Lay Your Marketing Foundation With This Step-by-Step Brand Build Guide
June 3, 2025
Summer’s here, and you know what that means – it’s time for backyard projects! I can smell the sawdust already. What’s on your list? Are you putting up a new deck, fixing that leaning fence, or finally building the shed you’ve talked about since last July? All worthy goals. The JamboJon team is here on site to help with one of the most important summer projects on your plate: your brand build.
For an advanced entrepreneur or small business owner, building a brand works a lot like your backyard construction project. You can’t just slap together a couple of boards and hope it stands through a thunderstorm. You need blueprints. A pocket full of nails and screws. Some power tools. And most of all, you need a plan.
Strap on that tool belt. Let’s walk through five areas of brand building that need to be indestructible.
1. Your Personal Story: What’s Your Why?
Every summer, you have a reason for starting a project. Maybe your kids need a place to play. Maybe the chipped kitchen floor tiles tear up your bare feet and the rug can’t hide them anymore. Whatever your purpose, that WHY keeps you going when the sun scorches your arms and the boards keep splitting.
Your brand identity needs a WHY, too. Every artisan knows the importance of a strong foundation. Nobody compliments this part of the project, but if it’s off, everything is off. Your clients aren’t clueless. They sense the difference between when you are passionately, 100% all-in, and when you’re chasing a profit.
We’ve said it before: Remember your WHY:
Start with your personal story. Why did you start this business in the first place? What problems can you solve? Who needs your skills? Don’t overthink it. Just jot down the moments that prompted that decision. Now ask yourself: What fires you up about your work? What kind of legacy do I want to leave behind? What do I want people to feel after working with me?
This isn’t meaningless fluff that you write on a post-it note. Your “why” shapes the foundation of all you do. It supports every business decision, secures your conviction and anchors every detail in place. With a strong foundation, everything from service to signage, aligns naturally.
JamboJon is a website development agency dedicated to supporting advanced entrepreneurs and growing businesses who deserve a web development team that helps them share their message, gain new customers, and uplift their community.
JAMBOJON'S WHY: Through our expertise in storytelling archetypes, mission-driven marketing strategies, and programming that inspires search engines to rank, we strive to build websites that increase our clients' impact, leads, and sales in the global digital environment.
2. Internal Culture: The Structure That Holds It All Together
Now that you have a foundation in place, you can focus on building the structure of your brand. And no, it’s not a fancy business model. This is your internal culture. To build it, YOU must first model it. Leaders set the tone. Be the kind of person you want on your staff. Show up for your team, and not just when you need a favor. Hire people who share your values and reward their positive contributions towards your purpose. Create an environment where people want to work.
Ask yourself: What is the feeling in the room when your employees gather around the break table? How does your crew treat each other when no one’s watching? Make work culture a topic of conversation. Encourage feedback and respond without defensiveness. Share your united purpose often and reinforce it. Culture isn’t what you say your company is about. It’s how you treat your team, how you make decisions, how you handle problems, and what you value behind the scenes. Because, like it or not, that culture shows in how you treat your customers on the front end.
You don’t build a great customer experience without first building a great employee experience.
3. Memorable Design: The Brand Guide that Works Like a Toolbelt
You’ve poured a solid foundation and hoisted a strong structure in place. Now, visual design ties it all together. When most people think of branding, they picture slick logos or merchandise with bold color swatches. But there’s so much more to your brand! You need a toolbelt bursting with resources that will show your business in the best light. You need a brand guide.
Start with a mood board. Your brand takes shape as you gather photos, fonts, colors, and images that feel like “you.” Who are you speaking to? Get super clear on your target audience. Choose hex colors and typography that match your message. Keep it simple and readable. We’d suggest 1-2 fonts and 3-4 colors max. Be sure to include logo variations, brand photography style, and layout rules.
One of our clients, Blake Family Medicine, designed their entire clinic around Norman Rockwell’s painting, “Before the Shot.”
In the iconic image, the doctor remains in the room with his patient. You see the scale, lab equipment, and all the necessary bottles within arms-length. This suggests a return to a more nostalgic time, when doctor-patient relationships were personal, not an assembly line of nurses stations. The simplified color scheme and typography echo the vision. Like Dr. Blake, you can pull together a cohesive idea.
Our client, dbURBAN, has mastered the art of brand guides.
As builders of modern luxury apartments, they capture the essence of every community well before the construction fences appear. Each community has a certain “feel” or “vibe.” This is determined based on the demographics of the neighborhood and its target audience. Recently, JamboJon assisted in writing and designing the brand guide for their newest property. With their permission, you are invited to explore their brand guide.
Remember: this guide isn’t for you. It’s for your web designer, social media specialist, interior designer, printer, marketing team, investors and anyone working alongside you. You wouldn’t hand a buddy a saw and say, “Eh, whatever you think.” Give your team the instructions they need to design something consistent and beautiful.
4. Brand Voice: The Tool That Drives It All Home.
Grab the megaphone. It’s time to chat. But not any voice will do. You need to create a brand voice that people hear in their heads when they think about your business. So, how do you talk to people? Are you friendly and casual, like a neighbor borrowing sugar? Are you sharp and polished like a craftsman showing off a finished table? Do you let a little snark or wit show?
Consider using brand archetypes to define your tone. These are 12 different “personalities” that connect with your clients on an emotional level. They make you relatable. If you are interested, JamboJon offers a free resource called the “Brand Archetype Quiz” that helps you nail your brand voice.
Whatever you pick, be consistent. Your customers hear it in the way your team answers the phone or in the small talk at the register. Let people recognize your personality in every word.
Find your voice and stick with it like your favorite brand of power tools.
5. Every Touchpoint Matters: The Details Make the Difference
Last but not least, let the real craftsmanship show: the intricate beveled edge of cherry wood trim. The faint scent of pine when you open the windows. The “cush” of the sofa. The fact that you can’t hear traffic when you’re inside. In building a brand, you need the little details. These touchpoints are every interaction your customer has with your brand. It all adds up.
Create a touchpoint checklist for yourself knowing that every customer-facing interaction reflects your brand.
- Language: If you haven’t already, determine your brand voice and terminology.
- Signage: Is your sign above the door consistent with your logo and tone? Does everything online match your physical space?
- Emails: Do your emails, newsletters or automated replies sound like you (or AI)?
- Typography and Colors: Are your fonts and colors consistent across every platform? Check your website, business cards, letterhead, social media posts, promotional materials, and product.
Marketing professional Seth Godin once said, “Every interaction, in any form, is branding.” Every touch point tells a story about who you are. From your thank-you emails, to your bathroom signage, to your social media replies, customers pay attention. They love when you send a Dove chocolate as an unexpected thank you with every order. They appreciate your daughter’s silly artwork next to your desk. The fact that you say, “You’re doing incredible things” at the end of every therapy session.
Every detail matters, so make them count.
Stand Back and Appreciate Your Work.
At the end of the day, grab a lemonade and take it out to the back porch to admire your handiwork. Building a brand takes time, thought, and effort. You don’t just visit a home improvement store, invest in a couple flashy pieces, and you suddenly enjoy a brand built exactly the way you want it.
You build a meaningful brand, one step at a time, little by little, every day, even when the pieces don’t seem to line up quite right. A well-built brand lasts longer than a summer project. You’re building something that people will remember.
Take a page from Chick-fil-A’s brand. This case study shows how they approach all five “brand build” concepts.
If you want to talk more about building your brand, give JamboJon a call. We’re always here for you.
