Brand strategy isn't your logo

The logo is the last thing

Brand strategy isn't a creative exercise. It's a positioning exercise.

Before a logo, you need clear answers to:

• Who are you really?
• Who are you for?
• Who are you against?
• Why do you exist?
• What would you change in your market?

The three layers

1. Strategy — positioning, audience, manifesto
2. Identity — naming, visual system, tone of voice
3. Experience — how all this lives in every touchpoint

A brand without layer 1 is a pretty empty shell. A brand without layer 3 is a broken promise.

Common mistakes

• Starting from the logo
• Copying the big players
• Communicating everything to everyone
• Changing brand every 18 months because 'it doesn't work'

A brand doesn't work when there's no strategy, not when you don't like the logo.