Guides
Practical reading on brand strategy, identity and working with agencies. Back to the Design Shortlist shortlist.
Tone of Voice: How to Sound Like One Company
A simple way to define a tone of voice that a whole team can actually use.
The Logo Design Process, Step by Step
What happens between a brief and a finished logo, and why good designers start with questions.
Logo vs Brand Identity vs Brand: What Is the Difference?
Three terms that get mixed up constantly, explained in a way you can use in a meeting.
Branding for Investor Pitch Decks
How brand and design influence fundraising, and what to prioritise in a deck.
Branding for SaaS Startups: What Actually Matters
The brand decisions that affect conversion, retention and hiring for software companies.
Branding for FinTech Startups: Building Trust Fast
How financial technology companies can look credible without looking like a bank.
Branding for Web3 Startups: Earning Credibility
How Web3 projects can use brand to build trust with users and investors in a sceptical market.
Rebrand or Refresh? How to Decide
The difference between a full rebrand and a lighter refresh, with signs that point to each.
How to Launch a New Brand Without Chaos
A rollout checklist covering internal launch, digital touchpoints and announcement.
How to Compare Branding Agency Proposals
A scoring approach for comparing proposals that differ in scope, price and process.
Freelancer vs Agency: Who Should Design Your Brand?
When a freelance designer is the right choice and when a studio or agency is worth the extra cost.
AI in Branding: What It Can and Cannot Do in 2026
A realistic look at how AI tools fit into brand work, including the ownership questions.
Personal Brand for Founders: A Practical Start
How founders can build visibility that supports the company without it becoming a second job.
Brand Naming Basics: How to Choose a Company Name
Types of names, how to shortlist and the checks to run before you commit.
Brand Architecture Explained for Growing Companies
How to organise products and sub-brands as your company grows.
What Is Brand Strategy? A Plain-English Guide
Brand strategy explained without jargon: what it covers, what it produces and how to tell when yours is working.
Brand Positioning Explained, With a Simple Template
How to write a positioning statement that is specific enough to guide design, sales and hiring.
What Is a Visual Identity and What Should It Include?
The components of a visual identity system, from logo suite to imagery, and how they fit together.
What Is a Brand Sprint? How Four-Week Branding Works
Brand sprints compress strategy and identity into weeks. Here is how they run and who they suit.
When Should a Startup Invest in Branding?
The trigger points that justify professional branding, and when a simple placeholder is enough.
How to Write a Branding Brief Agencies Will Love
A one-page structure for a branding brief, with the details agencies need to quote accurately.
15 Questions to Ask a Branding Agency Before You Sign
The questions that reveal who will do the work, how the process runs and what you will receive.
Senior-Led vs Junior-Led Agencies: Why It Matters
How agency staffing models work and what they mean for the quality of your brand.
Founder-Led Branding: Why Founders Should Stay Close to the Work
Why brands built with direct founder involvement tend to be sharper, and how to do it without micromanaging.
How to Run a Brand Workshop With Your Team
An agenda for a half-day workshop that produces usable positioning inputs.
Brand Audit Checklist: 20 Things to Review
A quick self-audit to find the weakest parts of your current brand.
Motion in Brand Identity: When Animation Earns Its Place
How motion adds recognition to a brand and what a simple motion guide contains.
Brand Consistency for Small Teams
Simple systems that keep a brand consistent when nobody has 'brand manager' in their title.
B2B vs B2C Branding: What Changes and What Does Not
The real differences between business and consumer branding, without the myths.
7 Signs You Have Outgrown Your Brand
How to recognise when the brand that got you started is now holding you back.
How Long Does a Branding Project Take?
Realistic timelines for sprints, studio projects and large rebrands.
Building a Brand Messaging Framework
A simple hierarchy of messages that keeps website, sales and social saying the same thing.
London or Regional Agency: Does Location Matter?
Whether an agency's location still matters when most projects run remotely.
How to Choose Brand Colours That Work on Screen
A practical method for building a colour palette that is distinctive, accessible and usable in product UI.
Choosing Brand Typography: A Founder's Guide
How to pick typefaces for your brand, what licences cost and when a free font is good enough.
Brand Guidelines: What to Include and What to Skip
The sections every set of brand guidelines needs, and how long the document should really be.