced by just anyone without consequence.
The money ran out.
This is a real and unfortunate occurrence and is often closely tied to the point above. The cost of implementing new or refreshed brands can vary greatly, and companies might not always have allocated enough money to cover the full scope of what they wanted to achieve. This is especially true for smaller firms or start-ups that have tighter budgets. Working with design consultants in the early stages can alleviate misaligned budgeting issues and educate you on what to expect during a branding project.
One channel to rule them all.
We have encountered situations where channel-specific designers with the best intentions made design decisions outside of brand guidelines, which then fed back up and changed the course of the holistic visual brand approach and execution. A channel-specific designer is likely not across the holistic brand direction but can influence the course of a brand’s execution. Under the right brand implementation management, this shouldn't happen. A brand should always be guided by a top-down approach, starting with strategy. Brand implementation should be managed by a safe pair of hands to ensure all brand touchpoints are delivered in the manner that strategy and visual brand guidelines dictate. The tail should never wag the dog.
Aiming blindfolded.
To undertake a brand project without a brand strategy is like wearing a blindfold and aiming at a target. You might hit the target, but it could also go horribly wrong. This is where brand strategy comes in. Brand strategy is the central and unifying idea around which all actions, behaviours, communications, and visual identities are aligned. Brand strategy emerges from an in-depth understanding of your customers' needs and perceptions and should be aligned with the organisation’s business strategy. The best strategies are so powerful that they drive behaviours and change perceived ideas.
Hiring the right people to undertake your brand implementation is an integral part of a brand project’s success. The amount of resource help you will need for a branding project will depend on the size of the firm and the timeframe of brand delivery. The bigger the firm and/or the more urgent the requirement, the more hands on deck you’ll need.
You could consider working with a design consultant at the start of your project to discuss the best approach. You will get an idea of what to expect, what to budget for, and what skillsets you’ll need, and they can guide you on a realistic delivery timeline.
Whether you have an existing in-house design team or not, hiring a brand implementation specialist to oversee the success of your brand project is worth investing in. Having someone dedicated to steer the project and ensure all deliverables are on brand and on time will set your brand up for a successful launch to market.
Brand implementation managers have a honed skillset that incorporates brand strategy, branding systems, project management, graphic design, and a savvy understanding of the internal workings of an organisation’s IT platforms so functional assets are successfully delivered to the firm.
There are many ways to successfully manage your brand project and avoid your brand becoming a casualty. With an investment in planning and hiring the right people, you’re well on your way to avoiding any unfortunate outcomes.
June 2023
So, your branding agency did a magical job on your logo, colour palette, graphics, and some brand touch points. They handed over your brand assets to you. Then what? Did the fairy godmother's magic only last until midnight?
Branding agencies do amazing work; I cannot speak highly enough of them. But time and time again, we see brands that showed great potential coming out of a branding agency fail to deliver after the handover of assets to the client.
This outcome is more common than it should be, and can be avoided.
While there could be several contributing factors to this issue, let’s explore some of the more common causes, specifically relating to brand strategy and visual brand implementation.
Psuedo designers.
Appointing anyone but a mid- to senior-level graphic designer to implement your visual brand is a risky cost-saving measure that can have consequences. While design might look easy, there is a lot of nuance, training, agility, and honed skill involved in being a designer. It takes years for designers to reach a level where they would be truly successful in an autonomous role undertaking brand implementation. They would have technical experience across a variety of media channels including supplying finished artwork for both print and digital, experience with a multitude of software platforms that are constantly evolving, and the technical skills that go into making amazing art at a commercial pace. This skillset simply cannot be replaced by just anyone without consequence.
The money ran out.
This is a real and unfortunate occurrence and is often closely tied to the point above. The cost of implementing new or refreshed brands can vary greatly, and companies might not always have allocated enough money to cover the full scope of what they wanted to achieve. This is especially true for smaller firms or start-ups that have tighter budgets. Working with design consultants in the early stages can alleviate misaligned budgeting issues and educate you on what to expect during a branding project.
One channel to rule them all.
We have encountered situations where channel-specific designers with the best intentions made design decisions outside of brand guidelines, which then fed back up and changed the course of the holistic visual brand approach and execution. A channel-specific designer is likely not across the holistic brand direction but can influence the course of a brand’s execution. Under the right brand implementation management, this shouldn't happen. A brand should always be guided by a top-down approach, starting with strategy. Brand implementation should be managed by a safe pair of hands to ensure all brand touchpoints are delivered in the manner that strategy and visual brand guidelines dictate. The tail should never wag the dog.
Aiming blindfolded.
To undertake a brand project without a brand strategy is like wearing a blindfold and aiming at a target. You might hit the target, but it could also go horribly wrong. This is where brand strategy comes in. Brand strategy is the central and unifying idea around which all actions, behaviours, communications, and visual identities are aligned. Brand strategy emerges from an in-depth understanding of your customers' needs and perceptions and should be aligned with the organisation’s business strategy. The best strategies are so powerful that they drive behaviours and change perceived ideas.
Hiring the right people to undertake your brand implementation is an integral part of a brand project’s success. The amount of resource help you will need for a branding project will depend on the size of the firm and the timeframe of brand delivery. The bigger the firm and/or the more urgent the requirement, the more hands on deck you’ll need.
You could consider working with a design consultant at the start of your project to discuss the best approach. You will get an idea of what to expect, what to budget for, and what skillsets you’ll need, and they can guide you on a realistic delivery timeline.
Whether you have an existing in-house design team or not, hiring a brand implementation specialist to oversee the success of your brand project is worth investing in. Having someone dedicated to steer the project and ensure all deliverables are on brand and on time will set your brand up for a successful launch to market.
Brand implementation managers have a honed skillset that incorporates brand strategy, branding systems, project management, graphic design, and a savvy understanding of the internal workings of an organisation’s IT platforms so functional assets are successfully delivered to the firm.
There are many ways to successfully manage your brand project and avoid your brand becoming a casualty. With an investment in planning and hiring the right people, you’re well on your way to avoiding any unfortunate outcomes.
