Frequently asked questions

Question 1

What is brand therapy?

Accepted Answer

Brand therapy is a 90-minute conversation about your business, followed by a written brand diagnosis and a 30-minute call to walk through it together. It happens before any design work, because its job is to find out what your brand should be saying before anyone decides what it should look like.

Question 2

What does a brand strategist do that a designer doesn’t?

Accepted Answer

A designer decides how your brand looks. A brand strategist decides what it needs to say, who it is for, and why anyone should believe it, and that decision has to come first.

Question 3

Do I need a rebrand or just a new website?

Accepted Answer

If people understand what you do and only the site is tired, you need a website. If you struggle to say what makes you different, or your logo belongs to a business you no longer run, you need the brand first, because a new website will only say the wrong thing more beautifully.

Question 4

How do I know if my brand is the problem?

Accepted Answer

Your brand is the problem when the business is good and the outside doesn’t show it. You will rarely see it in a spreadsheet. You will see it in small things you do without noticing.

Question 5

How much should a logo and brand cost for a small business?

Accepted Answer

Anywhere from the price of a lunch to the price of a car, and the difference is rarely the drawing. What you are paying for is the thinking that decides what gets drawn. My own identity work starts at $3,750, and an identity with a website starts at $7,500.

Question 6

How long does a rebrand take?

Accepted Answer

With me, a new identity takes about a week, and an identity with a five-page website takes about two. You will spend three to six hours of your own time. Larger companies with more pages and more people take longer, and that timeline is set in the diagnosis.

Question 7

Can AI design my logo?

Accepted Answer

AI can draw you a logo in seconds. It cannot tell you which logo is yours, and that choice is the entire job.

Question 8

What should I have ready before I hire a brand designer?

Accepted Answer

Less than you think. You need to know who makes the decisions, have a few honest sentences from real clients, and be willing to answer questions out loud. You do not need a brief, a mood board, or a tagline.

Question 9

Why doesn’t my website sound like me?

Accepted Answer

Because it was written from inside the business, at a desk, in the voice people use when they think they are supposed to sound professional. The version that sounds like you already exists. You say it out loud to clients every week.

Question 10

How do I choose a brand designer in Austin?

Accepted Answer

Ask five questions, and notice whether they ask you anything back. The right designer for you is curious about your business before they show you their portfolio.

The questions people ask before they call.