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It wasn't a 10k job (so why make it one?)

Published 11 months ago • 7 min read

2ND EDITION | ISSUE #153

"If you were my business coach? What advice would you give me about this offer?"

I asked — while staring into my Zoom screen and connecting with Jayne — my most recent Brand Brushstrokes client who was giving me some beta feedback from halfway around the world.

And as someone who doesn't really follow other designers — preferring to stay in my lane and not get distracted by comparison — I was so surprised at her feedback.

"I didn't want to change my logo. And I had been scouting around for the right designer to work with (mostly on Instagram for ages) before I came across your work.
I had contacted four other people whose work I liked but every single one of them refused to take the project because they only wanted to do new brands, that new complete brand development. The fact that you were prepared to take on an existing brand made you a no-brainer for me to get in touch with.
And I don't know how many other people are in that situation. Every single designer out there is going, 'we will start from scratch with this,' when I've been doing this for 17 years. I found that really bizarre that everyone will know we start with logo and we build the entire thing out because there's got to be lots of businesses like me that don't want that.
And because they were trying to do complete brand overhauls, the pricing was insane. Like, everyone was offering like, four and $5,000 US packages, which for an Australian is $10,000. And it was just not — it wasn't a $10,000 job."
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Was that it? Had I really hit my positioning that easily?

Was it such a POV after all that you don't actually need to change everything about your brand? That it is only natural to want to evolve the brand you already have?

The reality is that there are probably some elements that you like about your brand. Whether it's a color, a logo that you feel like people identify you with, or brand photos, you aren't ready to scrap.

So when I am looking at your brand as a whole — and your goals for developing it — I'm taking all of that into consideration.

At the end of the day, it's not about me.

Your brand is about you.

You've gotta like it.

You've gotta know how to use it.

You've gotta feel inspired by it.

Or else what is the point?

If you have a brand that's been around for a while, there's a good chance that some of the elements of it are already identifiable by your audience. Whether it's a specific color, font — or in Jayne's case a logo she wasn't quite ready to let go of yet.

So I see it as my job to help you piece things out — figure out what stays and what goes and how to work around it.

To bring your brand into its next evolution — the next chapter, not an entirely new series.

Here's exactly how we did that for Jayne's brand ↓

Step one: evolving the color scheme

The biggest bang for your buck can come from color — so that's where we started with Jayne's brand. She had her existing logo & the two colors in it — so it was my job to make those colors fit into a new color scheme that would work better than the color scheme she had.

We wanted to go from what felt to Jayne like a "cookie-cutter, seen it a million and ten times - wellness niche brand" to something that felt fresh, fun, playful — while still having a bit of a wellness vibe.

Step two: adding branded fonts

Then next came fonts — Again, I was tasked with utilizing her existing font in her logo (Futura), but within a brand that felt much more unique to her than a basic font that everyone has access to.

We added a more bold and decorative font as her title and H1 font — plus a decorative handwritten font to the mix.

Step three: illustrations

Now it was time to pull it all together — with (drumroll please) the illustrations. Her existing logo featured a slightly abstracted orange, which was made of flat colors and shapes. We were both inspired by Matisse & his cut out collages and emulated that look, keeping shapes flat, and negative space with a lack of overlap apparent in her branding.

Now Jayne had a "new" brand — but a brand that wasn't a total 360. A brand that felt more personal to Jayne, as a copywriter and herbalist. And a brand that helped her lean into her voice and naming, with one of our illustrations inspiring the name and theme of her new offer, "The Marketing Messaging Garden".

The first thing you need to do is understand your brand's positioning, meaning how your audience perceives you + what you do now vs. how you want to be perceived. What shifts do you need to make to evolve how your audience thinks of you? In Jayne's case — she was going from serving mostly corporate clients and getting the majority of those clients from referrals — to positioning herself and her brand as more of a founder-facing personal brand & online messaging coach for the often analytical health and wellness pros who might not speak "marketing girlie".

​P.S. Getting this clarity about the positioning of your brand's next pivot is exactly what we do in the new 60m Strategy offer I am testing called The Studio Session, and there are 5 beta spots left (one with your name on it!)​

Next up — it's time to figure out what stays and what goes. Have a color you love? Who says you can't keep it? Like the logo you have already? Why pay for a new one if you don't need to? This step is more about identifying the holes in your brand assets — where it feels like something is missing. Whether that's a color scheme that only *actually* works in a few different combinations, or needing a couple of new fonts to feel like your brand is actually a *brand* unique to you and not something that looks like every single Canva template.
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You need help with your colors — you can get my step-by-step process for creating brand color schemes + 2 rounds of 1:1 feedback from me on them PWYW starting at just $5 in The Brand Color Kit.
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If you've got your colors down — but you need help with the fonts — and developing the overall guidelines and theme of your brand. I can help you with that inside the 2D Design Masterclass.​

This is the *most* important step — actually taking action. In my opinion, I think a lot of people *overthink* this step. Like when to "unveil" their new colors & brand. When in reality, there's just no literal way it is all going to be done at the same time.
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And if you actually want your audience to care about your rebrand, or refresh, or pivot — or really whatever you want to call it… You've got to make them a part of the conversation.
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​Jayne did an awesome job of this — by creating a "brand refresh diaries" series where she told the stories and reasoning behind why she was making changes.​
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Plus by the time she was done working in The Brand Brushstrokes container with me — her and her VA had a detailed set of brand guidelines with examples of what that brand should look like when implemented on her socials, website and more. No guesswork needed — now it was just plug and play — like a capsule wardrobe for her brand.

P.S. There's only two spots left in Brand Brushtrokes this year! If you need 1:1 help evolving your brand identity ot to get *just* some illustrations for your brand - inquire now to get it done before your q4 launch!

Bookmarked on the Gram'

It's no secret that the world is basically burning down and lucky (I think?) for us we get to watch it all through a phone screen.

It can be really hard for me to seperate what is going on in the world in real time from ya know - my work day. My job. Being here, being active on social.

I actually spent a couple of weeks with no socials on my phone - and only posting from my Ipad because I needed more boundaries for my own doom scrolling anxiety that was quite frankly killing my anxiety.

A brick is defintely on its way to my house very soon since I don't think think (unfortuntely) that the world will be chilling out anytime soon.

Anyways here's a post that I think everyone needs to read about what psychology says we are about to witness in the online business space and on another note - just a laugh If you need it.

Listening

I went to one of THE BEST concerts of my life last Friday. Like, I have honestly been just wanting to re-live that show over and over again. Once isn't enough, and I've been on repeat ever since.

If you ever get the chance to see Mt.Joy - go do it.

​This song - get's played at least three times a day - it's the end of the summer bop I need to make me feel like life actually isn't so bad?

Evening golden hour walks with my headphones on in the park have been my go-to for the last week, and I've been taking a break from podcasts to just listen to music.

On said walks - I've gotten so many content ideas that you can find me mid-loop jotting down ideas in my notes app.

Catie's Fall Curriculum

I shared in last week's newsletter about how I am challenging myself to a 12-week year.

A big part of that 12-week year is working on my money mindset - something that I definitely struggle with, and I know has affected me in my business.

I've been doing a ton of journaling (ah la the Artist's Way), focusing on lots of visualization, gratitude, and circling back to my sales goals and progress every single morning.

I've also been doing this EFT tapping video almost daily.

As someone whose brain goes 1 million and ten miles a minute, breathwork and meditation need to be paired with something else in order for me to actually feel like I can concentrate on it. The movement of EFT tapping helps me to actually slow the efff down for a minute.

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the real work happens behind the brand

Behind The Brand is a weekly newsletter for solopreneurs and small business owners navigating the ongoing reality that their brand needs to evolve—whether they're working with a DIY setup, in the middle of a rebrand, or maintaining an established brand through business pivots.

The newsletter teaches slow branding: the philosophy that brands evolve in seasons and don't need to be rebuilt from scratch every time something shifts. Through real brand breakdowns and practical strategy frameworks, readers learn to recognize what actually needs attention versus what can wait—so they can make confident branding decisions without the constant "should I start over?" spiral.

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