When you choose to design a logo for your business, the DIY approach can seem like an excellent way to save time and money; but in reality, designing your own logo can potentially harm your brand image. In this article, we’ll explore why investing in a professionally designed logo is worth it and how it can help you establish a strong brand identity that resonates with your target audience and sets your business apart from the competition.

Here are the Top 6 reasons why avoiding a DIY logo is beneficial:

 

Lack of Professionalism

Your logo is often a customer’s first impression of your company. Unfortunately, a poorly-designed logo can convey a lack of professionalism and attention to detail. In today’s competitive market, a professional and visually appealing logo is essential to stand out and build a strong brand reputation.

Lack of Experience and Market Knowledge

Designing a logo requires knowledge and experience in design principles, typography, color theory, and branding. Professional designers have years of experience and knowledge in these areas, allowing them to create visually appealing logos that represent a brand effectively. In contrast, a DIY designer’s lack of experience and limited market knowledge may result in a poorly executed design that does not effectively represent the brand or resonate with its target audience.

Time-Consuming and Costly Mistakes

Creating your own logo can be time-consuming and potentially distract from other essential tasks in your business development. Ultimately, this can lead to costly mistakes that can harm your brand. For example, a DIY logo may need to adhere to proper resolution or file format(s), making it difficult to use across different mediums, sizes, and print methods. It may also infringe on someone else’s copyright, leading to legal issues and costly rebranding efforts.

Limited Resources

Professional designers have access to a vast library of fonts, design elements, templates, and software, which they can use to create a unique and impactful logo. In contrast, someone developing their logo without the help of a professional graphic designer may be limited to free or low-cost design software (with limited capabilities) and a small selection of assets, resulting in a less unique and impactful logo.

Limited Objectivity

A business owner’s bias or limited objectivity can hinder the creation of an effective logo. However, a professional graphic designer can approach the design process objectively and with fresh eyes, considering the business owner’s vision and ideas while offering alternative solutions that may be far more effective in representing the brand.

Lack of Brand Consistency

A logo is not just a visual representation of a brand. Still, it is also a crucial component of the overall branding strategy. Inconsistencies can occur when the logo needs to effectively communicate the brand’s message or align with the overall branding strategy. A professional designer can create a logo that complements and reinforces the overall branding strategy, resulting in a consistent and cohesive brand image across all marketing materials and the company website.

In Conclusion

Investing in a professionally designed logo is worth the cost. Trusting experts in the field, you can be confident that your logo accurately:

    1. Reflects your brand’s values
    1. Resonates with your target audience
    1. Sets your business apart from the competition
    1. Ensures consistency across all marketing materials

So, don’t let a DIY logo harm your business image. Instead, hire a professional graphic designer and see the difference for yourself! A professionally designed logo will make you look as good as you are.

Graphic Design VIP Days are a unique opportunity for businesses and entrepreneurs to work one-on-one with a professional graphic designer to create custom designs that will help them elevate their brand and stand out in a crowded market. Every business owner knows that the to-do list never ends.

There are endless ideas about how to improve your website, your graphics, your social media presence, your products or packages, and your marketing. Yet, there’s so much to do and so little time. With VIP Days, you can get everything done in one day.

If you’re on the fence, this in-depth guide about the pros and cons of our graphic design VIP day will help you decide whether to take the leap.

Let’s take a closer look at what a VIP Day is and why you’ll love it with these topics:

The Benefits of Graphic Design VIP Days

If you don’t have extra time to juggle all the business demands, chances are you’ve hired help. By outsourcing and delegating work, you free your schedule up for the things that truly matter. However, a VIP Day is the perfect format to accomplish your goals if you’ve been frustrated by communicating back and forth through emails over weeks or months. And here’s why:

VIPs Get Personalized Attention

One of the most significant advantages of a graphic design VIP Day is the personalized attention you will receive from a professional designer. During a VIP Day, you will have the designer’s undivided attention for 6-hours and can work together to create designs tailored to your specific needs and preferences.

By booking a full day with a designer, you discuss your goals together during a PreVIP call and develop projects in real-time on the VIP Day, so you can provide feedback and see results immediately.

Soapbox VIP Day

This collaboration creates the synergy needed to stand out in a crowded market and create a unique and recognizable brand. Clients do need to be available during the 6 hours to give feedback and approvals.

VIPs Get Custom Designs

If you’re working with a professional designer, you want graphics to be unique and one-of-a-kind. By working directly with a designer during your VIP Day, they will be able to create custom designs that align with your brand identity and messaging.

Soapbox Studio has the expertise and skills to create visually striking designs that will help differentiate your business from the competition. Working in real-time will make your vision a reality right in front of your eyes. Your graphics will go from bland and generic to branded and beautiful!

By the end of your 6-hour session, your business will have custom graphics that convey a strong visual identity and establish you as a leader in your industry. You will leave our VIP Day with graphics that make you look as professional as you are!

VIPs Benefit from Focused Productivity

A graphic design VIP Day utilizes your time efficiently and increases productivity. By working one-on-one with a designer, you can ensure that your design projects are completed on time and that you can meet your deadlines.

This assurance will enable you to make plans and schedule content, knowing you won’t need to wait any longer. Our graphic design VIP Day can be a great way to jump-start a project or get back on track if you have fallen behind.

VIPs Benefit from Ultra-Focused Design Work

When you book a VIP Day 6-hour session with Soapbox Studio, you benefit by unlocking their undivided attention on your business. Because Soapbox will solely focus on your business for the day, they will produce maximum results for you and your business.

VIP Day

Studies show that when we bounce between tasks, our productivity is minimized, and it takes longer to re-focus, which wastes time. Booking a VIP Day allows both Soapbox and you to focus on one client for the day, which translates into efficient, well-executed designs that look great and are completed at an accelerated rate.

Soapbox designers love VIP Days because it’s like tapping into a superpower and getting into the grove of the client’s business and brand. Likewise, clients love the brilliant brainstorming and design work that comes from an ultra-focused time with design professionals.

The Benefits of Creating a Plan for your Graphic Design VIP Day

While we don’t think our VIP Days come with many cons, it’s essential to recognize the limitations one day holds. For example, booking a whole day to work with a designer may not be enough time, and you may need to secure multiple days for larger projects.

So, if you’re trying to identify how to utilize a VIP Day most effectively, here’s how to make a strategic plan:

Build Your VIP Day Into Your Budget

When you become one of our VIPs, you pay to have individualized and uninterrupted time with a designer. Only a few graphic designers offer this personal touch, but it is an investment. Creating a great plan to utilize your VIP Day starts with building it into your business budget.

The price of individualized attention will pay off in the long run because it will save you the hassle of emailing back and forth with every project on your graphic design to-do list. Your business will grow when your graphics have a special touch, personalized attention, and custom design work to help you establish credibility.

Every successful business owner knows you have to spend money to make money, and looking professional is a top priority for businesses that want to thrive!

Create a Strategic Graphic Design To-Do List That Will Fit Into One Day

To ensure your VIP Day is the most efficient it can be, you need to think strategically about what projects our designers can complete in the 6-hour time frame. Your projects will be met most effectively if the scope of your VIP Day is realistic. If you need ideas of everything our designers can accomplish in a day, here are some examples:

  • A simple website with 3-5 pages (complex or extra pages, themes we are not familiar with, or additional formatting may require additional time)
  • 3 logos and 2 covers
  • 1 logo, branding guide, and template for a product cover
  • Sales page refresh in LeadPages, including 1 hero image
  • 20-page workbook template and custom cover
  • Various title cards for courses, videos, intro outro with music (depending on how many)

Set Aside Time in Your Schedule for your VIP Day

While our designers are doing all the work, the benefit of booking a VIP Day is that you can give feedback in real-time. To accomplish this, the VIP Day should be scheduled when you won’t have other commitments or meetings.

Soapbox VIP Day

When you book your VIP Day and the PreVIP call, find the time in your calendar to block out that you won’t have additional distractions. By protecting this time, you can give your projects the mental energy they deserve, so you get graphics that look as professional as you are.

Why You Should Book a Graphic Design VIP Day

If you need a little VIP treatment to catalyze your business into a more tremendous success, our VIP Days will be a massive asset to you. Graphic design VIP Days can be a valuable investment for companies that want to create custom designs in a tight timeframe so your business can stand out and look professional.

If you’re tired of the constant back and forth in a traditional model and don’t have months to spend tweaking revisions, this option is a great way to accomplish every task on your graphic design to-do list in a single day. In just one afternoon, you’ll have professional, ready-to-use graphics.

If your business needs this, contact Soapbox Studio to book your VIP Day now. Our calendar is booking up fast. Claim your spot and enjoy the VIP Day treatment!

With editing software like Canva rising in popularity, graphic design has never been more accessible. But as a business owner, this should be concerning to you. Just because the design is accessible does not mean it looks professional. The accessibility of popular platforms gives a false impression that anyone can design a professional-looking logo, but a glance around the internet proves otherwise. If you’re at the point in your business when you need to start thinking about logos, here are the top five reasons why it is important to have a professional-looking logo.

Confidence

Having a professional logo gives you the boost of confidence you’ll need to promote your business without hesitation. If you’re worried your branding looks like your cousin did it, you won’t present yourself with the professionalism of a true business owner. Confidence is key in first impressions, and so is a logo. When you have confidence, you will sell better and more effectively. You won’t settle for less when you know your worth. People pick up on that. They will notice that you’re the real deal and look to you as an expert. When they come to you, you will have the confidence to make the sale without hesitation or reserve. Your confidence in your professional branding will shine through in your interactions with potential clients and customers. Everything about your brand will stand out, so there will be no reason standing in the way of a great client relationship and repeat business.

Trust

There are hundreds of businesses like yours within a single Google search, so what makes you stand out? Building trust with customers is vital to draw them to you and retaining their loyalty to your brand. Trust is hard to gain and easy to lose. The visual impact of your brand has more power to build or remove trust than you may think. Just think about any time you’ve landed on a website that looks like it was designed in 1990… does that instill trust? No! Research proves that we develop our perception of a company within only a few seconds of glancing at its logo. That first impression holds weight. If the logo looks outdated or clunky, it gives the impression that your company is incapable of adapting to today’s demands. Customers want to know you can help them with their current needs. If it looks like you’re stuck in the past, they will likely choose a more modern brand to help them.

Similarly, if your logo looks childish or outlandish, they may not believe you are proficient or experienced in your industry. However, if your logo is classic and professional, they may choose to trust you after only a few seconds of glancing at your website. Your logo design can make or break your customer’s first impression in seconds!

Stability

Have you ever noticed a company that has had to rebrand multiple times? It feels unstable. Humans don’t like change. We want to put our loyalty and trust in brands that will always be there for us. Some cosmetic products and household cleaners are an excellent testament to this. Some people use the same dish soap their grandma used, which may look the same as it did 50 years ago. A stable logo and brand design often cultivate lifelong customers. Think about some of the most classic logos like Coca-Cola. If you look back in time, their logo has stayed pretty similar for years and years.

Conversely, Pepsi has changed its logo several times because its older logos have become outdated. If you look at some of the previous Pepsi logos, you’ll see how the design styles were trendy and went out of style more rapidly than classic logos. If your logo design uses colors and styles that will stay relevant and timeless through the ages, you will save yourself both trouble and customers.

Loyalty

Having a well-designed professional logo will increase brand awareness among your customers. People will be able to recognize your brand across platforms because your logo is memorable, and it makes them think about what your company does best. As your customer base grows and your community becomes loyal to your brand, they will tell their friends about you. That kind of loyalty happens because your logo communicates that they can trust you. It’s almost like a stamp of authenticity compared to companies with amateur-looking logos. Your customer’s trust in you will encourage them to share your brand with the people they love, and then you’ll connect with even more people. As you network within your industry, a professional logo will increase the likelihood that other professionals will take you seriously. Other companies will be more willing to promote your referral programs and highlight your products. As a small business owner, this loyalty can benefit you for years. Other bigger companies can do things cheaper or faster, but they will never have the trusting relationship you develop with your customers. This starts with a trustworthy logo.

Increased Revenue

If a logo can build your confidence, help you seal more deals, make more sales, and increase customers’ lifelong trust in your brand, your revenue will naturally improve. You will naturally produce more sales when you’re excited to share your professional-looking business cards, website, and packaging with people. You will also be more confident in increasing your prices and charging what you are worth. You are no amateur, and your logo will communicate that. So as your confidence to raise your prices builds, your customer’s confidence in you as a worthy professional will too. Nothing is as thrilling as feeling like you’ve “made it” as a business owner. The first time you’re able to put your new professional logo on all your signs and web pages, it will genuinely feel like you’re the business owner you’ve always dreamed of. People will see how confident and capable you are and be willing to pay good money for what you have to offer. That increased revenue will enable you to invest more into your business and allow you to scale. Over time, as you scale, that revenue will continue to grow year over year!

As a business owner, you couldn’t ask for more than confidence, trust, stability, loyalty, and increased revenue. Your business will be in good shape if you grow in all five areas. The first step is ensuring your logo is designed well and clearly communicates your brand identity. If you don’t feel like you can create a professional-looking logo yourself, we have a team of seasoned graphic designers who can help guide you in the right colors, fonts, and shapes to represent your unique identity. The power of a good logo is hard to deny. With a fantastic logo, your brand will be equipped to scale and flourish for years to come!

If you need help developing a professional logo that checks all of the boxes above, hire us at Logo Rx for logo and branding design or contact us for custom quotes.

 

If you’re an online business owner, you know that marketing your products and services is vital for the growth of your business. Not every entrepreneur has a knack for marketing, but learning data about the most effective practices can help you spend your time, energy, and finances where they will matter the most. As you post content and ads online, it’s vital to have consistent branding and messaging in place so your potential customers get the same quality of engagement from you every time. If you want to develop a strong brand, you need a good logo, web design, and a brand guide that will help make a good impression. Several studies have proven the importance of good design, so we’ve collected the most helpful facts here in one place to help you run your business with research-backed strategies.

Good Design Proves Credibility

Tyton Media conducted a survey which found that 48% of people said that the design on a website was the number one factor they looked at to determine the credibility of a business. This has significant ramifications for you as a business owner. How much time and money have you invested in the design of your website and marketing materials? If your website is not up to par or doesn’t have an eye-catching design, people could be turned away within seconds. Your business has so much to offer, so you don’t want to risk losing customers through such a simple mistake. If you’re not sure how your design elements compare to other companies within your industry, have a friend or graphic designer take a look and give you some feedback. Sometimes, it just takes a few tweaks to boost your web traffic and increase your revenue.

Good Design Makes Good First Impressions

Google performed testing and found that it only took 17 to 50 milliseconds for people to decide how they felt about a website. This doesn’t give you much time to make an excellent first impression. Most people cannot read your home page in just a few milliseconds. This means the thing contributing to their initial impression of your business is colors, fonts, logos, and the overall look of the page. Does your logo stand out? Are your colors congruent? Is your font readable? Using a cumbersome font or outdated color may not directly impact your business’s products, but it can be hard to get past a bad first impression. Don’t start your relationship with a client on a bad note when your design can grow your customer’s faith in your products and abilities!

Eye-Catching Design is Worth a Thousand Words

Missouri University of Science and Technology produced a study that concluded that it takes a person’s eyes 2.6 seconds to focus on a specific webpage element when it loads. So what is the most prominent design element on your page? For most websites, it’s the logo. It takes less than 3 seconds for your potential customer to look at your logo and make conclusions about who you are, how capable you are, and if they want to stay on your website. The purpose of a good logo is to communicate your brand identity through a visual graphic. So it turns out the popular idiom “a picture is worth a thousand words” is true. Your logo can communicate more about who you are than a whole blog post. So what does your logo convey? Is it good enough to create a lasting impression in 3 seconds or less?

Good Logos Help with Brand Recognition

While a study found that it takes people 10 seconds or less to form an impression about a brand’s logo, it still takes 5-7 impressions for the consumer to recognize the logo if they see it again. This means you should be putting your logo on everything your company produces. Put it on your website, your social media pages, your business cards, your letterhead, your email signatures, and your signs or packaging. If your logo is prominent in multiple places, it will take less time to become a recognizable brand to your customer. If this is done well, your customer may even recognize your logo out in the wild and tell their friends about you.

An Excellent Logo Builds Business

Did you know that a memorable logo is 13% more likely to get consumers’ attention and 71.6% more likely to get a positive response from consumers? Just think about the companies with the most recognizable logos. Apple, McDonalds, Nike, and Coca-Cola are all incredibly successful companies that have stood the test of time. Their logos have also been proven to be some of the most recognizable and well-loved. It turns out those two things are correlated. If a logo has the power to catch your ideal customer’s eye and make them think fondly of you, they will be more likely to make a purchase, become a return customer, and even share your company or products with people they love.

Good Design Will Help You Outperform Your Competitors

Adobe found that companies with strong designs outperform those with weak designs by 219% on the S&P Index (a stock market index) over ten years. Who knew graphic design had so much power over your revenue and longtime growth? Therefore, investing a significant portion of your branding budget in graphic design is crucial. If you don’t have the skills to design your logo, we can help your business make a great impression.

Time and time again, research proves that good design matters. These statistics show just how much the visual aspects of a brand influence the customer’s impression. If you want to make a solid first impression, create lasting relationships with repeat clients, and build a customer base that is loyal enough to tell their friends about you – it all starts in those first few seconds. We created our LogoRx Brainstorming Guide to help businesses brainstorm the best colors, fonts, and graphics to make those first few seconds count. If you want help from a professional, we have the knowledge and skills to get you started on the right foot. No business deserves to fail because of a few design errors. So with the right research-proven techniques and some quality graphic design, your business could thrive more than you knew possible!

Have you decided to start your own business? Congratulations! You have already completed the most challenging part of beginning something new and life-changing. However, as you start researching everything you need to get your new business off the ground, the unending information overload you’ll encounter from business coaches and online entrepreneurs can be overwhelming. When it comes down to it, though, there are only five essential elements you need to build a thriving business from the ground up. If this article is helpful, you can download our FREE Brainstorming Guide to keep all this valuable information in one place and reference it every time you get stuck! As a business owner, this is my simple list of everything you need to get your business started:

Every New Business Needs a Logo

A professional-looking logo is essential if you want to stand out immediately from your competition. A catchy name isn’t always memorable enough to keep your business at the front of people’s minds. But if you have a quality logo, people will recognize your brand with a glance. A logo does the heavy lifting of communicating your brand identity, which can set you apart as a professional and build customer loyalty. If your audience trust that your business is the real deal, higher-paying clients will take you seriously, and you can operate at higher price points. A logo functions as your stamp on the world. Every product, web page, or social media page associated with your business should include your logo so people know it’s you.

Every New Business Needs a Color Palette

Many psychological studies confirm that colors communicate emotions and make us feel something. This is why people describe yellow as happy and blue as melancholy. People tend to purchase based on emotion and rationalize with facts and logic afterward. Using a harmonious color palette in all your marketing is vital if you want to appeal to the part of a customer’s brain that develops the desire to make that purchase. Coolors.co is a great website to build color palettes and try out different colors together. Creating a color palette that communicates the tone and identity of your brand will work seamlessly with your logo to build credibility and increase trust. If you need help finding the right colors, our free downloadable Brainstorming Guide dives deeper into the psychology of color to help you build the palette right for your brand!

Every New Business Needs a Business Card & Letterhead

As you build your new business, networking within your industry and connecting with potential clients is crucial. Some of this will naturally happen online, but if you’re ever out in public and want people to remember you, hand them your business card! A business card has all your contact information so they can remember to connect with you after leaving the event. You never want to be in a scenario where you connect with your ideal client out in the wild and have nothing to give them. There’s a 99% chance they will have forgotten your website name by the time they get home, and there’s nothing more tragic than a missed opportunity like that. Similarly, having a professional-looking letterhead will help you communicate with high-paying clients and land more significant sales.

Every New Business Needs a Brand Guide

A brand guide is a document that helps keep your branding consistent. It will tell you what fonts, colors, and everything makes your brand identity stand out. In addition, having a reference when designing your graphic elements is helpful and keeps you on track. Still, it’s also a great tool if you outsource your marketing to an industry professional. You can send them your brand guide, and they’ll have everything they need to keep your branding professional without needing to start from scratch. In addition, keeping your communication simple and consistent will help potential clients connect with your messaging and view you as an expert.

Every New Business Needs a Website

No business is complete without a professional website. Your website is your business’s primary source of information that can be accessed far and wide, day or night. Much like your logo and branding, your website should convey what your business is about, the product or service(s) you offer, and appeal to your target audience in a sleek, professional, concise manner. How your website looks and functions will set the tone for your business relationship with potential clients. A good user experience and a well-built site will inspire trust and confidence and most likely be the first step in a lasting customer relationship.

You don’t just want to start a new business – you want to create a successful one. The key to standing out from among your competitors, connecting with potential high-paying clients, and bringing in substantial revenue is branding. When you have a professional logo, color palette, business card, brand guide, and website, you will have all the primary building blocks to make your business successful. To help you do this, we’ve created a free downloadable Brainstorming Guide so you can have all the essential information in one place and brainstorm to create a brand that sets you apart. So start brainstorming with the guide today to start your business strong!

Do you want to design a logo for your newest product but have no idea where to start? You might be thinking, “I would love to make my own logos, but I have no technical skills and it would take me forever. Isn’t it just easier to pay an expert?” Or maybe you are thinking, “I don’t have the eye for design to make my logo look good. The colors and fonts are all too confusing and mine end up looking unprofessional.

You are not alone. Many business owners, entrepreneurs, and virtual assistants have had the exact same thoughts. They can’t wait to get their product in front of people and start selling, but they don’t want to risk looking unprofessional. They know designing a great logo is crucial, but they have no idea where to start. They don’t have a big pile of cash to hire a professional every time they release a new product. They want to learn to make a high-quality logo themselves without paying the big bucks!

If you just read that paragraph and said to yourself, “Yes, that’s me!” I’m here to tell you it’s possible! You can get rid of that stuck feeling and give yourself permission to use your creativity so that you can build amazing logos for yourself and your clients in just a few clicks. Beginning the process is as easy as the 5 W’s of Design. By answering these five questions, you’ll be on your way to creating a stellar logo and brand that sets you apart from your competition!

The 5 W’s of Design

Every solid brand needs a solid foundation. The five W’s lay the foundation for your logo. Doing the necessary prep work will make it easier to create a logo that stands out to your ideal customer and creates a lasting connection.

The 5 W’s of Design are:

1. Who is your ideal client?

2. What do you want other people to say about your company?

3. Where will you be using your logo?

4. When you think about your company values, what comes to mind?

5. Why is it important to have a professional logo?

Let’s further look at each of these 5 W’s of Design to understand each of these essential building blocks:

1. Who Are Your Clients?

Who are your clients? Or who do you want them to be? This is a great place to start when creating your logo. First, think about who your current clients are. Or, if you don’t have any clients yet, who your ideal client would be. Write down a list of their attributes, including age, gender, core needs, and interests.

2. What Do You Want People To Say About Your Company?

This one is pretty straightforward. What do you want people to notice about your company? What do you want them to think and feel when they see your logo? Do you want people to consider your business rustic, casual, creative, fun, medical, scientific, unique, or detailed? Take a minute and write it out. Jot down how you envision you’d want someone to describe your business to their friend.

3. Where Will You Be Using Your Logo?

Where will your logo be placed? On a website or sales page, print brochures and flyers, or on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook? Or will you use your logo on company hats, shirts, and merch? Maybe you’ll use your logo on workbooks and course materials. Think about where you want your logo displayed, and keep in mind you’ll want a versatile logo so you can use it in various ways.

4. When You Think About Your Company Values, What Comes To Mind?

Do you have a set of company core values? The shoe company Zappos.com has a great example of company core values that we pulled right off their website,

“Deliver wow through service, embrace and drive change, create fun and a little weirdness, be adventurous, creative, and open-minded, pursue growth and learning, build open and honest relationships with communication, build a positive team and family spirit, do more with less, be passionate and determined, be humble.”

If you don’t have a set of values like this, consider taking a few moments to write out your core company values now.

5. Why Is It Important To Have a Professional Logo?

Have you ever felt imposter syndrome as a business owner, like you’re not qualified or experienced enough to succeed? This mindset can be a knock to your confidence and make it hard to make sales with pride. However, when you have a professional logo you can be proud of, you will become a better seller, naturally increasing revenue. Don’t believe me? Listen to the business owners and entrepreneurs who came to me for help with their branding. Over and over again, they tell me that having a professional-looking logo transforms how they look at their business.

These 5 W’s of Design will lay the foundation you need to connect with your ideal customers and increase revenue. Answering the questions above will help you identify the best logo for your business, so your website looks professional and trustworthy. With this foundation laid, you can design a high-quality logo you can be proud of!

If you’re looking for even more opportunities to learn how to design professional-looking logos yourself, grab our Brainstorming Guide now – it’s my free gift to you and it’s the next step after identifying your 5 W’s!

Starting a new online business is both scary and exciting. It’s a considerable risk that takes a huge personal investment of time and money, but when it becomes successful, there’s no better feeling! If you’re starting a new online business in 2023, We’ve compiled the ultimate business checklist, so you have everything you need to hit the ground running. As an online business owner who has grown subscriber lists, launched e-courses, and run a brick-and-mortar company for over ten years, we have learned all the tips and tricks the hard way so you don’t have to. However, if you want to skip to the end, we’ve included the link to download our Free Brainstorming Guide so you can start planning a successful brand today! Here’s my ultimate business checklist for new business owners:

Business Name

Of course, a business name is essential. Your business needs an identity that goes beyond your first and last name. This gives your business room to grow and allows you to scale your revenue as you find more success. A business name also proclaims what your brand does best and what people can expect from your business.

Core Values

Creating core values is a step that’s easy to skip or push off until later. However, your core values can dictate each action you take as a business owner. Core values help you to know what your brand prioritizes and what you find valuable. Your core values will help customers and clients align with your mission down the road. But at the beginning of establishing your mission, core values are a helpful filter to select the most effective business moves to start with. For example, do you prioritize a solid work-life balance and set hours for work and free time? Or do you prioritize flexibility and integration so that you can work from anywhere? Your values will help you make the business moves to achieve the things you prioritize without getting distracted by irrelevant possibilities.

Business Plan

From the very start of your online business, you need to know what your business does and what it offers. If you sell products, you need to select which companies to partner with and source supplies from. You should have a plan to connect with clients if you provide a service. It helps to have a specific target audience in your business plan, which will help you know how to market yourself. Every business needs funding and a financial plan to ensure you’re increasing revenue and staying out of debt. As you establish your online presence, your business plan will help you curate a marketing strategy that aligns with your vision and goals. Don’t start your business without a firm plan in place!

Market Research

You know your business offers value to the public, but do they? Doing market research will help you understand customers’ core needs, which will help you know how to communicate your offer in a way that resonates with them and convinces them to make a purchase. If you have a fantastic product but don’t know how to communicate its value to the people that need it, your business won’t grow very fast. Research your competitors to understand the market and identify what is working or not working for them. Figure out what sets you apart and what messaging your target market is drawn to. This research will be invaluable to you moving forward.

Elevator Pitch

Once you know how to communicate the value of your offer to your target audience, you need to refine your pitch. You should be able to explain what your business offers concisely and compellingly within only a sentence or two. Think of being stuck in an elevator for 30 seconds with the potential customer of your dreams! How would you take them to the next step in your business in less than a minute? What are the most precise words to explain what you do? What are the most concise words that connect with their felt needs? How can you leave them stepping out of that elevator wanting more?

Business Email

People need to contact you. Most online businesses don’t have a phone number accessible, so establishing a business email address is vital. This will be valuable as you start various business accounts or download software for your business. Ideally, your email address will either be info@YourBusinessName.com or YourBusinessName@domain.com. You can create an email address with your website as the domain if you have a business website. If you can’t do this, you can set up a temporary Gmail to transition to your own environment once everything is set up. Once you have an email account, you can begin connecting with clients through email. You can create an email subscriber opt-in if you have a blog or content on your website. Once they give you their email address, you can send them discounts, downloadable resources, articles, new products, and business updates to help them stay connected.

System for Record-Keeping

Keeping precise records will be your new best friend. Keep track of the time you spend, the money you spend, the revenue you make, and the products you sell, and keep all business and tax documentation in one place. You should have organized financial records for each month, quarter, and year you are in business. You should also keep track of tax information throughout the year, so filing your taxes is simple. If you book appointments, consultations, client calls, or any other meetings, you can find the best calendar to keep track of your time commitments. There is also a myriad of booking software available to make appointments easy to manage on both sides.

Legal Paperwork and Financial Accounts

Depending on your business, you may not need all of the paperwork and accounts that a brick-and-mortar company might. Research the requirements for your state and county. If you register your business, you will need to know whether to set up an LLC, corporation, DBA, or sole proprietorship. In addition, you may need to file for specific business licenses or permits depending on what you sell. Once your business meets all the requirements, you can set up bank accounts to keep your financial transactions in order.

Registered Domain

No official business wants to be running on blogspot.com. You need your own domain to be perceived as professional and trustworthy. You can use dozens of websites to check domain availability, like Google Domains. Purchasing a domain name is usually inexpensive unless you have a common business name with a lot of competition. Once you buy a domain, that will be your website name. You can purchase multiple domains and reroute them to your website if you’d like people to find you in numerous ways.

Website

Once you have a domain, you have to set up a website. This begins by selecting a host. Every website is hosted on a worldwide server, so you must choose a hosting platform like GoDaddy and purchase a basic hosting plan. There are also services like Squarespace and Wix, which will host your website and give you all the design tools you need in one place. If you don’t use an all-in-one service, you can set up a website using WordPress through your hosting platform. If this sounds overwhelming, it might be a good idea to hire a web developer (HINT HINT) to help. Once you have your website started, you’ll need to build your web pages. You should have a home page, an about page, a contact page, and an online shop. Finally, utilize your brand name and colors to make your website look professional and consistent with all your other branding.

Logo

Every professional business needs a logo. With one glance, this critical part of your brand identity tells your potential customers who you are. They will see whether you used an elegant, feminine font, a daring, bold font, a rustic natural font, or a minimalistic timeless font. They will also notice whether you used pastel colors, neon colors, bright colors, muted colors, or neutral colors. The combination of colors you use can communicate the personality of your brand and will draw the eye of your ideal customer. This can be portrayed through your design elements, lines, graphics, and shapes. If you need help brainstorming which fonts and color palettes will best communicate your brand’s identity, download our free Brainstorming Guide.

Brand Guide

Whether you design all your social media graphics and marketing materials yourself or hire a graphic designer or VA to help you, you should have a brand guide. A brand guide lists out the names of each font, the codes for each color, and the core messaging of your brand so that every design and promotional graphic looks consistent. A brand guide will help create web pages, postcards, business cards, letterhead, social media graphics, and promotional flyers. If you haven’t yet selected the colors and fonts that best match your brand, use my brainstorming guide link above to help create a consistent brand identity that grows your credibility within your target market.

Business Card

Even though you’re an online business, face-to-face networking will still happen. If you bump into your ideal customer in real life, you should be equipped with a professional business card to hand them. A business card will include your logo, brand colors, branded fonts, business name, website, and contact info, including your business email. Make sure you have each listed item before making business cards. Some people even like to include a QR code that takes people directly to their website. Then, don’t forget to slip a few business cards into your bag whenever you leave your home or office.

Letterhead

Having official business letterhead is a necessity. It truly takes your brand’s professionalism and credibility to the next level. If you need a graphic designer to create stationery for you, send them your brand guide and logo, and they will have everything they need to get started. You can use your letterhead for any official business correspondence or even invoices.

Blog

Posting consistent content in a blog-like format helps Google know that your website is up-to-date. This will rank your website higher in Google search results and make it easier to find online, which is invaluable for online businesses. For example, you can post business updates, sales, and discounts through your blog and email list if you sell products. You could also post about how to use your product or industry-related articles. If you provide a service, you can publish content to give your clients more information and set yourself apart as a thought leader within your niche market. For example, real estate agents like to post articles about how to find your dream home, the best times to buy a house, and home decorating trends. On the other hand, a natural deodorant company might post articles about hygiene or where to buy non-toxic products. If you’re not a natural writer, you can hire a freelance writer skilled in writing articles optimized for search engine algorithm visibility.

Social Media

As a digital business, part of your online marketing plan should include at least one social media platform. Platforms you can utilize are Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Reddit. Don’t go overboard. Choose only one to three platforms to focus your marketing strategy on. The goal is to post consistently on each platform with information about your products/services, branded content, photos, and graphics. Social media platforms are great ways to connect with new customers and increase online engagement with your brand. Ensure each social media platform is linked to your website and has your contact information.

As you start your new online business, this is the ultimate business checklist to help you have everything you need to be successful. With these accounts and resources in place, you will have all the tools you need to start your business in the best direction. Your potential clients will know just by looking at your website or logo that you are a trustworthy professional. With consistent branding and a credible online presence, it will be easy for potential customers to connect with you, trust you, and purchase from you. As a result, you will increase your revenue and grow your market! If you’re still feeling unsure about your branding or feel like you don’t have an eye for graphic design, you can use our downloadable Brainstorming Guide to give you confidence. This guide was created by graphic design professionals with decades of experience running a successful business. We provide you with all the crucial questions you need to answer before developing scroll-stopping marketing that your customers will love.

Don’t let the overwhelm of starting a business make you feel stuck. With this ultimate business checklist under your belt, you can take it one step at a time until your business is ready to launch! Online businesses are being started and experiencing tremendous success every day. Your business could be next with a bit of grit and a whole lot of passion!

If you’re stuck on your logo design and it’s holding you back from moving forward in your online business, we hope you’ll join us for this FREE workshop designed just for you!

The LogoLab workshop was created by a master designer with over 25 years of experience creating professional logos for hundreds of businesses. By attending the FREE LogoLab Workshop, you’ll learn why your current design isn’t working and how to brainstorm ideas that will elevate your design instantly. You’ll get the exact formula you can put to work in your business to curate a logo that will do the work for you!

There’s nothing more frustrating than when something as small as a logo gets in the way of growing your successful business. But most online business owners don’t know where to start. So if you’ve felt like you could use extra help from someone who knows all the tips and tricks, here are the top three reasons you’ll benefit from attending our LogoLab Workshop.

You Will Establish Credibility.

Nothing screams amateur like a sloppy logo. And these days, with so much online competition, you can’t risk losing customers due to bad design. Today’s consumers crave a polished aesthetic. If they take one glance at your website and want to run away, then there’s no way they will trust you as an expert.

So throw out that clunky logo and trade it for a high-quality design curated for your distinguished customers. As a graphic designer creating hundreds of stunning logos, I have discovered the secret to a design that effortlessly elevates your customer’s trust in you. But I don’t want to keep the secrets to myself – I want to share all my best tips through this workshop so your online business can thrive too!

I’ve seen too many businesses lose credibility with logos that are easy to fix. But, sometimes, a little tweak goes a long way. This is why I’m offering a live Q&A session after the workshop for VIPs (optional upgrade) to get real-time feedback on their logos. You could lose opportunities to connect with your ideal client every day with a bad logo. Workshop attendees can quickly squash that problem and acquire more customers before the month is over.

You Will Gain Confidence.

Running your own business is challenging. And sometimes, the hardest part is believing in the value you have to offer. It’s easy to have imposter syndrome when you have doubts that people will pay for your product. But this is not the time to be telling yourself all the reasons you can’t succeed.

The truth is there are dozens of potential customers who have been looking for an answer to their problems. If your product or service can solve that problem, people will pay big bucks for it. But part of having confidence in your brand requires having graphic design you can be proud of.

Have you ever felt “website shame?” If you cringe every time you send a customer to your link, it’s going to be harder to be confident in the value you have to offer. Building a brand around a professional logo and a polished design will upgrade your confidence and make you proud of what you do.

Potential customers pick up on this confidence. When they see it, they know that your product will be worth every penny. Your confidence will cause them to trust you to lead them and help them solve their problem. Whether you’re selling a product, a service, or a program, a professional logo will represent the confidence you exude. As a business owner who has been in your shoes, I know you care deeply about your customers, and I want your logos to communicate that same care. This workshop is meant to not only upgrade your logo but also empower you to move forward with confidence!

You Will Increase Sales.

What happens when you no longer have an amateur design to undercut your credibility, and you have a design that makes you proud? You get more customers! Every obstacle that might give you doubts about your company or product will be removed. This way, the pipeline from website visitors to repeat customers is simplified.

With increased trust in you as the expert, you will feel confident enough to charge the prices your products are worth! You won’t undersell or underprice, and as a result, people will be willing to pay top-quality prices to get help from an expert. People want to pay for the best service or product on the market. When they have a problem, your confidence and professional design will establish you as the expert they’re looking for. Sometimes a new professional design can help you see yourself as the capable professional you are, so you can assert yourself and convert curious people to customers.

Nothing feels better than seeing the sales pour in. And there’s nothing more satisfying than knowing that you are getting paid what you’re worth. This workshop will help you have the tools to remove every obstacle (including cringe-worthy websites), so your sales can skyrocket. You will learn how to make a logo that looks like you paid the big bucks!

Workshop Details

If you’ve been looking for a workshop like this, you can register here! The LogoLab is a FREE 4-day workshop held LIVE on July 25-28 at 11 am central time. If you cannot attend LIVE, you can check out our other packages that include lifetime access to this content so you can go through it at your own pace.

On day one, you’ll learn the importance of a professional logo and how to get started. Day two will help you brainstorm the perfect logo for your business. On day three, I’ll provide the exact method I’ve used to create hundreds of logos and give you a formula you can replicate. And on day four, we’ll talk about how to put this formula into action so you can establish Credibility, cultivate confidence, and increase sales.

If you’re looking for personal help from a professional, our VIP package includes the workshop PLUS a live Q&A session where you can get personalized feedback on your logo designs from a master designer.

After you register for the FREE live workshop or purchase lifetime access to the LogoLab, you’ll get access to our exclusive Facebook group, where you can ask questions and seek help from other professionals just like you. You’ll find a community of people who have put the formula into action and can help you find the success you’ve been looking for!

Our registration is filling up fast, so if you need a logo that will transform your look and advance your business, click here to join now!

Did you know that bad graphic design could cost your business significantly? Trust, reputation, and dollars – the essential things to build your business – are at stake if you have bad graphic design. Whether it’s on your website, merchandise, print marketing materials, social media channels, or products – bad design can ruin your chances of bringing in customers.

Most online entrepreneurs start off with bad graphic design. We all have to start somewhere. But just as you invest in your website or your training in your niche, you need to invest in better graphic design to continue to scale your business and monetize your content.

What are the most significant ways bad graphic design can jeopardize your success? Here’s our list of the top five.

1. Destroys Your First Impression

Whether they realize it or not, that first look matters. A potential customer will take one glance at your website or print materials and decide whether you are credible or not. They will make split-second judgments about how professional you are, how trustworthy you are, how qualified you are, and how well you fit their needs. Unfortunately, this first glance rarely includes your smiling face or firm handshake. Most people will go to websites or social media platforms to investigate a business or company before ever making contact. So what does your first impression tell potential customers? Will they know within 3 seconds whether they want to hire you or not? Will they instantly connect with your brand identity and decide they like your company more than your competition? If you’re not sure, it’s time to take a deeper look at your graphic design. This post will include a list of the most offputting design errors down below, so you can see what you’re doing wrong.

It’s very common for beginner entrepreneurs and business startups to try doing their own graphic design. It seems easier to do everything yourself or keep it in-house. Whether through YouTube tutorials or your friend’s son who has a knack for computers, these methods do not achieve a professional-quality result. If your graphic design looks amateur, potential customers will think your business is amateur.

Don’t let bad design ruin your reputation! That first impression is worth its weight in gold because it can make all the difference between whether a high-paying client chooses you or someone else. People absolutely judge a book by its cover, so let your cover tell the whole story!

2. It’s Impossible to Establish Your Identity

What do you want your first impression to communicate? Your graphics, colors, fonts, and logo help potential customers capture your brand identity with one glance. They will know who you are, what sets you apart, and what you offer. However, with bad design, it can be challenging to communicate your identity without spelling it out. Bad graphic design works against you.

Some graphics might confuse a customer because your aesthetic is basic/neutral and doesn’t communicate anything about who you are. On the other hand, your graphics might communicate something opposite your identity. As a result, potential customers may leave your website thinking you’re something you aren’t. In this way, bad graphic design is dangerous. There are plenty of things online to distract people from your website – so don’t let it be your graphics!

3. Misrepresents You

Bad graphic design can give people entirely the wrong impression about who you are and what you do. Your goal with a logo, website header, brochure, or webpage design is to tell people what to expect from you. If your graphics give them the wrong impression, it can lead to problematic customer interactions if they’re expecting something different from what you do best.

If an educator has comic sans as the font on their website, people might assume they are a teacher for elementary grades rather than adults because of the juvenile tone of the font. Whether a yoga teacher uses neon colors or pastels will cause their customers to question what kind of teacher they are and whether they emphasize relaxation or cardio. If you own a construction company and your logo includes a skyscraper, people who need help with minor home construction might never call. These graphic design elements can help or hurt you, and it’s your job to find an expert that will help you find the difference.

4. Disproves your Credibility

There are many elements that entrepreneurs utilize to prove their credibility. They may include their educational background, job history, or credentials in their bio. They might list trusted websites their work or product has been featured on. They may include testimonials or reviews. And the goal is that their website aesthetic and design presence agrees with each of these.

However, amateur-looking graphics can make even the most convinced customer doubt your expertise. Like one bad review can make people doubt dozens of good reviews, bad design can make people wonder if you’re actually as professional or qualified as you say. This will lead to customer interactions where you’re left having to prove yourself repeatedly. You don’t want that!

Instead, good graphic design can work together with all these elements to make you stand out as the expert in your niche. People will enter into each interaction, convinced you are the best person to go to and clamoring for your time because they’re sure there’s a line. If they’re confident that you’re the best, or your products are the best, they will tell their friends. And in an age of social media where a post like that can go viral overnight, I’ve seen entire product lines sold out from one convincing “word-of-mouth” testimonial. So good graphic design can contribute to convincing people you’re the best, which can give you more success than you realized.

5. Communicates Unprofessionalism

Professionalism matters. It’s all about how people perceive you. They want to know they can trust you, that you’re dependable, and you will deliver what they paid for. Even if your business practices are up to par, your graphics might cause them to doubt. Though this applies to every industry, it’s especially true for copywriters, coaches, bloggers, marketers, or anyone within the digital content space. Even though you don’t need to be good at graphic design to excel in writing or coaching, people will still view your graphics as an example of the quality of your services.

People online don’t necessarily understand that your graphics require skills you may not personally possess. Instead, they see the look of your website or business card, and they make assumptions about the quality of your work. Your aesthetic should ease these fears because it’s top-quality and professional, just like you!

Why Your Graphics are Offputting

 

Bad Colors

An out-of-date color palette or bad color combination can give people a bad taste in their mouth, even if they can’t put a finger on why. Bad colors give a terrible impression.

Messy Lines

If your lines are messy or your graphics don’t look clean, it gives an impression of hasty last-minute work or unprofessionalism.

Cluttered Appearance

People get visually overstimulated if your graphics are too cluttered or have too many overlapping elements. This will confuse them about your identity, and they may click off your site because it’s overwhelming.

Doesn’t Match Your Brand

If the words on the page say something different than your graphics communicate, your brand identity will come off as disjointed and disconnected. As a result, people may not understand who you are or what you offer.

Seems Unoriginal

If your graphics seem too basic or look like another popular brand, it will leave a bad taste in their mouths because it looks like you’re copying something that’s already been done. Not only that, but they may confuse the identity of another brand with your brand identity.

How to Avoid All These Mistakes

If you don’t want the bad graphic design to cost your business, it’s best to find an expert to help get it right the first time. This will save you hours of frustration, and the money you spend will be more than repaid as your business grows. Without this, poor color choices, homegrown logos, and amataur layouts will all slowly errode your credibility. Even if customers aren’t thinking it’s a bad design, there is something about it they wont like.

As you work with a professional, it’s essential to communicate your vision clearly. Check out our other posts on this page to learn what you need to know to establish your brand identity. As you communicate with your designer, it’s also important to trust their process. Let them do what they do best so that your website doesn’t fall into the trap of bad graphic design. Here are a few tips to remember as you go through this process:

  • Trust their professional judgment
  • Be clear on what you want
  • Communicate your brand identity plainly
  • Be flexible with exact details
  • Be specific about what you do/don’t like
  • Be open to their feedback and willing to embrace changes
  • Let them do what they do best

Ultimately, working with an expert is a collaborative process. There might be elements on your wishlist that will work against your ultimate goal. A graphic designer will be able to tell you if you’re asking for bad colors or graphics that confuse your brand identity. As you work with an expert, you’ll be able to avoid altogether these top five mistakes that will cost your business. Now, your design can help your business grow like never before!

Being an entrepreneur or business owner isn’t what it used to be. Back in the day, business owners just had to worry about the everyday logistics of keeping the business running. Occasionally an ad might run in the local newspaper, or a sale might bring customers to your brick and mortar storefront. But with the growth of the online marketplace, everything has changed.

In some ways, it has changed for good. Now, people can run businesses remotely from all over the world or connect with clients from the comfort of home. The ease of being an online entrepreneur offers opportunities that didn’t exist fifty years ago. But with all these benefits, some advancements can still feel overwhelming and out of reach. Without any background in web design or social media, it’s hard to keep up with the ever-shifting market trends. And without someone tech-savvy to help, sometimes it can feel like the online marketplace is moving faster than you can keep up with. Sound relatable?

Today’s consumers have come to expect a certain aesthetic and ease of use when they arrive at your website or interact with your brand. If they don’t capture the heart of who you are in just a few clicks, they will go to someone else. Clunky logos and amateur graphic design can be deal-breakers.

We Can Help!

As professionals with over 50 years of combined experience in the graphic design industry, we know the struggle. At Soapbox Studio, Inc. We are passionate about helping brands find their perfect look to HELP and not HURT their company growth. We help brands replace their amateur designs with a professionally curated logo, so their credibility doesn’t crumble.

With decades of experience catalyzing company sales with seamless designs, we have collected all the best tips to answer the right questions about your unique logo and brand identity in our Logo Rx Brainstorming Guide. This free download walks you through every element you need to think about, especially if you don’t know where to start. Through this guide, you can establish a brand identity that is polished and credible enough to draw in your dream customers with a single glance.

So many brands take shortcuts and skimp on budgets that cause their company to suffer. Why hire your friend who has no graphic design training to tackle this problem when industry professionals have free resources just a click away?

What is included in the Logo Rx Brainstorming Guide?

 

How to Make an Excellent First Impression

A first impression is sometimes all the time you have to draw in your ideal customer, so making a good one matters. Within this guide, you’ll find a list of the most important elements to ensure you make the best first impression possible.

Brand Identity Brainstorming Exercises

Do you know the right questions to ask yourself? With this brain dump exercise, you’ll be able to get all your thoughts out on paper, so you know where to start. By brainstorming with some questions from industry professionals, you will be able to dream big about the right things instead of getting lost in the abstract.

Refining Your Company Name

Are you confident that your name draws in the right customers? This segment will help you put your name and all identifying characteristics on paper to make sure your brand identity is being communicated clearly and articulately.

Your Brand Tagline

Do you have a tagline? Do you know the importance of a slogan? This is one of those little details that most people forget but can make a big difference. If you’re creating a logo, your graphic designer will want to create some logo options that include your tagline and some options without, communicating your identity in more ways than one. This provides you with a versatile brand package for any situation that arises, so you don’t have to Photoshop your tagline in as an afterthought.

Your Website

If you have a website set up, that’s a great start. But, depending on your goals, you may want more than a home page. For example, a landing page for your product can help increase sales, and a variety of web pages with more information can build your credibility. In addition, listing all your web pages can help you identify where you want to send potential customers, so they are engaged with your brand from the first click.

Choosing Your Brand Colors

If you don’t yet have brand colors, this exercise will help you research trending palettes to see what options exist. The guide also includes a breakdown of the emotions, connotations, and benefits of using each color. This segment will help you identify which colors express the essence of your brand so that your colors will work with your tagline, title, and logo design instead of against it.

Thinking Through Fonts

Fonts are another small detail that is easy to overlook. This segment will inspire you to research and select the perfect fonts for your headline, tagline, body copy, and other copy on your website or print materials. Instead of getting overwhelmed by all the options, this section of our guide will encourage you to keep it simple.

Finding Your Perfect Logo Design

While you may not be a graphic design guru, you probably know what kinds of logos you like and don’t like. This segment encourages you to copy your favorite logos and put them all in one place so you can see what they have in common. Once you see which logos catch your eye, you’ll have a better idea of what elements you’d like included in your company logo.

With this brainstorming guide in your toolbelt, you’ll be able to communicate what you want so a graphic designer can create precisely the logo your company needs. Then, instead of feeling stumped or overwhelmed, you’ll already have examples to show your favorite options. Download our brainstorming guide HERE to get started.

Or, if you’ve already done your own brainstorming, you can skip right to hiring our designers so you can have your own professional logo in no time! If you feel confident in what you want but don’t have the skills to make your vision a reality, we can help. Hire our designers HERE to catapult your brand’s credibility and help you draw in your dream clients. When it comes to more money in the bank, there’s no reason to wait. In about a week, you can have your logo launched, and your company’s look polished to perfection so that a customer never wants to click over to your competitor’s website again!