One of my favorite sayings is, “It takes as much work to plan for failure as it does to plan for success.”
A few years ago, a local homebuilder wanted to engage me to design a logo for her boyfriend, a potter. As a busy professional, she was in a rush and wanted to solve this problem right away. Like that morning. In an attempt to move the project along and save money, she pulled a low-res (and not very good) logo from another potter’s Etsy shop and asked if I could just recreate it.
Aside from all of the ethical and legal questions this sort of request triggers (which I spent some time outlining in an email) her boyfriend was also planning on selling his work on Etsy. So this borrowed, slap dash “branding” would not only be a copied mark, it would also create brand confusion. Since it was on the same platform, this stolen mark could be easily discovered at some point, potentially triggering legal action and a lot of bad feelings.
In another instance, a competitor’s lack of strategy caused ongoing difficulties for a client of mine, a non-profit providing in-home care services for elderly and vulnerable populations, helping them stay independent. A local competitor skipped a number of critical steps in their own branding, instead copying my client’s brand. They chose a similar name, logo, and color palette to deliberately siphon off my client’s business by creating confusion in the market.
This created an urgent need for my client to rebrand as part of defending their reputation and differentiating their organization. We approached their rebranding strategically, taking the time to understand and articulate their story, their history, and what set them apart. The logo that we developed from that strategic process continues to serve them well and elevate them in the market.
Both of these examples are two sides of the same central issue: branding and marketing strategy. To me, strategy is the articulation of a plan to achieve a desired goal, typically accomplished through specific tactics. A strategy is executed through its tactics, in which you move from one milestone to other in pursuit of the overall goal.
More fundamentally, strategy means taking the time to do the hard work of thinking and planning an overarching plan before rushing into action.
At Luna, we integrate strategy by foregrounding it. Strategic thinking and exploration guide all of our projects, especially when working on in-depth projects, or with a new client. We explore the client’s goal and the questions surrounding it as part of the initial discovery process. When mapping out a branding strategy, I love to dig, ask questions, explore assumptions, and research the competitive landscape and the client’s industry. If the project involves rebranding, I explore any pain points with the current logo and opportunities for improvement.
To kickoff the process, we ask all of the stakeholders fill out a short questionnaire, which helps to inform the project and establish metrics for success. In addition to asking key questions, I also research the market to better understand the context in which the company operates. This informs positioning and helps me understand how the client can positively differentiate themselves from the competition.
(As an aside, direct feedback is always valuable and not often sought out, which always surprises me. Wherever possible, I also ask the client to participate in their client research in the form of a short survey monkey questionnaire or just by talking directly with their clients.)
Regardless of the particular circumstances or project, skipping the vital process of developing a brand and marketing strategy simply means that, at some point, you’ll need to stop and develop one before you can go futher. The good news is that with the right marketing partner, this vital process can be much easier to navigate. It can even be exciting! And with your strategic roadmap and articulated goals in place, you’ll be in a stronger position to realize your company’s goals with greater ease.
Ready to get started? Let’s chat.
