Time to refresh your brand? Or are you just bored of it.

We know consistency matters in branding – it’s how people learn to recognise and trust you. But consistency isn’t the same as never changing anything. A brand that never evolves can end up looking stuck, even if the business behind it hasn’t stood still at all. The trick is telling the difference between “I’m a […]

Does branding actually pay for itself?

Wally Olins, one of the most respected names in branding, put it simply:“There’s only one true way to gauge the value of a brand, and that is to sell it.” In other words, you can talk about branding in abstract terms all day, but the real test is what happens at the point of sale. […]

Why the first thing we build is never the logo?

A client came to No.10 recently. He was starting a new business – aerial surveying, mapping work and landscape documentation. I’d worked with him many years before, for a previous venture. Back then, the brief was simple: a good-looking logo and a pretty website … and that got you a long way. We started the […]

You probably have a brand story. You’re just not using it.

‘Storytelling’ has become one of those words that makes business owners wince. It’s shown up everywhere – like a trend – and it sounds like something expensive that agencies invented. So let’s strip it back. Your story is actually the answer to a few plain questions. Why did you start? Why do you do it […]

What if branding doesn’t work?

It’s the question almost every business owner asks me – sometimes out loud, more often between the lines. Branding feels like a leap of faith. You spend the money, you get a nice logo, and then … what? It’s a very valid concern. And it usually comes from branding done badly: a visual refresh with […]