Screw Your Logo: The 4 Personal Branding Questions You Must Answer Before Even Thinking About A Logo.

Let me guess. You already did it. The Entrepreneur False-Start.

•  Came up with a clever company name
•  Designed a cool logo
•  Bought 500 business cards

Hmm…how has that worked out for you so far? Exactly.

Look, don’t feel bad. You're not the first one. If I had a nickel for every entrepreneur that ran head-first into creating a logo before knowing their business, I’d have enough copper to rewire all the homes in L.A. Country (nickels are 75% copper.)

For a solopreneur, logos are like tattoos. They are visual marks that only make you recognizable; but they don’t define you. In other words, logos don’t tell anyone who you are unless there’s already a “who” to tell. So without a clear brand identity, logos are nothing more than pretty pictures on some random person.

So before you go start thinking that a logo will start your business, take a few moments and consider these 4 questions to help define your authentic personal brand and build the clarity required to express it visually. 

Why are you?

What is your purpose for getting out of bed each morning and working on this business? In this day of personal branding, people want to know why you care long before they care what you know

This is a core component of any personal brand. Simon Sinek and others have made it clear that starting with WHY (not a logo) is how great leaders have influenced the world and created the buy-in from consumers to consider your product or service.

What are you?

What is your identity and what exactly are you delivering? Aha! You think you got me there – (isn’t a logo part of brand identity?) Yes and no. Many people conflate the two but I prefer to think of a logo as the visual expression of the identity. 

Our brand identity is simply the mental image transferred into the mind of a future client. While It can be induced by a logo, a logo will never create it. It must exist first and then a great logo can bring it to the front of the mind.

Where are you?

This question is all about market positioning. Identifying your ideal client avatar and your unique value proposition are a couple of the key elements to figuring out where you want to do business.

This will also be a valuable input into creating your logo. Are you targeting French Nuns or punk rock bands? Having a clear sense of who you are talking to will ensure that the logo design can accentuate, not subtract, from the message.

 Logos don’t tell anyone who you are unless there’s already a “who” to tell.

Who are you?

Now we’re talking about brand persona. The personality and voice of your brand. Are you going to be Jim Gaffigan funny or Walter Kronkite serious? This is also where you would want to start developing a concise and clever tagline that conveys in words what you logo will convey visually.

Logo comes later

I’m certainly not poo-pooing the proper use of the logo. It’s a valuable part of your branding arsenal. However, getting things out of order may only leave you with a stack of useless drink coasters and a nice tattoo that nobody will ever see, let alone understand.

Questions? Comments? Want to learn more about how to discover, articulate, and monetize your authentic personal brand? www.joshzepess.com. Talk to you soon.