Rebranding costs can be a stickler for some businesses. But let’s get one thing straight first.

“Branding is your suite of overall assets that communicates your purpose and drives revenue like a well-oiled machine!”

You can DIY or invest as much as you wish by hiring or collaborating with other like-minded businesses. However, the results will vary vastly from one to another! So, i’m going to be straight with you! I can guarantee you that your business is going cost more than $5 on Fivver (and maybe more than $99 on 99 Designs!)

Here’s the harsh reality! It can cost you between $1,000 – $15,000 and upward for an individual/small business brand. (I won’t be discussing medium-large business costs today!)

To best determine what will work for your business (and your budget!), let’s break it down into digestible, bite-sized budget-conscious options.

1.
Do it Yourself (DIY)

“Everything is Figureoutable!” said Marie Forleo!

If you’re just starting out, that’s no problem. For everything to start your business with no money, reference Marie’s massive list of 322+ business resources.

This list is a game-changer if you’re a DIY’er! It is literally the biggest curated list I’ve ever found! And, I’m not about re-creating what’s already available but sharing only the best of what is.

Estimated BUDGET: Your Time – how much is it worth?

2.
Brand Position, Voice, and Message

I can’t stress this enough: Invest in your strategy!

Start building the foundation and core mission for your business! Think of your brand positioning as your business guide. It is your reference to keep you and your business in alignment with your goals. Remember, brands that are consistently presented see an average revenue increase of 23%.

A good brand position document will include the following:

• Why your brand positioning matters
• About your brand and defining your positioning statement
• Identifying your brand profile
• How your personality sounds
• Adapting your brand to different contexts
• Understanding your brand story aka. your buyer’s journey
• A full competitor analysis
• Addresses content themes
• Discovers your audiences pain points, benefits and hesitations
• Who your dream client and voice of your customer is

 

Your brand positioning solidifies why you are different in this noisy marketplace. And, it will help your audience better understand your brand personality. This document should be an ever-growing, never stale guide for you. You should iterate on it, make it better, adapt and reposition as the season’s change and you develop within your business.

Estimated BUDGET: $1,000 – $4,000

3.
Visual Identity

How do you want to be seen? This is your very first impression – will you be impactful or forgotten?

Editor and Team Writer Karla Cook from Hubspot couldn’t have said it better.  “The best brands stick in our brains because their presence is defined by the repetition of the same logo, fonts, colors, and images”. What is the first visual representation of your business? It’s usually your logo. It’s what shapes your brand’s guidelines around your marketing collateral. It’s what sets you apart from the rest.

A comprehensive visual identity will include the following:

• Discovery Consultation
• Collaborative mood board creation
• Logo design
• Alternative logo design
• Watermark design
• Images, patterns and object curation
• Fonts + header overview
• Business card, letterhead, envelope and note card
• Brand Style Guide
• Promotional launch graphics

 

Estimated BUDGET: $1,500 – $2,500

4.
Branded Photography

Branded photography is how you will connect with your audience and put you at the forefront of your business.

It is the best way to show your audience who you are, what your business is about, and your overall look and feel — your big vision! Your imagery represents you, your products, and services! And, using the right images can boost your website’s conversions and get you connected better with your target audience.

At minimum a brand photographer will include:

• Pre Planning Consultation
• 2-3 hours shooting time
• 20 – 50 edited images
• Delivery via Google Drive, DropBox or preferred gallery

 

I’ve hired professionals for my brand photography and it is absolutely worth the money spent. I’ve done both flat lay branding which showcases more my personality and the things I like and I’ve also had professional headshots done. Alternatively, both are mutually beneficial and assist in helping drive sales, grow my following and provide brand recognition for my audience.

Estimated BUDGET: $500 – $2,000

5.
Copywriting

Are you slinging the right words to sell and convert on your website and in your marketing promotions?

Copywriting is one of the most important investments you can make and for good reason! For instance, professional copywriting gives you that extra oomph, that polished (grammatically correct, no spelling errors) edge that influences your audience to “click here!”. It helps to sell your end goal, develop trust in your services and connect with your audience through strategic storytelling.

Copywriting also impacts your ability to rank on Google for SEO. However, I’m no SEO expert, but I do know that crafting purposeful content that targets the needs of your audience via targeted keywords will help your rankings. Use a keyword search tool like Niel Patel’s Uber Suggest to help you craft content for your webite and blog posts.

A good typical copywriting experience for a website should include:

• Consultation + Brand Questionnaire
• Brand voice style guide (if you haven’t already completed this step!)
• Website copy (up to 5 pages)
• Click-Enticing Opt-in concept + copy
• Video walk-throughs explaining the strategy and focus of copy
• Round of revisions
• Professional external copy proofreading
• File Delivery typically via Google Drive

 

Estimated BUDGET: $1,500 – $5,000

6.
Website Design and Development

Your website is one of the biggest sales tools in your back pocket, aside from yourself of course!

The sky’s the limit (depending on your budget obviously!) when it comes to your website design and development. For more of a DIY option, you can use something like Showit5 or Squarespace — no developer required and cost-effective for the budget-conscious business owner. If you have a bit more of a budget you can go with a custom-built or templated WordPress site. I offer both of these options to my clients!

Here’s what you can expect the deliverables to look like for a website design and development investment:

• Consultation + Requirements Meeting
• Research and Competitor analysis
• Sitemap and content outline
• Keyword focused copywriting (unless you have your own copy!)
• Design of key focused pages
• Blog / Internal page design for SEO building
• Responsive Development with the user in mind
• Mailing List set up + Opt-in creation
• Cross-browser testing and usability
• SEO tool integration and optimization
• Launch and Deploy Website
• Training materials for client management
• Google Analytics and Heat mapping software for further iteration

 

There are many moving pieces to having a successful website. I get tons of questions about the return on investment (ROI) of a website design. So here’s my quick response to this question! Your #1 goal is to increase your sales. Your ROI is based on your % of visitors moved to leads, your landing page conversion rates, the % of leads moved to customers, and the # of current customers subscribed to your blog/email. It’s got to have more than just a “pretty design” but a great user experience with the functionality supporting the requirements of your end goal. And most of all, it needs to capture your leads through an email opt-in to convert your audience.

Estimated BUDGET: $3,000 – $20,000

7.
Marketing and Promotion

Once you have all your branding resources ready, it’s time to start designing and crafting the marketing portion of your business. This is where you get to promote and see the leads start rolling in.

Your marketing toolbox needs to include the following:

• Launch plan with curated social content and graphics
• Blogging with supporting graphics for visual content queues
• Graphics for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter (i.e. promotional, quotes, behind the scenes, freebies)
• Creation of Ebooks, Checklists and Quiz’s for lead generation
• Client welcome guides, pricing magazines and online brochures for brand authority and selling
• Graphics for Facebook Ad campaigns focused on conversion
• Email marketing creation and graphics for brand recognition

 

Hiring a designer on retainer is one of best ways to streamline your marketing promotions to ensure your audience is receiving consistent, purposeful and data-driven content. Focusing on your marketing goals quarterly will allow you to stay focused, intentional and won’t leave you feeling too overwhelmed with over planning.

Estimated BUDGET: $500 – $2,000 (hire on retainer!)

Understand the Deliverables

In conclusion, when it comes to your baby (oops, uh, your business!), it’s hard to relinquish control for a rebrand. But let me tell you a secret — as soon as you let go and TRUST the process, real business development begins (and real revenue starts to generate!)

Hiring help is not only essential, but it’s also a pivotal turning point for your business growth. The feeling of “I can’t trust anyone else with my business!” is real. You may have been promised deliverables by a “ professional” in the past only to receive an end product that wasn’t on time, and simply didn’t work. As a business owner, I’ve experienced the same challenges – I get it! Before you leap, do your research, ensure the requirements of your project are well understood by both parties and know what the final deliverables are and when they will be delivered.

 

If you’re not sure where to start, let’s talk it over together on a free consultation call! I can 100% help you through this process and share my best recommendations based on your current situation — even if it may not be the right time for you to invest!