BRAND & STRATEGY
Make the right impression before you say a word.
A clear brand gives people a reason to notice, understand and choose you. We pair sharp positioning with a visual identity that remains useful long after launch.
WHAT’S INCLUDED
The pieces that make a brand usable, not just good looking
Positioning and narrative
Work out what you stand for, who it is for and how to say it in a sentence people repeat back to you.
Naming and language
Names, tone of voice and messaging that hold up in a pitch, an email and a job advert.
Identity systems
Logo, type, colour and layout rules that work across a website, a deck and a van door.
Guidelines and handover
Practical guidelines your team can follow without needing to ask us first.
WHY IT MATTERS
Clarity makes every next decision easier.
HOW WE WORK
A short, decisive process with no mystery
01
Start with the business, the customers and the decisions the brand has to support.
02
Agree the direction early, on paper, before anything gets polished.
03
Build the system, test it on real material and hand it over ready to use.
STAGE BY STAGE
What actually happens, week by week
Brand work goes wrong when nobody can say what is being produced or when. Every engagement runs through the same five stages, and at the end of each one you receive something specific rather than a status update.
01
Orientation
Week one
WHAT HAPPENS
We sit down with the people who actually sell the thing and get four answers written down in plain language: what the business does, who it is for, what makes it different, and what a good year looks like. Where those answers disagree, we have found the real work.
YOU RECEIVE
A written positioning statement, one paragraph, no adjectives
A note of the disagreements we found, and which ones matter
An agreed audience, described as people rather than segments
02
Language
Week one to two
WHAT HAPPENS
Before anything is drawn we settle the words. Names for services, the sentence used to open a sales call, the way a price rise is explained. Language is cheaper to change than design and it dictates what the design has to hold.
YOU RECEIVE
Service names and descriptions, ready to reuse everywhere
A tone guide with real sentences, including the awkward ones
A short messaging hierarchy: what to say first, second, third
03
Identity
Week two to four
WHAT HAPPENS
The visible system: wordmark, type hierarchy, colour with a clear dominant and a reserved accent, and a photographic direction described specifically enough to brief somebody else. Tested against real content, not a perfect example.
YOU RECEIVE
Wordmark and monogram in every format the business needs
A working type and colour system with rules for each context
Photographic or illustrative direction, with references
04
Applied mock-ups
Week four
WHAT HAPPENS
We put the identity into the situations it will actually live in before anything is committed: signage, vehicle, packaging, a proposal cover, an invoice, a slide. Proofs are printed and looked at from across the room, because colour and scale behave differently in the world.
YOU RECEIVE
Applied visuals for the assets you produce most often
Printed proofs for anything going to signage or press
Sized artwork files, ready to send to a supplier
05
Handover and training
Week five
WHAT HAPPENS
Files and rules on their own get ignored. We run a session in person where the people producing day-to-day work make something real with the new system while we are still in the room, and we fix whatever trips them up.
YOU RECEIVE
An in-person working session with your team
Guidance written with examples rather than rules
Templates for slides, proposals, email and social
A named route for questions after we leave
THE FULL LIST
Everything we can produce, written down
Not every project needs all of this. It helps to see the whole range in one place, so you can decide what is worth paying for now and what can wait until the identity has settled.
Identity and design
Wordmark, monogram and symbol design
Type hierarchy and colour system
Photographic and illustrative direction
Iconography and pattern work
Sub-brands and service naming
Guidelines and templates
Written guidance with worked examples
Slide and proposal templates
Email signatures and document styling
Social post templates and sizing
A do-not list, with the reason attached
Mock-ups and proofs
Applied visuals before anything is committed
Printed proofs viewed at real distance
Signage and vehicle livery visuals
Packaging and label mock-ups
Supplier-ready artwork at correct sizes
Print and marketing collateral
Business cards, letterheads and invoices
Leaflets, brochures and price lists
Exhibition stands and pull-up banners
Campaign systems built to be repeated
Landing pages tied to one clear action
In-person training
A working session on your own live files
Making a real slide, post and proposal
CMS publishing practice, including tables
Refreshers when the team changes
A named route for questions afterwards
Ongoing brand care
Quarterly review of anything drifting
New assets produced to the same system
Support for suppliers and print partners
Guidance updates as the offer changes
Files kept in one place you own