Branding basics - If your logo is everything, you have no branding
Hey brand makers, founders, freelancers & design lovers,
Branding. A word that everyone uses - but hardly anyone really understands.
If I had a euro for every time someone told me:
"We need a logo that's a bit different - but not too wild",
then I would have opened my own coffee empire long ago. With neon-colored cans.
But back to you.
If you want to build a brand that sticks, stays and doesn't look like AI generated, then read on now.
What is that actually?
Branding is not your logo. It's not the pretty Instagram template.
Branding is what remains when you don't have to say anything else - and people still know it's you.
It's the mood you create. The tone with which you speak.
The vibe that runs through your colors, your typography, your attitude.
If your brand were a person, the logo might be the face.
But branding is the voice. The way you laugh. The way you walk. The way you smell. (Okay, maybe we'll leave that last point).
The mistakes that almost everyone makes (and you don't have to)
1. "We have a logo - so we have a brand."
Nope. A logo without substance is like perfume on a sweaty T-shirt.
It may look good for a moment - but it feels wrong.
Everyone gets a say. No one knows what you stand for.
2. "Can we add a little purple? My girlfriend loves purple."
Sure - and if your grandma likes Comic Sans, can we use that too?
3. a new look every day.
Are you clean and classy on Mondays, feminist and edgy on Tuesdays, or do you prefer spiritual green on Wednesdays? Brands don't need every trend - they need recognition.
4. branding without attitude.
Looks nice - but what do you stand for?
What do you really want to say?
If you can't answer that, it's time to go deeper.
And how does it look right?
bedrop - branding with attitude 🐝
bedrop sells bee products - but not in the 0815 self-care wellness word fog.
We were able to accompany the rebranding and worked with the team to create a visual brand identity that shows exactly what many companies fail to achieve:
Clarity, calm and trust - without appearing boring or clinical.
From the packaging design to the colors to the imagery - everything fits the vision, the target group and the founder's story.
And yes: the brand also stands out at the retail launch - because it looks like a real statement, not like a placebo with a logo.
Other brands that get it:
Heimatgut:
Whether it's popcorn, coconut oil or vegetable potato chips - the design, the language, the tone: it's all of a piece.
You see it on the shelf and know: this is Heimatgut. Without you having to read it.
This Works:
Minimalist, white, clean. And yet immediately recognizable - because it doesn't want to be everything, but is something.
A brand that dares to be quiet - and therefore appears louder than many others.
Branding check: Does your brand stand out?
Ask yourself honestly:
✅ Do you have clear brand values that you follow through on - not just on your about us page?
✅ Do people recognize your brand even without a logo - through color, tone, attitude?
✅ Would your followers recognize an Insta post from you even if your name was missing?
✅ Does your text sound like you - or like "Hi everyone, we're really excited to introduce you to XY today..."?
✅ Does your brand image look like you? Or like a designer with burnout?
Conclusion:
Branding is not a logo. Branding is the feeling that remains when the logo is long gone.
It's the moment when someone says:
"That looks like... yes exactly, the brand of XY!"
So: go for it.
Clear, courageous, consistent - and above all: yourself.
If you're not sure whether your brand identity is already in place - write to me.
Or read along again next week.
We work on brands that stand out. And like to be remembered.
Until then: Stay weird. Stay real. Stay visible.
