Your brand starts with a choice, not a logo

The first thing we are usually asked is whether we can make a logo. It is almost never the real question. A logo is a signature, and it only works once there is something to sign: a decision about who you are for, and therefore who you are not for. That decision is uncomfortable because it rules someone out, which is exactly why most companies skip it — and end up with an identity that looks tidy and says nothing. The logo takes the blame afterwards, though it was never the problem.

The choice steers the rest of the work

Once it is settled, everything after it gets smaller. Colour, type, tone and photography stop being matters of taste and become answers to one question: does this fit what we chose? Turning down a proposal then costs a sentence instead of a meeting.

• Who are you the obvious choice for, and who are you clearly not for?
• What can you promise that your competitor cannot deliver?
• Which word do you want used when someone recommends you?
• Where does someone meet you first, and expecting what?
• What should never be said about you?

What that means for the schedule

So direction comes before design. Early on it feels like a delay, because there is nothing to look at yet, but it saves a great deal of back and forth later: every proposal is measured against something fixed rather than against whoever has the strongest opinion.