5 things you need before hiring a brand designer

Hiring a brand designer is a big step (and investment) in growing your business! If you’re feeling ready to hire a designer, whether you’re just starting out or looking to refresh your existing brand, there are a few key things to keep in mind before you hire a professional brand designer.

This blog is here to help walk you through the 5 essentials needed to for a smooth and successful branding project with your designer.

Here are 5 things you need before hiring a brand designer.

• A Vision
• Target audience
• Budget
• Trust
• Brand Photos.

Let’s dive into each of these a little more.

01. A Vision

While it is the designers job to help get you from A to B… having some sort of vision or your brand is a must. Of course, you definitely don’t have to have every little detail figured out though! That’s the main reason to hire a designer anyway.

Knowing the general vision & vibe you’re hoping to achieve definitely helps set the project up for success.

Why do you need to have a vision for your brand before hiring a designer?

• Clarity: Having a vision provides a clear direction for your brand designer, ensuring the final outcome aligns with your expectations.
• Efficiency: A well-defined vision streamlines the design process, saving time and resources.
• Consistency: Ensuring all elements of your brand convey a cohesive message strengthens brand recognition and loyalty.

Here’s a couple questions you can ask yourself to help figure out your brand vibe & vision:

• Why do you do what you do?
• What emotions or feelings do you want your brand to evoke in your audience?
• How do you want your audience to perceive your brand (e.g., professional, friendly, edgy)?

02. Target Audience

Knowing who your people are beyond the basic age & gender before you hire a designer means being able to create branding that speaks directly to and calls in who you actually want to work with.

Why you should know your target audience before hiring a brand and website designer:

• Relevance: Tailoring your brand to your target audience makes your messaging more relevant and appealing to them.
• Engagement: Understanding your audience’s interests and values helps create content and designs that engage and resonate with them.
• Loyalty: Building a brand that speaks directly to your audience fosters a stronger emotional connection, leading to increased loyalty and advocacy.

A couple questions to ask yourself to get to know who your people are:

• What kind of interests and hobbies do they have?
• What are their values?
• What motivates them?

03. A Budget

Professional branding is an investment, no secret there. But it’s an investment that you’ll make back and MORE after implementing it. Overall, being open about & having a budget before hiring a brand designer allows for a more structured and efficient collaboration, and helps make sure everyone is on the same page.

Why set a realistic budget?

• Planning: A clear budget allows for better financial planning and ensures you allocate resources efficiently.
• Quality: Investing in professional branding often results in higher-quality deliverables that make a stronger impact.
• ROI: Effective branding can lead to increased sales and customer retention, providing a significant return on investment.

04. Trust

This is a biggy.

I KNOW how hard it can be hard to give up control on some things when it comes to your business. But when it comes to hiring a designer you need to trust that they are the expert.

While its important to have a vision for your brand, having an open mind and trusting that the designer you hired will guide you in the right direction is important too. A good designer will keep your wishes for your branding at the forefront but ultimately, you hired the designer to solve a problem for you.

It’s their job to guide you in the right direction to make sure you get to a place where your branding feels aligned, helps you reach your goals & authentically resonates and attracts your people.

Why you need to trust your designer:

• Expertise: Trusting your designer allows them to leverage their expertise fully, resulting in a more professional and polished brand.
• Collaboration: A trusting relationship fosters open communication and collaboration, leading to better outcomes.
• Innovation: Giving your designer creative freedom can lead to innovative ideas and solutions you might not have considered.

05. Brand Photos

Okay, this isn’t a “must have” right away… but its definitely encouraged and highly, HIGHLY recommended.

You can either have brand photos done before hand if you have a strong vision for your brand. Or have them scheduled and ready to go after you and your designer define the creative direction your project will ultimately take.

While you can get away with stock images on instagram for a little bit, having the branded high quality photos to match the new high quality branding just goes hand in hand, and really pulls the whole project together, especially if you’re having your website designed too.

Having brand photos done before (or very, very soon after) you hire a designer makes the final outcome of actually hiring a designer, that much more impactful.

You can read more about how to plan a brand photoshoot here.

Why have brand photos?

• Authenticity: Custom brand photos add a personal touch, making your brand more authentic and relatable.
• Consistency: Professional photos ensure visual consistency across all your branding materials.
• Quality: High-quality imagery enhances the overall look and feel of your brand, making a lasting impression on your audience.

Hiring a brand designer is a significant and exciting step toward elevating your business and driving success.

When you come into the process with a clear vision, understanding your target audience, setting a realistic budget, an open mind, trusting your designer, and investing in brand photos, you’re setting yourself up for a successful branding journey.

The goal is to create a brand that not only looks amazing but also resonates with your audience and drives your business forward.