I am going through a website redesign. I realize for some of you that seems more painful than a root canal. For me it is using part of my brilliance on my own business and very exciting – yet time consuming.
What I realized is that I’m not just going through a simple website update – I’m rebranding my entire business.
I am a social media consultant. I help businesses of all sizes attract their ideal clients on LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. And few months ago, it once again became painfully obvious that my own digital presence could be characterized by the phrase “the Cobbler’s Kid that had no shoes.” So, I have dedicated time, effort and money to fixing it. When I started I realized this was not simply an update. Yes, it was time to modernize my look, but also reposition my branding.
When I started the process I took several steps back and considered all that I want to do in the near and distant future with my business. I want to make sure that I am putting in place a look and feel of my company that represents me, the services I provide and also where I want to go in the future. I have just finished the “this is what I want to look like” segment and have realized that this is an iterative process. Rebranding should not take a linear path. As you start your team will
When my clients go through rebranding I sit in the middle of the process. I want to make sure that they get the look and feel that they want. I ensure all stakeholders are heard but that white hat SEO and solid design guide the process.
Call others if you got an idea from them.
Kristin and the Tedx “let me back up for a minute.”
Laura – hey we both have clocks
Amy – I never paid you for these pictures, how do YOU want to handle.
Ask to steal, copy, or at least explain your thinking.
Hey, I learned this from you and now I would like to use it in some way.
What is branding?
First, plan for what pieces make-up your brand.
Your logo should be the center of your rebranding effort.
Use what you got.
Consider what you want this to look like.
Develop what you need.
The process I have used:
Look at 100 websites, logo, top of blog, pictures, keywords, navigation, |
Competitors, who you want to look like, |
‘
Logo:
Pictures:
Other Digital Assets:
Gather all of these in one place:
Website: Layout what you want. You can draw it,
Copy for your website
Print assets:
Rely on professionals.
Take a break.
When you see samples and first drafts do not react right away. Rushing any piece of this will
So, what is your next step? Well you are going to want to put a team of experts around you