How to Build a Brand from Scratch: A Guide for Creators
Think of a brand—any brand. What comes to mind? Apple? Disney? Maybe Starbucks? Brands are everywhere, embedded into our lives. A good brand has the power to influence our decisions. But what is a brand? A brand is a name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies a seller’s goods or services, distinguishing them from others and creating a unique identity.
You might think branding isn't important for creators, but you couldn’t be more wrong. The power of a good brand is everlasting. The team at Summary has put together a super simple six-step guide to building a brand from scratch and helping you stand out in the sea of content creators.
Identify Your Audience
Before you start anything, identifying your audience is crucial. Everyone responds to different tones, aesthetics, and brand personalities, so having a specific audience in mind can help you curate your brand to engage with them. One easy way to determine this is by creating customer personas. These are snapshots of your ideal customer—the kind of person you want your brand to reach. It covers the basics, such as age, location, and income, and highlights interests, shopping habits, and even political views. However, as your brand grows, you’ll naturally get a better feel for who your audience is.
Competitor Research
Everyone is trying to become a content creator. So, how do you stand out from the other 1.58 billion people on TikTok? On average, 4.7 million businesses are started every year, with 30% failing to last beyond two years. By conducting a competitor analysis, it will help your brand stay in the 70% that survive. You’ll gain a clearer picture of where you fit into the market, identify competitors' strengths and weaknesses, and uncover new growth opportunities. .
Define Your Brand’s Purpose
Think about where you fit into the industry. What are you bringing that’s new? What message are you trying to convey? What do you want to accomplish? Jotting down a single purpose or mission statement can help you clearly communicate what your brand is setting out to do. It might be as simple as “to inspire the next generation of women athletes” or “to promote a positive growth mindset.” With every post or rebrand, take a moment to reflect on whether you’re staying true to that purpose. Over 90% of businesses with a well-defined mission statement achieve growth that meet or surpass their industry’s average-so why not try it?
Finding Your Voice
Developing a unique personality and voice for your brand helps you cut through the noise and connect with your target audience. It’s the language you use, the tone you take, and the feelings you evoke. In fact, 69% of consumers said they want a consistent, personalized experience across all channels—so your voice should shine through in every part of your brand, from social media profiles to newsletters to website copy.
The voice you choose will depend on your audience, mission statement, and industry. For example, if your audience is Gen Z, you might adopt a voice that’s authentic and relatable, further incorporating Gen Z language into your content. If your brand targets a STEM audience, you’d take on a more authoritative, informative tone, using academic or scientific language.
Top Tip: Create an editorial style guide. It provides a clear framework for writing, formatting, and editing across all platforms, helping to ensure your content is always consistent and high-quality.
Picking a Name
Naming your brand is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. It forms the backbone of your identity, sets you apart from competitors, and makes your brand unforgettable.
Try to choose something easy to remember—maybe an abbreviation or one to two words, like Apple, KFC, or HelloFresh. Be sure to check name availability by doing a quick search on the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) website.
Designing a Logo
Your logo is usually the first thing people will see. It’s the face of your brand, so you want it to look good.
Color
Different colors convey different messages, so be mindful of the psychological effects of color when designing your logo. Color theory can help you decide what you want your brand to represent.
Font
Make sure to choose a font that represents your brand’s voice and personality. The font needs to be easy to read if the logo is big or small on certain platforms. However, be aware that fonts communicate the tone and brand identity as much as colours and imagery. For example, script font represents elegance and sophistication while Display font is for inspiration.
Imagery
Pick visuals that align with your brand values and resonate with your audience. Options might include mascots (face of a person or animal), wordmarks (just your brand name), icons (visual metaphor of a brand), or abstract logos (focused on shapes and color).
Are You Ready?
Building a brand from scratch is a journey. It requires careful planning, deep research, and a solid understanding of your target audience. We know it’s a lot, but we’re here to help lighten the load. Contact us today to start building your brand and leave a lasting mark on the industry.
