Studio Note #06: The best brands aren't mirrors. They're windows.

One of the most common misconceptions about branding is that it should reflect the owner's personal taste.

I don't like green.

I've never been a fan of serif fonts.

I wish the logo was a little bigger.

Those opinions are valid. They're just rarely the right place to start.

Your branding isn't for you. It's for the people you're trying to reach.

A brand isn't a personal art project. It's a communication tool. Every decision, from the typography to the photos to the tone of voice, should help your audience understand who you are and why they should trust you.

Take color, for example. I happen to like red. If you were to look around my own office, you'd see plenty of it. But if a financial advisor hired us to build their brand, red wouldn't make the list. Not because it's a bad color, but because it sends the wrong message to the people they're trying to reach.

The color didn't change. The context did.

The problem is that business owners experience their own brand with years of personal context attached to it. Customers don't. They don't know that blue reminds you of an ex-spouse or that your favorite color has always been orange. They're making a much simpler judgment.

Does this business seem credible?

The strongest brands aren't the ones their owners love the most.

They're the ones their customers understand the fastest.

Good branding isn't about self-expression. It's about clarity.

When your audience immediately understands who you are, what you do and why you're different, your brand has done its job.

Personal preference will always have a seat at the table.

It just shouldn't be sitting at the head of it.