Branding for startups

For the creative mind there’s nothing quite like a blank canvas.

Fresh snow. An empty pool. Wide open space.

That’s exactly how branding for startups feels.

But great ideas don’t always come naturally.

A blank canvas can often lead to option paralysis.

Too much information. Too much pressure.

The canvas can quickly become overcrowded with bland ideas.

Or worse still, it can remain blank.

That’s where the client comes in.

The brilliant idea should come from them.

Surely they must have had one to get their business this far.

Your job is branding it. Stick to that.

Like an inquisitive toddler, keep asking why?

Why? Why? Why?

Why are you setting up a company?

Why does the world need this?

Why will people pay for it?

You get the idea.

It’s also where you’ll find your idea.

They’ll say something that sticks in your mind.

Use that to provide inspiration for branding your startup.

Say it over and over again, until it becomes familiar.

Stretch it, exaggerate it, make it obvious, turn it upside down.

But stick to it and keep things simple.

Simple works when you’re just starting out.

Simple works when you’re explaining something new.

A bit like a project we did for startup Dobeo.

A lifestyle product based around an app to take care of laundry.

Off it goes, then back it comes a bit later, crisp and clean.

All from a few taps on your smartphone.

The mechanics of how this works are all rather complicated.

A network of suppliers and some super smart coding.

But we didn’t get tangled up in the washing machine.

Or get tumbled round in the dryer.

We asked lots and lots of questions but kept things simple.

Why? Why? Why?

Then came up with a minimalist brand mark.

Something functional yet stylish.

A bit like the tagline…

‘Clean clothes. Delivered.’

See: Dobeo