The importance of brand identity and owning your sh*t

If, however, you believe a ‘brand’ is more than just the logo – keep scrolling, because we probably have very similar thoughts on this highly debated topic amongst marketing and creative professionals.

When I was setting up co&co, the bit I laboured over the most, was the brand – who was co&co going to be? Who did I want to attract, who did I want my business to resonate with?

Luckily for me, you don’t work in this industry for a decade without picking up some pretty good contacts along the way – and I am lucky enough to have worked, and become friends with a mega designer over the last couple of years, who was such a helpful resource when I was trying to work this all out.

Whilst I was trying to conjure up this ‘brand’ from nothing – he cut through it all and made me realise – co&co’s brand was me. Who I am, how I operate, and what I believe, is what co&co was founded on. So, just like I am, a straight to the point, no messing, why use 10 words when 5 will do kind of person, so is co&co.

For me, the co&co brand started with statements – it started with a tone of voice – my tone of voice.

The big statements all over the co&co website are things that I have said or do say day to day. I have never been someone who could really hide what they think or feel – so I would have lasted two minutes if my brand hadn’t been along a similar vein. People also would have thought they had got the wrong number if they rang up expecting miss prim and proper and I answered the phone.

After the tone of voice, came the colours, the tones, the style.

Anyone who knows me would say I spend 99% of my life dressed as if I am going to a funeral. I tell them I will stop wearing black when they invent a darker colour. So, when it came to co&co and the brand that was going to reflect me, and my vision for the business– pink flamingos and florescent colours were out.

Instead my colour palette is very minimal – no fuss, no big show and dance. If I had had my way the whole thing would have been black and white, but my designer pal out voted me on that one. I thank him now in hindsight.

So, after the tone of voice was nailed, the colour palette agreed – it was time to come up with a name. Yeah – I know – the name really did come last. I wanted something memorable, snappy. I wanted to breathe new life into the concept of ‘marketing consultancy’, but I also wanted to get across that we aren’t all just about the theory and the plan – we can actually help execute and drive success. We consult, but we do more than that – we collaborate – with businesses, partners, each other. So, co&co was born.

Looking back now at the brand and how it looks, how it feels, what is says about me and the business – it is bang on, and I am really proud of it. It won’t be for everyone – but that’s ok – I don’t want to work with everyone, I want to work with the people who get who we are, like it, respect it, and want us to inject some of that into their business.

Brand identity is so important – you have to be brave, you have to take risks, but most of all you have to be true to who you are – that is what your audience, your customers are looking for.