By working with a professional designer and creating the style guide for your business you ensure a consistent message that makes your brand more recognizable, improves loyalty and makes your marketing and advertising more effective.

To find a good branding agency check the work and experience they have. How effective was it? Branding can be difficult to measure but confidence is easy to detect.

Technology and economy changes have great impact on branding. Ten years ago a good logo was one-color because it would reproduce well on copy machines and was inexpensive to produce on custom print orders. Five years ago spot color became affordable so two-color logos were in. Now full-color printing is affordable. Check to see if your designer has kept up with these changes.

Look into the process. The agency should ask what you want but they should also ask about your industry and target market as well. Do they do research? Will you get a proof? Whatever the designer’s process is make sure it meets your needs.

The timeline for creating and implementing your branding package should be fairly quick; usually a couple weeks. Be prepared for this and make sure you set time aside to return messages quickly.

Be honest! When your designer asks for feedback give it to them clearly. They won’t know you aren’t pleased unless you let them know.

At the end of everything the brand is yours. It’s an extension of your company. Make sure you like what you get!