I get quite a lot of inquiries from individuals who want to build a custom website but only have a logo and no other form of branding. This is a major problem not only for me as a designer but for their business as well.

This is a major problem because branding and website design work together to bring in leads for your business. When most people think of a “good website” they usually think of something that is user friendly, informational, contains high quality photos, and has lots of visually appealing cohesive graphics but this only scratches the surfaces of a much deeper foundation, branding.

All of those things that make up a “good website” were chosen because prior research completed during the branding phase clearly showed that those specific graphics, photos, colors, and copy would resonate with the right target audience. THAT is why you as a website visitor believe that specific website in particular to be a “good website”.

Branding not only provides a proven strategy & visual guide for your business which plays a key role in website building but it also provides additional assets to carry on that same cohesive look & feel throughout multiple forms of media beyond just the website alone which ensures consistency. When you’ve got a consistent visual identity people are much more likely to remember you and turn to your business for services. Not only are they much more likely to remember you but you’re more likely to attract your ideal clients and that’s the first step to getting leads through your website.

“can’t we just pick out colors and fonts as we build the website and use my pre-existing logo”?

To answer that question, yes of course we COULD but if you asked me if that’s really going to get the results you want, I’d say probably not.

Most people want to invest in a custom website because they are after something that truly stands out, reflects their business, AND makes getting leads effortless.

However, if you build a website solely based on a logo and a rough idea of colors & fonts, you’re going to be lacking the strategy necessary to consistently reel in those ideal clients and remain cohesive beyond your custom site. On top of that, all of those visually engaging graphics and branded icons aren’t going to be present on your website because you never invested in the branding portion of your business.

A website designer’s job is to build a high converting visually engaging website with the assets provided, not create the assets for your business, that’s a brand designer’s job. That is why it is absolutely crucial to invest in both of these areas to see maximum results from your custom website design.

That being said, I am not trying to say a good website can’t be created without a brand identity in place but what I am saying is that your custom website is going to be much more likely to work for your business and bring in more leads when you’ve implemented a consistent visual identity based on strategy and research!