A Post on Branding

It seems like this rebrand has been in the pipeline for so long.  I must admit, that since I started this business I have never been happy with my branding — or lack thereof.  I have tried numerous logo styles, which were mostly thrown together by me and entirely missed the point that branding is SO MUCH MORE than a logo.

I have studied and researched the ins and outs of brand identity.  How was I going to come up with something that would see my business through the envisaged years of growth, that would honestly reflect my shooting style, business model and… well, me?

Then, I met fellow photographer Katie Kolenberg, who is also a designer, and fell in LOVE with her design portfolio.  It is so hard to know where to begin with the building of a strong brand, and I knew immediately that I had found the perfect fit.

Stage One started out with some pretty simple questions from Katie.  Such as, “what do you have in mind for your logo?”  Me: “um… I don’t know.”  So, we were off to a flying start.

All I knew was this.  When I looked at my current logo/site/marketing, it said nothing about me.  There was no connection between my portrait business and photography workshops. It didn’t reflect the way I shoot, the images that I produce, and where I plan to take my little business.

So, more golden insight from me to Katie: “So, could it just be… you know, just to be me and um, you know… just cool and great.”

I gave her so much to work with.

Katie suggested I compile a mood board of images and text that was filled with loads of details, big and small.  Things that would help her get a feel for my business.

With her direction, it took about a month to piece together photographs of my favourite house designs, the books in my book case, favourite handbag, material swatches, areas of my home, fave clothing.  Loads of notes were compiled on favourite bands, movies, tv shows, cities; keywords put together on my business reflection; ideas on the kind of clients I love to service; lists of the things that I love and the things I don’t love – from seasons to food to the best way to spend an evening. Signature images, hand writing samples and business dreams were sent.  I finished with a trip to Bunnings to collect hundreds of paint sample colour cards and spent a few days with a gazillion colour blends until I came up with one I was happy with.

Then, we waited.  Katie promised two concepts as a starting point.  She had such a good feeling about her first concept that she sent that through on its own.  I can quite honestly say that you could have knocked me over with a feather.  That was it.  It was perfect.  In one beautiful design I felt like Katie had created something that said EVERYTHING it needed to.  Each letter has been hand-drawn, painted and cut by Katie.  We have here one unique little old font.

Next step was the website.  And again, Katie did such an amazing job of bringing my limited ability to describe what I want to life.  I cannot recommend her more highly.  I have never been so excited about design and branding — but it feels so good.  Kind of like when you rearrange a room in your house, but HEAPS better.

This whole process has been surprisingly integral on another level.  It helped me clearly define goals on so many aspects of my business that I hadn’t thought about too much.  Your personal brand is not just a logo — for photographers it is about consistency in your imagery, processing, product delivery, telephone manner and email tone.  It is about only showing the sort of work you want to keep producing.  It is about attracting the clients that are a perfect fit for your product.

And hopefully, it serves as an accurate starting point for any prospective client — so that when they have their first experience with your business (whether it be a phone call, the website, a referral or a marketing card), it is a fair indication of what they can expect to receive from you.

So, Miss Katie K, you were the dreamiest love to work with.  You are so clever.  And I am so very grateful for my new look.

If you love it too and want to send some positive vibes, I would love to hear your feedback.

Seeing as it is all brand new, I will leave with some images of a little fella just 18 days brand new.  x