June 2021: My new brand + tips for an affordable rebrand 🌈

Happy June and Pride, friend!

This has been a big month for me and my little family. After one full year on the road, we decided to end our RV adventure. It was a wild ride filled with rewarding and unforgettable experiences. By next month's edition of The Good Stuff, I will be able to update you on what’s next for us!

Without further ado, I’m thrilled to share my new brand identity with you. Here’s my new logo in all her glory:

And here's my refreshed website! I’m beaming. I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity to work with my dear friend, talented brand strategist Brianna DeMoll, who brought this new visual identity to life. 

Here’s why I chose this new direction: 

• 🌈 The Marketer on a Mission name, look and feel are all reflective of who I am, what it’s like to work with me, and the clients I choose to work with. The logo captures positivity, forward momentum, and upward growth. This brand is how I want my clients to feel when they think about their own marketing programs: joyful, confident, and excited.

• 🌈 The rainbow mark has multiple layers of meaning, as all of the best logos do. First, it represents my approach to marketing: simple and integrated, with each channel working in synchronicity toward one clear mission. Second, it represents why I do this work: Every project contributes to a happier, more inclusive world. Lastly, it represents the people I work with; people who pass up more sleep, a chiller lifestyle, and higher pay because they're determined to make the world a better place.

• 🌈 The Marketer on a Mission brand is versatile and can evolve with my business. My name is locked into the logo in some cases, but the “marketer on a mission” isn’t just me. It's you! It’s anyone who works to spread something good and commits to lifelong learning in the name of impact.

Do you see yourself in this new brand? If I sold or gifted some Marketer on a Mission swag, would you rock it with pride? Let me know! :)

Based on my own rebrand and experience guiding others through this process, here are my top 5 tips for a cost-effective and successful brand refresh:

1. Hire an individual designer or a small agency. I have quite a few partners to recommend if you’re interested! In my experience, working with a single designer or a small agency will be cheaper, faster, more nimble, and can actually yield a better result.

2. Get all necessary stakeholders’ approval before starting. This includes setting clear expectations so each person knows how involved they will (or won’t) be in the process, and what a new brand means for their work.

3. Remember who your brand is for. Your brand exists for the people who give you money, and the people you help with that money. These are the heroes of your brand story. It's always extremely enlightening to run a focus group or handful of interviews with customers/clients/donors to find out what they like best and why, because you have your own preferences and biases. Conducting research to get user feedback on Round 1 logo designs, ideas for a name change, etc. is an invaluable tool that can overrule subjective opinions and keep your rebrand on track.

4. Don’t invite too many cooks into the kitchen. Asking your full team or board of directors to provide feedback during a rebrand is a death wish—both for the outcome and your budget. It's tempting to pull everyone in because you value their opinions, and they will want to be involved, but don’t give in. Every extra round of revisions will muddy the designer's vision and cost you $$. The most important people to include in your Rebrand Inner Circle are the people who spend time interacting with your brand heroes!

5. Request a new brand that can grow with you. You probably wonder every day how your business or organization will change over time. A new program area, a new product, a new partnership… your branding should serve what you do now and what you’ll be doing in 2024. We don't know exactly what the latter looks like, so a great designer will develop a brand identity with growth in mind. For example, I shared with Brianna that when I get married next summer, I may change my last name. I haven’t decided yet. She made sure to lock my name into my logo in such a way that if I do change my last name, it can easily be updated without disrupting the core design. 

Don't forget that your name, tagline, and messaging are all important pieces of your brand, too!

I myself am not a skilled enough designer to lead a rebrand, but I often team up with designers to develop new names, taglines, and brand messaging for clients—ensuring the pieces work seamlessly together. 

Other times, I refer nonprofits and businesses directly to designers/agencies I trust. Feel free to reach out if you’re considering embarking on a rebrand and we can either explore working together or I can play matchmaker.

On a separate note, here's where I donated this month to support the LGBTQ+ community:

In honor of Pride, I donated 1% of my June income to GLSEN. There was so much bullying around gender and sexuality when I was in school, I can only imagine how much harder it is for today's students in a digital world. What I liked best about GLSEN's donation experience: The thank-you email I received was a formal letter from their ED (not just some ugly receipt!) explaining the current state of the organization and welcoming me to the family.

Hope your Q2 ends on a high note!