"Starbucks reported a grand total of $597.3 million on branding and advertising and generated $33B in revenue"

What does a brand identity cost in Australia?

The answer isn't as simple as you might think. But I'm here to break it down for you. Let's use Starbucks as an example. Starbucks reported a grand total of $597.3 million on branding and advertising and generated $33B in revenue, and lets be real it isnt because their coffee is good, its terrible but what they do have is a memorable brand and advertising direction. The Starbucks logo is one of the most memorable and that translates directly to increased revenue.

A brand identity can cost a business in the range of $1500 all the way up to $80,000! (In Aus) And I know after reading that you've just choked on your cup of tea, and rightly so but let me shed some light on how you land at those figures. 

What drives the price isn't the amount of hours but more so the scope of the job. The number of deliverables, whether there's packaging involved, signage, how many touch points you have (labels, swingtags, menus, pamphlets, instruction manuals, information sheets, websites and how many pages, digital menus and the list goes on) whether there's an existing brand to merge/unpick, this is why a single number is almost impossible to land on.

So how do I pick a brand designer then? 

There's a number of factors that may influence your choice, most of the time it comes down to budget and how much experience you want. 

On the low end of the spectrum the freelancer market place (Fivver, Upwork) usually start you off at around $400 to $1,800  but this usually only gets you a logo and maybe the colour palette to use. No print ready files, how to use them, business cards, signage etc.

$3,000 to $12,000 for boutique/independent studios and usually gives you everything you'll need to survive in the long term. 

From there you start stepping into Agency territory and that can run into the $50,000 + region and is usually exclusive to big corp businesses. 

Why this matters.

You've spent the money on getting the product right, the risk is nobody knows that you exist and the ones that do can’t tell it’s premium because your brand isn’t saying so. A $500 logo from a freelancer on the other side of the world is cheap, yes, but in the end is just a file and often times the wrong one. 

A Brand is the system. A system that carries over to the printer, the sign writer, the social media manager, the invoicing system, the vehicle wrap etc.

Most brand projects start with a logo, someone describes their business in a twenty minute call, the designer goes away and the concepts come back a week later. 

The problem is what nobody should have asked in that call. Who is this actually for? What's the buyer comparing you against? Where does the brand need to show up and under what constraints? Can the printer you're using handle foils? And who's producing the labels?

All these questions change the design. Finding the answers after the logo has been signed off and the shop fit out is complete is how a brand ends up with eleven different versions of itself and a rebrand booked for the following year. The diagnosis steps in my BUILD system is designed to avoid that rework and repayment later. On a small project it may take a week, on a rebrand for a business with 15 years behind them, longer. Either way is the cheapest part of the project and it determines whether the rest of it will hold. 

A few questions to ask your designer.

You should probably be asking your designer a few questions before getting started on your project as well. Here's a few to help you out; 

What's included? Make sure that the scope they're proposing actually fits your needs and make sure it's documented.

Who owns the files? This should always be “you do, after final payment has been made” and if it isn't it's probably something you want to steer clear of.

How many revisions are included? This is usually a set number but its handy to clarify if this is project wide or per scoped item. You probably want to opt for the “per item” option otherwise you may get a nasty surprise on your invoice at the end. 

What happens after handoff? This will vary based on your project but usually there is a hand off document included that explains what to do with the files. Handy hint though, ask them for a call at the end to explain it. Make sure that the files they've given are clear and the document says everything it should, if they mention stuff that's not in your hand off document you might come unstuck later when you aren't able to contact them.

Super Retro works on a fixed price system across the three tiers starting at $2800. There's no hourly billing, no scope surprises and you know exactly what you're getting. There's a full breakdown on the Pricing page. If you're not sure which tier fits, I have a handy quiz to help or I'm always up for a chat.