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What Order To Design In?

For a small business, the order that you design your materials in is as important as what you design and how you design them. You want to make sure that you design your materials in order of both importance to your marketing and in terms of cost to produce. Here's my recommendation:

1. Define Your Brand. This is a step that often gets skipped, but will help your entire design process go smoothly. You need to define what your business is all about, what you do, and who you want to work with, so that your marketing materials can be designed in a focused and appropriate way.

2. Logo Design. Your logo should go on all of your marketing materials, and you want all of your materials to match your logo as well — so you have to design it first! It's worth the investment to do this step first instead of saving it for later. Doing this step first will give your materials a polished and finished look that will make your company look established, stable and successful — which makes your company easier for new clients to hire.

3. Business Card. Designing a business card is the next key — so that you'll have these ready to give to new clients to get them in the door. If you're looking to save money, then you might want to print your cards digitally instead of on a traditional press, so that you can get good-looking cards that don't break the bank.

Once you have your Brand Definition, Logo and Business Card, here are the next steps for a small business to consider:

4. Do you need a letterhead? Not all small businesses will need a letterhead as a first step, but some will. It all depends on how you plan to correspond with your customers. If you do want to create a letterhead, then think about whether you'll want to have sheets preprinted, or if you'd rather have your letterhead as a digital file in Word, that you can print out one sheet at a time. If you only print letters occasionally, and email more often, a Word letterhead may be all you need. And, you can use the header from your Word letterhead in Quickbooks, to brand your invoices.

5. Web site. These days, a website is going to be an important part of your marketing and sales strategy. I recommend that a small business start their business literature by creating their site, because it's a great way to work out the text for your other printed marketing materials (there's nothing worse than ordering 1000 brochures and realizing that they don't really say what you want them to!) The text on a website is easy to change, so you can test different messages out before committing to print.

Additionally, a website gives you an active piece of marketing collateral. The website's going to be out in the world, answering prospects' questions, which makes your sales cycle easier. And, if it's Search Engine Optimized well, the site will bring in new prospects also.

6. Printed collateral. Sales sheets, brochures, packaging, etc. should be the last pieces that you design. And, what you need will depend on how you're planning to market and promote your business. If you plan this section carefully, and make sure that you design pieces that you'll use (meaning that you'll give them out instead of letting them gather dust in your office) and that your prospects will read (instead of throwing them in the trash). So, think of marketing pieces that are going to be helpful to your prospects, so that you'll get the most benefit from giving them out!

Going through this process in the right order will ensure that you create a set of marketing materials that will bring you clients for the life of your business.

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About the Author

Erin Ferree is a branding coach, design genius and strategic thinker. She's been told that her right-brain, left-brain combination of creativity and logic is hard to come by... and that it's what small business owners need to be successful. She loves connecting the dots between passion and profit, mixing strategy and inspiration and shaking things up.

She deeply enjoys working with entrepreneurs who want to help more people and look good doing it. Who want all of their branding and marketing to make sense and speak to their ideal clients. And who want an open, honest, inviting brand with integrity - instead of using icky, pushy, sleazy marketing tactics and trickery.

She's branded over 450 small businesses in the last 10 years. She's been published in so many books and periodicals that she stopped counting. She's shared stages with some awesome people - like Michele PW, Linda Hollander, Lisa Cherney, Sheri McConnell and Kelly O'neil.

She also enjoys hugging her corgi-dog Stanley, cooking and throwing parties so her friends can enjoy them.

Small business branding, brand coaching and logo design articles at http://www.brandstyledesign.com

BrandStyle Design is a division of elf design, inc. | phone (650) 358-9973

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