Want to start your own brand?
But first, hear me out.
Starting or launching a brand is more than just creating a logo. Hold up—don’t jump straight into picking colors or designing a logo just yet.
Many people think that choosing a pretty color palette is all you have to do, but if there’s no voice, message, meaning, or purpose behind the brand, it will just feel hollow.
Whether you’re launching a small business, a passion project, or your personal brand, there are a few things you’ll want to think through before you hit publish on that Instagram bio.
That’s why I’m here with this post.
Today, I’ll share 10 things to do before starting your brand in very simple terms so that beginners like you won’t have any problem.
Launching a brand isn’t rocket science. Anyone can do it. All you have to do is strategise a few things in advance.
So, let’s learn everything! From creating to brand voice to reaching the right people. You ready? Let’s jump in!
10 things to do before starting your brand
Let’s start this list and find out what you need to do before your brand’s official launch. I’ve put everything together in simple and beginner-friendly terms.
You can also download the free branding checklist I’ve provided above. It’s a fillable PDF and checklist that you can use to create and keep track of your brand.
Let’s begin.
1. Get Clear on Your ‘Why’
Take a notepad and a pen to write down ‘why’ you want to start this brand. What’s the purpose? What’s the goal? How will it help your audience?
Your brand must have a purpose and identity. If someone can tell why your brand exists, then it means you have found a purpose for it.
You can also create a vision in your mind. How will your brand look in the future? Create a long-term vision because that will help you create consistency and you can work more productively.
Now that you’ve decided the ‘why’ of your brand, this is what to do next.
2. Know Your Target Audience
Many people neglect this point but this is one of the most important things to keep in mind. YOUR AUDIENCE.
Your audience is the main aspect of your brand. You’ll create content for them. Everything is for them so you must find out who they are, what they want, what their pain points and preferences are.
You must know who you’re speaking to.
So, find out who your target audience is. For example, if you’re a beauty brand, then your target audience will mostly be young women or if you’re a health and wellness brand, then your audience will mostly be people in their 30s and 40s. (Take rough guesses like this and then do further research on the internet)
You got this point? Ok! Moving on.
3. Research Your Industry and Competitors
You have a notepad and a pen, now surf the internet and find out who else is doing the same thing as you.
Write down their brand names, their uniqueness, what they are offering and how you can make your brand better than theirs. (PS. I’ve included everything in the free checklist.)
There must be something they are missing that you can add to your brand or improve. The thing about starting a brand is you don’t have to invent something new. You can make improvements on what’s already out there.
Take a look at others in your niche. What are they doing well? What’s missing? How can you stand out or do it differently?
This isn’t about copying—it’s about finding your unique angle.
4. Define Your Brand Personality
Okay now let’s think for a second.
If your brand were a person, what kind of vibe would it give?
Is it bold and sassy? Calm and minimal? Friendly and fun? You can also create a vibe based on your real-life personality. For example, calm and minimal is how I am.
See? It’s that easy.
This personality shows up in your visuals, captions, website copy—everything. Defining it now helps you stay consistent and attract the right people.
Once you have figured this out, we can move on to the next point.
5. Pick a Memorable Brand Name
There are many things you must keep in mind while choosing your brand name:
- Is it matching your brand niche?
- Is it easy to remember?
- Does it match your brand’s mission or vibe?
Take some time to think of a good brand name because it is permanent. (You can change it in the future but it would be a bit of a hassle)
Also, your brand name doesn’t have to be perfect. Just something you feel good about and can grow with. Your name should be simple, easy to say, and give a hint of what you’re all about.
My brand name is ‘Markethio’ because I help creators and entrepreneurs like you grow and market your biz. It’s a good name. I like it, so I went with it.
If you’re clueless about what to choose, then you can jot down words that relate to your niche, vibe, or mission. Say them out loud. Google them. Check if the domain and social handles are available.
You can use GoDaddy to check the name availability. If it’s available and something you like, you can go ahead and make it yours!
6. Choose Your Color Palette and Fonts
This is where your visual identity starts to take shape.
Pick 3–5 brand colors that reflect your personality and appeal to your target audience.
For fonts, pair 1–2 that are easy to read and match your vibe. (Tip: Canva has tons of great free font combos to try!)
It’s always good to pick three types of fonts for your brand:
- The main heading font that you’ll use for headings of your website design, social media posts and more
- The Accent font that you’ll use to highlight a certain word in a sentence. Accent fonts are mainly italic fonts
- The paragraph font that you’ll use for content
For fonts, you can take a look at some Canva fonts, Google fonts and more platforms.
For the color palette, you can try out a few sites like coolors, color hunt, Adobe Colors or Canva colors.
Make sure your choices feel cohesive and can be used across your platforms.
7. Create a Visual Moodboard
Before designing anything, gather inspiration!
If you don’t know what a moodboard is, it helps you see the overall aesthetic and feeling you want for your brand.
You can use Pinterest, any stock photo site like Unsplash or Canva to collect images, colors, fonts, and textures that vibe with your vision. It’s like a visual direction map for your future designs.
A moodboard can have these things:
- Brand Colors (The Color Palette)
- Brand Fonts
- Stock Photos that match the brand’s vibe
I share a lot of moodboards on my Instagram. You can check out a few and take inspiration from them.
8. Design a Simple Brand Logo
Once you’ve nailed your moodboard, colors, and vibe, it’s logo time.
Start simple—your logo doesn’t need to be fancy to be effective. In fact, minimal logos are often more versatile.
Canva is great for designing one yourself, especially when you already have your visual direction sorted.
Lemme show you how to create a logo for beginners:
- Go to Canva and open a logo canvas
- Type out your brand name
- Change the font to your brand font
- Add any element you want like a line or a small symbol above or below the text
And there you have it! Simple, isn’t it?
Your brand must have 3 types of logos:
- The main logo
- The secondary logo which is a smaller version of the main logo
- The submark logo which you can use for footers and email signatures
Once you have designed the logo, save it as a PNG with a transparent background and use it wherever needed.
9. Draft Your Brand Message and Tagline
What do you want people to know right away when they come across your brand?
Write a short sentence or tagline that sums up what you do, who it’s for, and why it matters. For example, if you’ve an interior design brand, your tagline can be ‘Designs That Feel Like Home’.
This becomes your go-to blurb for bios, websites, or pitches. Think of it as your brand’s elevator pitch: short but powerful.
In the free branding checklist above, I have included a worksheet for brand message and tagline so that you can decide on one for your brand very easily.
10. Plan Your Online Presence
Where are you going to show up first? Instagram? A blog? Etsy shop?
You don’t need to be everywhere—just start with 1–2 platforms that make sense for your brand and audience. (Don’t overwhelm yourself with all platforms and focus only on 2)
Make sure your visuals and messaging are consistent across those platforms.
Creating an Instagram account is a must for most businesses because no matter what your niche is, you’ll find your audience there. It’s a huge platform!!
Write a good bio, choose a good handle name, design some posts and publish them. Keep in mind that organic growth takes time. You’re doing business here and no business grows overnight 🙂
If you have a visual niche like graphic designing, interior designing etc, then I highly recommend creating a Pinterest account and start promoting. Trust me, Pinterest is a goldmine to attract an audience + it’s an easy platform.
Over to you!
These were 10 things to do before starting your brand. Was this useful?
Of course it’s gonna take some time to finalise your brand identity like colors, fonts, stock images but it’s an interesting process.
I’m helping you as much as I can but at the end of the day, you have to do the research part by yourself and I’m sure you’re gonna nail it. Just keep going!
Remember one thing: “Yes! It’s been done before but not by you”.
That’s all for this post!
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