#WorkingTogether
What the brand questionnaire is for
Every branding project starts with a questionnaire. What it asks, why the answers set the visual direction rather than a designer's taste.
Every project starts with a questionnaire and no assumptions. Your answers decide the visual direction, not my favorite fonts.
That line is on my site because it's the part of the process people are most surprised by. They expect to be shown a style. Instead they're asked a lot of questions first.
Why start with questions instead of designs?
Because a logo that starts from a designer's taste ends up looking like that designer's other logos. A logo that starts from the business ends up looking like the business.
The questionnaire is where the raw material for the sketches comes from. A coffee cup for a networking group, a pelvis hidden in a butterfly for a birth school: details like those came out of what the owners wrote, not out of a list of popular icons. More on that in what a logo can hide.
What does a brand questionnaire ask?
The exact questions vary, but they cover ground like this:
| Topic | Why it matters for design |
|---|---|
| What the business does, in plain words | The idea behind the mark often hides in how the owner explains it |
| Who it's for | A brand for teenagers and one for CFOs shouldn't look alike |
| Where the brand will appear | Profile pictures, slides, print, signage: this decides the logo versions and file types |
| Languages and markets | Hebrew, Russian or English decides which typefaces work |
| Competitors and the category | Shows what everyone else looks like, so the brand can look different |
| Words to describe the feel | Warm or crisp, playful or serious, loud or quiet |
| What to avoid | Colors, symbols or clichés the owner is tired of seeing |
| Examples they like | Useful for the reasons given, not as something to copy |
Which answers are the most useful?
The specific ones. "Professional and approachable" describes nearly every business. What helps is detail only you'd know: the phrase clients repeat after a session, where the business started, the one image in your field you never want to see again.
"What I don't want" is often the answer that does the most work. A birth school that didn't want a mom-and-baby logo ended up with a butterfly that's also a pelvis. See Equilibrio. Ruling out the obvious symbol is what led to that mark.
How should I answer it?
- Write the way you'd talk. Nobody is grading the grammar.
- Give examples. "Clients often tell me they feel lighter after one call" beats "we help people."
- Say what you don't know. Half an answer is still useful, and gaps get talked through.
- Include what bugs you. Colors you dislike, fonts that feel wrong, the competitor whose look you never want to be mistaken for.
- Explain why you like the examples you send. "This one feels calm" tells me more than the logo itself.
What happens after the questionnaire?
The answers turn into visual direction and sketches. Pages of rough marks, most of them wrong, until a few ideas hold up small and large. In the Brand Kit, three of those become logo concepts, and the one you choose is refined over revision rounds. After that come the colors, type, guide and files. Most Brand Kit projects take two to four weeks from discovery to final delivery, depending on how quickly the direction comes together.
The sketch step has its own post: why every logo starts as a sketch.
Questions people also ask
How long does a brand questionnaire take to fill in?
It depends on the business. Many people fill it in across a couple of sittings, which is fine, since the answers shape every decision that follows.
What if I don't know the answer to a question?
Say so, or write what you do know. A half answer is still useful, and gaps can be talked through on a call.
Should I send examples of logos I like?
Yes, with a line on what you like about each. The reason matters more than the example, since the goal isn't to copy it.
Is the questionnaire the same as brand strategy?
No. It's a brief for design decisions. It helps a designer understand the business well enough to make visual choices that fit it.
