I know I have mentioned this A LOT recently, but I love to have three different blogs for all my content finally. There are still some tweaks and changes to be made before I am fully satisfied. However, the main issue was getting started, and I am well and truly started.

If you missed my many, big announcements about One Frazzled Mum, then gist of the story is this. I fell out of love with One Frazzled Mum. It seemed like time was up for my beloved blog, and there was no way forward. I set up One Frazzled Fibro and subsequently One Frazzled Fiction. The idea was to separate all my content and see if anything was left to salvage on One Frazzled Mum.

Recently I found my love for my blog again and decided that I would write about my thoughts, opinion pieces and feelings about current events. This made me happy. Keeping three blogs would be a big task, but I think I am up for the challenge.

Introducing The Frazzled Collective

Next was deciding how to tackle my social media. Could I realistically update three blogs and all social media accounts for each blog individually? Not really. So I decided to change my social media accounts to The Frazzled Collective, making it a place to share all content from my three blogs. This would keep them closely connected yet still separate as I carried on making changes.

One Frazzled Branding

One such change was getting my branding correct. Everyone needs to best branding for your small business and as my blogs are my business, this applies to me too. The fact remains, I love my theme and the colours. But should all my blog have a unified look? Carry the same theme and colours, which is then carried over to my social media accounts? I think the answer is yes. This will pull everything together and give people the clarity that they are all the same and connected. Especially as I was only having one set of social media accounts for all three blogs.

Creating Branding for Your Small Business

Having the right type of branding isn’t only something bloggers need to worry about. Much in the same way, I want people to know they are on one of my blogs and social media accounts using the same colours, styles and fonts. Your business should aim for this, too.

Having a complete and consistent brand will help consumers easily identify your company and know they have found the right company. Many businesses look to hire an external graphic designer. However, many free and paid sites can help you create your own branding your way for a fraction of the cost. For example, you can create custom posters online for free to help you create posters advertising your business.

Sites such as Canva can allow you to mock up a design using fonts from a handwriting fonts site that looks just as professional despite making it yourself. All you need to do is make sure you can clearly tell what your branding for your small business is, what the font says and what you do along with your company name.

Tips for Creating High-Quality Branding for Your Small Business

Before you reach the creation stage, you need to focus on the following points;

• Be clear on exactly what you want your branding to say.
• What is your business about, and what are you trying to achieve.
• Add to this who your ideal customer is – different generations will react differently to specific designs and input, giving you a good base to start from.
• Next, how about checking out the logos for your competitors – What do you like about their logo, what do you dislike, and how impactful do you find the design and font used?

Moving onto the creation process, we have tips for you to keep in mind.

• Try not to use too many colours. It will dilute your message.
• Consider the size of your logo for all your logo uses. For example, a roundel will work great on social media, but stacked logos will work well on any platform you use it on.
• Consider a visual pun to remove the need to use too many words in your logo.
• Avoid over fanciful fonts as some can be harder to read, especially for those with visual impairments or viewing from a distance.
• Try not to make it too fussy with images and text. Consider how busy it will look on different mediums such as a storefront, business cards, social media channels and employee uniforms.
• Keep it clean. The use of blank space in your logo will help to keep it clean and easier to see.
• Simple is sometimes better. Less is more is always a benefit and can help you have a more impactful statement via its simplicity.
• Think literally. If you sell boxes of chocolates and your company is called “chocolate box”, why not have your logo as a box of chocolates and the letters for ‘chocolate box’ on the chocolates inside the box!
• Use a mockup simulator to get an idea of how your branding will look across different products. It may look great as a poster or even a shop sign, but it could be cramped and hard to focus on in a smaller format or curved items such as mugs and pens.
• Get other peoples opinions before you settle on the right branding for your business.

Finalising My Frazzled Branding

Much like I am using the same font and colours for my blogs and my images for my social media handles, I know that when printed on a business card, for example, the font will pop on a matt background with its slightly metallic look and with its clear background, I can keep it fuss-free and clear. My font is clear to read yet written in a way that looks drawn by hand and slightly uneven in the placement and heights leaning into my ‘frazzled’ moniker.

Ultimately, choosing the correct branding for your small business is one area that requires you to get it right from the beginning to help you not only create an impactful and striking branding but also help you stand out above your competitors.