Our Complete Design Process from Questionnaire to Launch

You know what question I get asked more than almost anything else? “What is it actually like to work with you?” And honestly? I LOVE that question. Because it tells me the person asking is serious. They’ve looked at my work, they like what they see, and now they want to know if the process is going to feel good. That’s exactly the right thing to wonder about before handing your brand over to someone.

So today I’m pulling back the curtain completely. This is our actual process, from the moment you fill out an inquiry form to the moment we pop the champagne on launch day. No vague “we take a strategic approach to your brand” language. Just the real thing, week by week, so you know exactly what to expect.

Something I Really Want You to Know First

Okay sweet friend, before we get into the phases — I want to say this first: a beautiful brand isn’t just about the visuals. It’s about how it feels to get there. I’ve heard from so many clients who worked with other designers before finding me, and the story is almost always the same — the work looked fine but the process was a mess. Spotty communication, no idea what was happening next, and by the end they were just exhausted instead of excited.

That is not what we do here. My team — Jade on design and Lisa on copy — and I have spent years refining a process that feels as good as the final product looks. You will always know where we are, what’s coming next, and what we need from you. No surprises. No anxiety. Just a really great creative experience. Okay, let’s get into it!

Phase 1: Discovery and Strategy (Week 1)

It all starts with your Brand Questionnaire. This is not a generic form asking for your favorite colors (I mean, we do ask that, but that’s not the point). This questionnaire goes DEEP. Your ideal client’s personality and lifestyle. The feeling you want someone to have when they land on your website. Your competitors and how you want to stand out from them. The adjectives that should describe your brand and the ones that should never be associated with it.

I read every single response carefully before our kickoff call. Like, really read it. I’m looking for patterns, for the things you say with the most energy, for the places where your words paint a picture I can actually design toward. By the time we get on the phone together, I already feel like I know you a little bit.

Then there’s the Pinterest board. Oh, the Pinterest board! This is one of my favorite parts because it’s where everything becomes visual. I’ll ask you to pull images that feel like your brand — not just logos or websites, but textures, interiors, fashion, landscapes, anything that evokes the emotion you want your brand to carry. And then I study it. I’m looking for the patterns: the colors that keep appearing, the level of ornamentation, the overall mood. It tells me so much.

The kickoff call ties it all together. This is usually about an hour, and it’s where we talk through your questionnaire responses, dive into your Pinterest board together, ask each other all the questions, and make sure we’re completely aligned before I put pen to paper (or stylus to tablet). By the end, you should feel heard and excited. If you don’t feel those things, we keep talking until you do.

Phase 2: Concept Development (Weeks 2-3)

This is where the magic happens, and also where I go a little quiet on your end because I’m deep in creation mode. Jade and I are building out your brand concepts — usually two to three distinct directions, each fully developed with a mood board, color palette, typography system, and primary logo concept.

Here’s something I want you to know about how we approach this: we are not throwing things at the wall. Every concept is rooted in the strategy from Phase 1. If your questionnaire told me you want to attract luxury clients who value editorial aesthetics and hate anything that feels trendy or overdone, that is informing every single design decision I’m making. The color palette, the typeface choices, the mark style — all of it is intentional and grounded in WHO you are and WHO you’re trying to reach.

I still remember the concept presentation for one of my clients, Rebecca — a luxury wedding photographer. I had been holding my breath a little because the direction I landed on was bolder than what she initially said she wanted. But it was so RIGHT for her positioning and her ideal client. When she saw it, she messaged me “I’m actually crying. This is everything.” Those are the moments I will never get tired of. (You can see her brand over in my portfolio!)

Phase 3: Review and Refinement (Weeks 4-5)

Concept presentation day is genuinely one of my favorite days of every project. We get on a call together, I walk you through every concept and the thinking behind it, and then we talk through your reactions. What resonates? What feels off? Is there something from concept A you want to combine with something from concept B?

After presentation, you have time to sit with everything and give me written feedback. Then we go into revisions. Most projects include two full rounds of revisions, and I genuinely want you to use them. This is your brand. It needs to feel completely right — not just pretty, but TRUE to who you are. If something isn’t sitting right, I want to know.

By the end of Phase 3, we have an approved brand identity you love. That is my goal every single time. Not “good enough.” Not “I can live with it.” LOVE.

Phase 4: Brand Guidelines and Applications (Weeks 6-7)

Once the core brand is approved, the real fun begins. Now we build out all the pieces that make a brand actually functional in the world: alternate logos, submarks, patterns, textures, brand applications like business cards and email signatures and social media templates. And the brand guidelines document, which is honestly one of my favorite deliverables because it’s like a complete rulebook for your brand — how to use every element correctly so your brand looks consistent everywhere it shows up.

Lisa comes in here too if you’re in our Fusion package, developing copy frameworks that sound like you and speak directly to your ideal client. Having your copy and your visuals developed by the same team, informed by the same strategy, makes everything lock together in a way that is really powerful.

Phase 5: Delivery and Launch (Week 8)

Launch week! I love launch week so much. You receive your complete file package — every logo file in every format you’ll ever need, brand guidelines PDF, all the application files, organized in a folder system that actually makes sense. We do a handoff call to walk through everything so you leave knowing exactly what you have and how to use it.

And then we celebrate! Seriously. We pop the metaphorical champagne. Because you just invested in your business in a meaningful way and you should feel proud of that. I am always SO proud of what we create together.

If your package includes a Showit website (which our Fusion and Fusion Plus packages do — grab the pricing guide here to see everything that’s included!), the website phase runs alongside the brand refinement and launches together, so your entire presence debuts as one cohesive, beautiful thing. It is genuinely my favorite thing to watch happen.

What’s Expected from You Throughout

I want to be transparent about this because it matters: your investment in this process isn’t just financial. It’s also time and attention. You’ll need to complete your questionnaire thoughtfully (plan for an hour or so, and do it when you’re not distracted!), show up for your calls, respond to revision feedback within the turnaround windows we set together, and gather your brand photography and content when we need it.

None of this is hard. But it does require you to be a present partner in the process. The clients who get the most out of working with us are the ones who show up engaged and excited and trust the process even when it’s a little uncomfortable. Those are also the clients who send me the crying happy tears messages. Not a coincidence!

Things People Ask Me All the Time

How long does the whole thing take? The branding process alone is typically 6-8 weeks. With a website added, plan for 10-14 weeks. I know that feels long, but good work takes time, and I promise the result is worth every week of it.

What if I don’t like any of the concepts? In nearly a decade of doing this, it has never happened with a client who completed the questionnaire fully and communicated openly on the kickoff call. But if something isn’t right, we talk it out and figure out why. I am never going to hand you something and say “take it or leave it.” That’s not how this works.

Can I see more examples of the work? Yes! That is literally what my portfolio is for. Go look at real projects, real clients, real results. And if you love what you see, come say hi on the contact page.

Okay, Here’s the Heart of It

Hey friend — working with a brand designer should feel like a real collaboration, not a transaction. It should feel exciting and clear and like someone truly gets you and your business. That’s what I work so hard to deliver every single time. And honestly? It is the greatest honor to be the person who gets to build the brand you’ve been dreaming about. I don’t take that lightly for a single second.

If this sounds like exactly what you’ve been looking for — I’d love to hear from you. Come hang out on the blog for more behind-the-scenes stuff, or head over to the contact page and let’s start the conversation. Your brand is waiting, and I cannot wait to build it with you.

Cheering you on,
Sarah