Listen up entrepreneurs, we’re giving out free game
These days, everyone is not only obsessing over entrepreneurship but over-glorifying it as well. How many people do you know with #entrepreneur in their Instagram bio who have never even sold a single thing?
It makes sense that people are claiming to be entrepreneurs without actually doing the work — that sh*t is hard. If you’re a college student, working a crappy job and/or have no guidance on how to not only start but run a successful business, it can seem almost impossible to get your business off the ground. Before contacting a graphic designer or brand coach, you have to get the basics together.
So we sat down with graphic designer and brand coach Brittany Alexis, who has over 10 years of experience, to drop some gems on how to properly brand myself and my business. Here are her tips in her own words.
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1. Figure out your brand
So many of my clients are like, “I have a bomb idea but I don’t know where to start. What are the first steps to becoming my own boss?” First thing, don’t invest thousands of dollars on the look of your brand without creating a unique name that resonates with your brand, registering your business within your state, trademarking or copyrighting your brands name (if it’s a personal brand and you’re using your name, you don’t need to do this step) and setting up a merchant account with a bank. So many people skip this step which causes them to possibly lose money down the line because the foundation isn’t set.
2. Get that money in order
Set up a separate bank account for your business. This also makes things easier when its time to file taxes. Since you’re technically paying yourself it makes it more clean and you’re able to track your business and growth compared to just having all your money in once account, which makes it easier to spend. You should always have a “Profit and Loss” file so you’re able to show what exactly you’ve spent your money on for your business. For my clients who don’t have a lot of money starting off I always advice them to create a blue print first. So many people want to start a business but don’t have a financial plan. This way, you’re able to know how much money you need to do everything your business needs.
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3. Always think of the bigger picture
“I want my brand to be glitter, pink, yellow, blue and grey. Can you make my logo those colors?” Tone it down. You want your brand to come off as clean as possible. I always recommend my clients to have a clean, simple style that gives your brand a high-end look. Use plenty of white space, less wording, high-resolution photos, two to three colors, and one to two key fonts.
Even with this advice, I still have some people who are like, “I like the way another brand looks, can you go to their website and copy exactly how it looks for my brand?” Absolutely not. Originality is the key factor that sets your brand aside from others. It’s okay to be inspired by other brands but develop and create your own concepts. Something we’ve never seen before. With almost every industry being oversaturated you have to think about what sets your brand apart, what will draw customers in and keep them coming back.
4. Pick up a new skill and network
Entrepreneurship isn’t easy and branding/marketing isn’t cheap. If you want to learn how to invest in yourself by picking up a new skill, take a class. There are many graphic designers like myself who offer one on one courses to teach you how to make a flyer, coding, and so much more that goes into running an visually appealing business. Even if you want to take your personal brand to the next level, you still need to do almost everything mentioned above. Go to a workshop and network with other people in your industry and do research on how to get the plug in packaging, vendors, etc.
