An ideal client profile is a concise summary of the kind of person you most want to attract to your business. In this post I share how to clarify your target audience and define what matters to your ideal client in just 3 steps — and there’s a free workbook, too!

Market research is an essential part of the brand strategy process. And regular brand research is essential for making better and more informed marketing decisions. But when you’re a small business, how do you do research without blowing your budget or getting overwhelmed? In this post, we’ll talk about how to do brand research as a small business: why you need it, what to focus on, questions to ask, and how to make it happen.

A strong brand strategy gives you clear messaging, a consistent brand experience, and a realistic plan for growing and marketing your small business. This guide to the brand strategy process walks you through the steps you should follow to create your own.

Your vision, mission and values are three strategic tools that will be essential to helping you make the right strategic choices for your business. They help you to keep your eyes on the prize: the reason you started your business, what you’re really trying to accomplish, and what is most important to you.

Brand strategy is a buzzy word right now, but what does it really mean? Let’s talk about why having a brand strategy is so important, what it is, when you need it, and how to pull it all together… whether you’re just starting out, feeling stuck, or stepping your business up to a whole new level.

Building a successful creative brand all starts with a strong brand foundation. This 4-step brand framework pulls together your vision, positioning, message, and visual identity into a cohesive brand strategy that will help you grow your creative business consistently over time.

There’s nothing more exciting than starting a rebrand or brand refresh. But before you dive into colour palette inspiration and mood boards, hold up for a hot second. As much as we all want to jump straight to the pretty stuff, there are a few critical things you’ll need to think through and prepare for BEFORE you hire a brand or website designer.

Ever wanted to give your website a bit of a facelift? Not a full rebrand, or even a refresh, where you’re making changes to your brand’s look and feel. More like… a relaxing day at the spa, where you come out rejuvenated and a little more glow-y at the end.

Even if your brand is working for you and you don’t need to make any major changes to the identity, there are still good reasons from a brand perspective to regularly update your website. It’s about enhancing your brand experience — the way your customers interact with your brand (often for the first time) when they arrive at your digital home.

By investing in brand strategy, you’re bringing in valuable outside perspective and expertise to help you get to where you want to go faster — an experienced partner and advisor who can help you connect your vision and goals for your business to the way you communicate and operate in your day to day. You’ll end up with an infusion of clarity, focus, and inspiration that become rocket fuel for taking action and propelling your business forward.

BUT brand strategy is also a big investment — and it can be hard to know when the time is right to take the leap. Here are a few scenarios where working with a brand strategist could mean big payoff for your business.

Brand strategy acts as the bridge between your overall business strategy, the way you deliver your products and services, and your marketing activities. It’s about making sure that there’s a clear, strong, and purposeful connection between your high-level vision and goals for your business with the way you show up, connect, and take action in your day-to-day.

When it comes down to it, a brand strategist should be all about two things: clarity and action.