Branding
Two levels
The underlying logic of your business. Market research, buyer personas, the language your customers use, the competition mapped, the positioning, the story and the messaging. Delivered as a framework you can hand to anyone who writes or designs for you.
The strategy made visible. Up to four logo concepts, colour psychology, typography, real-world mockups, then the refined system with every file, every colour code and a guidelines book. Every mark is designed by a human.
Free, from MK-Way
Brand Codex reads your website and writes the brand guideline you never got round to: colours, type, logo use and voice, on one page you can hand to anyone who designs, writes or builds for you. Sign up and we make yours, free.
Four real codexes, made from real websites.
Level one, opened up
A 69-page brand strategy we delivered this year, with the client's name and logo left out. This is the process. Take it.
Chapter 1
Market size, service trends, the gaps nobody is filling, and what people search for, by region and by month.
Chapter 2
Three to four people, named, with what they fear, what they want, and the one line that would make them call.
Chapter 3
Who they are, where they spend time online, which sites they trust, and what they say when nobody from a brand is listening.
Chapter 4
The words your customers actually use, the words they hate, and the vocabulary a brand should adopt to sound like it gets them.
Chapter 5
Every competitor mapped by archetype, message, reviews and feature set, so we find the white space instead of guessing it.
Chapter 6
Three or four positioning opportunities the research points to, each with the proof behind it.
Chapter 7
Positioning, the meaning in the name, and the brand model: differentiation, relevance, esteem, knowledge.
Chapter 8
The promise, the one-ness statement, the positioning statement, and the unique selling points written out in full.
Chapter 9
Messaging pillars, slogan-style lines, narrative lines and the primary direction. Words a copywriter can build from.
Free, the whole process
The chapter list, what goes in each one, and the questions we ask to fill it. Use it with us, with another studio, or on your own. Ask and we'll send it.
Level two, in the wild
Every logo here was drawn by a person. The research, the mockups and the imagery around it came at machine speed.
Our step-by-step guide
The full branding roadmap: the deliverables at every stage and your role at each one, so you know when we need you and when you can stay in cruise control.
Step 01 of 9
The journey begins with understanding your vision. We capture the essence of your business before we draw a single line.
Client actionFill out the branding intake questionnaire.
You stay in cruise control for this one. We handle the flight.
Step 02 of 9
We meet to learn about you, discover your story, understand your business goals and clarify your vision, to set the strategic direction.
Joint actionYou and the MK-Way team on one call.
You stay in cruise control for this one. We handle the flight.
Step 03 of 9
The full framework, chapter by chapter: the research, the personas, the language, the competition, the positioning, the story and the messaging.
Market intelligence
Demand, trends and gap analysis.
Competitive intelligence
White-space positioning opportunities.
Audience psychographics
Interests, goals and motivations.
Buyer personas
Up to three distinct personas.
Strategic positioning
USPs and the unique value proposition.
Brand narrative
Mission, vision, values and tone of voice.
Verbal identity
Slogans and taglines by messaging pillar.
Brand equity model
The four-pillar BAV breakdown.
Step 04 of 9
Before design begins, we translate the strategic attributes into tangible visual possibilities.
Visual audit
The competitive landscape, so the identity is different on purpose.
Moodboards
Three or four stylescapes exploring distinct aesthetic territories.
Step 05 of 9
A unified presentation of the brand strategy and the visual direction. We review the roadmap and the moodboards so the visuals line up with the business goals.
Client decisionApprove the strategy and select the visual direction.
You stay in cruise control for this one. We handle the flight.
Step 06 of 9
We develop a full visual system based on the approved direction.
Identity systems
Up to four fully developed logo and identity concepts.
Colour psychology
Strategically defined palettes.
Contextual mockups
Real-life applications: posters, cards, scenes.
Step 07 of 9
We walk you through the concepts, explaining the rationale and how each one solves the strategic challenges we identified.
Client decisionPick the concept that fits your vision and request revisions if any.
You stay in cruise control for this one. We handle the flight.
Step 08 of 9
We polish the selected concept and finalise the identity system.
Final approvalOnce approved, we move to packaging your assets. Signed off.
Revisions
Your feedback applied.
Expansion
The final identity system developed.
Colour standards
Every colour code: HEX, RGB, Pantone.
Step 09 of 9
Everything a designer, a printer or a new hire needs to use the brand without asking.
Brand strategy deck
The research, positioning and strategy, 50+ pages.
Master logo suite
AI, EPS, SVG, JPG, PNG, with a format guide.
Brand guidelines book
Usage rules, photography, dos and don'ts.
Typography and motion
Brand font files and the animated logo.
Visual assets
Generated images and mockups.
Social kit and business card
Covers, profile picture, digital card with QR.
1 / 9
Human mastermind
The source of creative guidance that technology can't replace. Our designers lead the AI to bring your vision to life at a hundred times the speed. Every logo and core identity mark is 100% human-designed, so your brand has a soul.
AI gives the brand infinite power
Our strategists run AI engines that surface the behaviours, language and positioning gaps your competitors can't see. Insights that took a team of analysts weeks arrive in hours. And the imagery, identity assets and mockups that used to need a $200,000 production budget arrive the same afternoon.
Questions & Answers
Free, no strings
Tell us what you sell, whether you need the thinking, the look, or both, and where the brand is today. You get back a scope and a price within 24 hours.
Make contact
Four fields, no sales call unless you ask for one. A human replies within 24 hours.
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