Living Organism

Knowing what your company can afford to spend is critical for most any purchasing scenario. Shopping for branding and PR services is no different. Yet time and time again agencies and boutiques alike are faced with the prospect that does not have a budget fleshed out and ready to discuss.

Good agencies and boutiques specialize in developing custom plans and strategies designed to strike a client’s unique goals and objectives. For such agencies to truly help a potential client, understanding the budget constraint is one of the most important factors in crafting a successful program and scope of services. No two jobs are the same and pricing is seldom standardized. Firms that standardize pricing cannot be considered an ‘apples to apples” comparison to organizations that customize. Generally speaking, standardized pricing means cookie-cutter process with very little strategy and consulting to complement the final products or services delivered.

There are many variables to consider when hiring an outside partner to launch, reintroduce or fine-tune a brand. Such variables often pose a challenge to companies seeking a brand partner since many do not understand how to identify variables or why they are important. Before entrusting any outside firm with your brand, a number of items should be understood and discussed with potential partners.

The need to update or reinvent a brand is a natural evolution and usually a requirement at some point during a company’s lifecycle. Times change, products develop and missions shift direction. In order to remain pertinent, congruent and up-to-date, a company’s brand identity must adapt. Inevitably, the challenge of keeping a unique voice will present itself. With so many corporate marks, type treatments and messages already in use, and with technology making our world smaller and smaller by the year, it is becoming more difficult for the designer’s creative process to remain fresh and unadulterated. Whether intentional or unintentional, designers and agencies often cross the line of “inspired and influenced by” to “copied and taken from.”