Branding

7 Designer Secrets for Creating a More Professional Brand

7 Designer Secrets for Creating a More Professional Brand

These past couple weeks I’ve been working with one of my first official freelance design clients, making small updates to the original brand and website I created for her 5 years ago.

As I’ve revisited fonts and tweaked colors, I’ve found myself subconsciously using designer tricks that I’ve learned both in design school and by experience.

I haven’t been shy in sharing these design secrets. In fact, you’ll find many of them scattered throughout past Elle & Company blog posts.

But I’ve never compiled them all in one place.

Whether you’ve designed your own brand, hired a designer to create the elements of your brand for you, or you’re a self-taught designer trying to improve your design skills, implementing these insider tricks will help you create a more cohesive, professional brand.

Brand Challenge Day 20: Compile it all together in a brand style guide

Brand Challenge Day 20: Compile it all together in a brand style guide

Congratulations! You’ve officially made it through Elle & Company’s Brand Challenge.


But before you start implementing your new brand on your website and collateral items, take some time to compile all of your hard work and create a beautiful reference for your brand by creating a brand style guide.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.

Brand Challenge Day 18: Design custom patterns

Brand Challenge Day 18: Design custom patterns

Just like icons, patterns are another fun way to add interest to your brand and make it more memorable.

When you create a custom pattern that’s unique to your brand alone, you have the opportunity to stand out from competitors, communicate the message of your brand, and add some flair to your stationery, packaging, designs, and website.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.

Brand Challenge Day 16: Consider borders and backgrounds

Brand Challenge Day 16: Consider borders and backgrounds

Differentiation is all in the details.

While borders and backgrounds may seem insignificant and small compared to logos and color palettes, they can have a large impact on the consistency and professionalism of your brand.

You already determined your graphic style last week, so considering your borders and backgrounds should be a fairly easy task.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.

Brand Challenge Day 15: Determine the style of your graphics

Brand Challenge Day 15: Determine the style of your graphics

Your logo is taken care of, your fonts and colors are good to go.

Next up: graphics.

Something as simple as an icon or a border can make your brand distinct and memorable. Much of branding is considering and accounting for the small details.

But before you create fun brand assets like icons, patterns, and borders, you need to consider the overall style of your graphics.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.