The Psychology of My Brand
Updated: 1 day ago
Four years ago, I wrote my resignation letter and opened an LLC in the same day. I had stretched myself as far as I could in my corporate role and there was no further growth available. I also found myself unaligned with where the company was headed and a job that once had me kicking the covers off in the morning filled me with perpetual dread. It was time for me to move on.
Almost immediately upon opening Briana Borcic Consulting, and without any prior planning or preparation, I was able to sign one client. It was beyond humbling to announce my resignation and have an old colleague simultaneously reach out for marketing support for their business. That first client gave me the push I needed to get started. I was building everything backward (client first…then company branding, website, service offerings, and all the things that go into running a business), but I had a place to start and someone keeping me accountable to show up each day and do the work.
Within a month, I signed my second client. Within four months, I had three ongoing clients. Each of them was from previous professional relationships, proving that the power of relationships is unmatched.
The Brand
For me, the logo design was the hardest part. I could not turn this vision I had into a clean, clear logo. I worked with two talented designers, and I was still stuck. I had a vision for colors, aesthetic, language, and tone, but the logo was holding me up.
I love bacon The only knockout. My grandma (XO)
Opening a company is the best way to make a lot of mistakes and overcome them quickly. It is great practice for failure.
Though I had worked in websites before, I got it in my head that I should contract out my website design and creation. Horrible idea. I couldn’t articulate my vision, so how was someone going to create a website for me?
Let’s just say, I didn’t use the website that was created.
It was time for me to buck up and stop half-assing MY BRAND. I’m in marketing, right? Get it together, Briana.
So, I sat down and created a website through Wix. Another learning curve. I wanted to shake my monitor and throw my mouse across the room a few (100) times.
Maybe I need photos and a brand video? I flew to Nashville, rented a Peerspace for a day, and asked some of my friends to help me with a brand video. The video didn't end up working out, but I love the photos we got from it.
Needing more photos for content, I hired a photographer and had headshots and brand photos taken at Red Rocks in Morrison, CO. Something was still off for me.
I was all over the place.
Finally, I nailed down brand guidelines with a logo I was happy with, colors, fonts, and photos that friends had taken during the brand video shoot (on the bright side, I got some content). I sat down and focused on my website. I knew that I needed something. Not something perfect, but something that people could go to learn a little bit about me and the marketing services I provide. Nothing crazy. So, I did just that. I created a website, and though it wasn’t perfect, I was happy and proud of how it came together.
There were some key elements I always knew I wanted in my brand and how I wanted people to feel when they interacted with me and my business. Grounded, balance, reliability, movement, and earthy were words that were important to me. Those elements defined my colors, verbiage, and design.
BTS video on loop. Pretty innovative, eh?
That website carried me through four years of business. It took 9 months of being in business to get it finalized and published, BUT it’s proof that all you need to do is START. You don’t have to have all the bells and whistles to get your business started. If people like and trust YOU, then they won’t care if your website isn’t quite ready. It helps to have a website for many reasons, but I secured three clients before I had a website.
Business Evolution After Four Years
By my third year in business, I was again ready for a change, but I wasn’t sure what that meant or looked like yet. This time, I sat with that thought. I ruminated on a few ideas, directions, and future goals of mine. I knew I needed to evolve my brand somehow, think outside the box, and offer something separate of client-facing work.
I started thinking about the things I genuinely love to do and how they could become part of my business. I love teaching. How could I bring more of that into my work? I love building community. How could that fit into what I was building? I love writing and reading, too. In fact, I had already gone on a side quest and written and published a book. I knew I wanted to evolve beyond client-facing work and build something that felt more like me.
I sat with these thoughts for a while and knew it was time for a website facelift. It felt like the clearest place to start, but as I started thinking about what I wanted this next version of my brand to say, I realized it wasn’t just about a new website. It was about figuring out where I fit in a world that is changing quickly.
I’ve watched and learned as AI has transformed business and the way we work. How does that fit into my brand? And how do I talk about something so futuristic while still staying true to what has always mattered to me?
There’s a strange tension between the future and the past. Mother Nature and technology. Water and data centers. Evolving with the times or staying put.
It’s scary. It’s cool. And it’s something I’m learning to navigate. AI isn’t something I want to run from. It’s a tool, and learning how to use it to increase productivity, reprioritize tasks, and work differently is becoming part of how I think about the future of my business.
I realized that for the first time in however many decades (a lot), colleges can’t promise jobs in business post-graduation because of how quickly AI has changed the game.
As I designed my new website, I wanted to update the colors. I still leaned toward earthy, neutral, kind of 70s vibe colors, but I wanted to brighten it up a bit. Hello, periwinkle😉.
I wanted the new brand to balance the past, present, and future. That’s where the editorial newspaper influence came in as a nod to the past, grounded in what’s happening now, with a curiosity about what’s coming next.
Because we can hold two things at once. I can stay curious about the future of work, embrace AI, and continue evolving my brand and services while still leaning into my inner hippie, supporting our National Parks, camping, and growing my veggies. One doesn’t have to replace the other. For me, it’s about finding the balance.
The Future of My Brand
My clients built my company. They proved that relationships are immensely important and you never know when or how you will work with someone again. My core service offerings of putting the people behind the brand, first, will always stay the same. People will always be part of my business. Guiding people through marketing as it changes and as I learn it, will also be key. The Future of marketing is here, and I want to encourage people to move with it, not against it. We can still find the balance between then and now.
So, what’s new? Outside of helping clients move their business forward, I’m building a community. I want to empower the next generation to build their own path, to listen to their gut, and to work in something that fuels them. I want the next generation to lean into their resources, skills, and dreams, and create something bigger. I also want anyone who needs to extra push to build something on their own, to go and do it. My website didn’t launch until nine months and three clients later. You don’t need to have it all figured out. You just need to start.
Interested? Stay connected and sign up for my weekly correspondence, The Time Traveler, and be the first to know when and how to join The Future.
Comments