Naming and brand identity design for start-ups

The Identity Bureau helps businesses achieve true distinction with expertly crafted brand names and visual identities.

As a modern business owner, you understand that well executed and distinctive branding is not optional.

You can't afford to be ignored.  

My clients work with me because they believe in the same principles that guide my agency, a distinctive brand is not an ‘optional extra’ or a ‘nice to have’.

It’s an imperative asset in a world where competition is often global and consumers have an abundance of choice.
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If you don’t proactively influence how you want your brand to be perceived, your competition will gladly do that for you...

My brand identity design and brand naming services complement each other.

My intention is to positively influence the perception of your brand in the minds of your customers.

Underpinned by strategy and delivered with guidance, I create names and visual identities that will make you fall in love with your brand, right before your customers do the same.

Book a Discovery Call...

Selected work

See all projects

So You Don't Have To

Developing a distinctive brand identity for this Online Business Management provider, offering a clear point of difference in a market dominated by overly familiar, underdeveloped brands.

Mayfest Worldwide

Creating a distinctive, people-focused brand identity for Mayfest Worldwide that reinforces their expertise and 'relationship-first' approach to workforce solutions.

Auto Classica

A re-brand for one of the UK's fastest growing, high-end car storage companies.

Canine Genetics Centre

Brand identity design for the Canine Genetics Centre at the University of Cambridge.

Menticulture Magazine

Naming, branding and editorial design for a new arts and culture magazine launching in Chelmsford, Essex.

Justin Walton

Brand strategy, messaging and identity design for Justin Walton, an executive and financial coach based in Essex and London.

The Transformative Identity Programme

For start-ups and growing businesses. Choose one, two or three services depending on your business's needs.

1

Brand Foundations Launchpad

From £1,500

Your Brand’s Strategic Starting Point: Workshop, messaging, playbook and moodboards.

Before investing in brand identity design, you need clarity on who you are, how you communicate, and how your brand should be perceived. The Brand Launchpad provides a structured foundation to define your positioning and messaging, plus inspiration for a visual direction—so when it's time for design, you're building on solid ground.
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First, a brand strategy workshop translates complex brand strategy into actionable insights. It’s followed up by professionally written brand messaging and a comprehensive Brand Activation Playbook—your step-by-step guide to activating your brand effectively.
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What’s Included:
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1. Brand Strategy Workshop (2 to 3 hours) - In-person or remote

Internal Brand: Understanding the mission, vision, and values that underpin your brand.
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‍Brand Positioning: How do you want your brand to be understood by your audience?
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‍Competitor & Audience Analysis: Understanding your space and how to stand out.
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‍Distinction and Differentiation. Exploring ways to be meaningfully different, and leverage distinction in your brand assets.  
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‍Brand Personality & Tone of Voice: How your brand shows up, connects and communicates with the people that matter.

2. Brand Messaging Writing: A done-for-you deliverable

Brand Values: The principles that underpin your business decisions and guide your culture.
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Mission Statement: What your business strives to achieve on a day-to-day basis.
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Vision Statement: Your long-term aspirations and the impact you aim to make.
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Strapline Development: A memorable and concise expression of your brand essence.
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Tonal Values: Guidelines for consistent brand communication, ensuring every touchpoint feels authentic and on-brand.

3. Brand Activation Playbook: Your digital ebook that brings everything together

Summary of your workshop insights (Your competitor & client personas, brand positioning and brand personality).
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Your complete brand messaging (As per part 2, your written statements; Brand Values, Mission Statement, Vision Statement, Strapline and Tonal Values).
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Actionable brand activation guidance, including:
‍Website essentials & homepage structure.
Content strategy: thought leadership, blogging & social media planning.
Brand visibility: consistency, salience & engagement tactics.
Email marketing & Google Business Profile setup.
Recommended tools for marketing, automation, and productivity.

4. Visual moodboards: Inspiration for your future brand identity

We'll provide inspiration on what your future brand could look like when you turn your strategy into a tangible visual direction.

A curated board of colour palettes, logo designs, fonts and photography that draw inspiration from your brand workshop and brand messaging, to ensure your future identity will be rooted in intentional choices rather than fleeting trends or personal preferences.

2

Brand Naming

From £1,750

Brand names that are memorable, pique interest, and above all, sound great...

Together we’ll craft a brand name that is both irresistible and unforgettable to your audience. My brand naming service includes a naming workshop and brief creation, a provision of ten shortlisted names and preliminary legal checks, allowing you to make informed decisions on your chosen names.

Deliverables:
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Brand naming workshop and brief creation (approx 90 mins in person or online).
Brand name ideation by The Identity Bureau.
Supply of short-listed brand names (up to 10).
Domain name availability guidance on short-listed names.
Preliminary legal checks on short-listed names by our legal partner BrandProtect.
Checked brand names presented with ‘red, amber, green’ traffic light advice.

3

Brand Identity Design

From £3,500

Your strategy made visible through a unique and distinctive brand identity design.

The culmination of your strategic work; a brand identity designed specifically to create an emotional connection with your intended audience. As qualified Graphic Designers, any brand design undertaken by The Identity Bureau is entirely bespoke and done from scratch, based on the findings and research from the Brand Strategy Workshop.

Deliverables:
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Visual Identity Development A carefully researched and designed brand identity ensures your business resonates with your audience. Design and testing underpins every element—from logos to color palettes—building trust, recognition, and credibility. If applicable your brand identity design will follow on from the brand naming undertaken in stage two.

Identity Design Presentation An online presentation of your brand identity concepts for your consideration. You will be shown your brand concepts in a 'real world' context so you can see how your brand may look in practice. The presentation is an opportunity for feedback and refinement before your visual identity is finalised.
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Visual Identity Asset Suite
Logo files supplied in digital formats.
Colour palettes.
Typographic recommendations.
Additional illustrations and patterns.
Advice on photographic tone-of-voice.
3 x social media page graphics.
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Comprehensive brand guidlelines
A digital PDF of brand guidelines ensures your brand identity is applied correctly across all touchpoints. Designed for internal marketers, designers, printers, and web developers, it helps maintain a unified and consistent brand presence wherever your audience encounters your brand.

Templates
Optional branded Canva templates so you and your team can easily create on-brand visuals in-house (priced seperately).

A 50% commencement fee is required on all services.
Payment terms available on services combinations over the value of £5,000.
Typical timeframes three to twelve weeks depending on project scope.

Who I work with

Start-ups

You're starting a new business and looking for naming and branding to stake your position in the marketplace.

You want to launch your brand strategically into the hearts and minds of those who need to see it.

Growing businesses

You've been in business for one to three years, growing a team and earning a great reputation.

The time is right to invest in a brand identity that truly reflects the business you have become in order to propel your business forward.

Rebranding businesses

You've been in business for several years and your old branding no longer reflects the business you run. It is tired, inconsistent and does not stand up to the competition.

You recognise the need for change.

Marc De'ath

Chelmsford City Council

“For the past seven years I've heard Chelmsford's creative community call for stronger marketing support of its arts and culture scene.  Menticulture Magazine answers that call, cutting through the digital noise with beautiful print and authentic editorial that champions grassroots creativity.”.

Alex Pietrasiuk

Kinline CPAs

"By the end of the project, we had an accounting firm brand that we could not be more proud of… Ben could not have been easier to work with".

Nick Pauley

Auto Classica

"The new brand identity design has been exceptionally well-received... Ben's researched-focussed approach got to the root of the issues... delivering what the business truly needed, not just what we thought we wanted".

Meet your brand partner...

All flesh, blood and creative brains...

Hello I’m Ben. a trained graphic designer and brand strategist. I enjoy writing and naming, and these are the reasons I started The Identity Bureau.

I believe that for brands to truly make a connection with the people they are trying to serve, they need to be created by people.

Brand identities are created through collaboration and conversation, they require strategy, process and understanding. That's why they cost money and take time. That's why they can't be picked off a shelf, or whipped up in minutes.
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If your brand has a story to tell and an impression to make, then you're in the right place...

When you work with me I’ll steer you through a strategic process to determine how you want your company to be perceived and then, together, we’ll take the steps to create that perception.

"How lucky were we to find Ben? The reaction to our rebrand was extraordinary...  We have had so much positive feedback"

Michelle Reilly - 6CATS International

I'm here for the perceptions shifters, the outside-thinkers, and the firms that don't want to look like the other firms...

And you're not here for a cheap fix. You're aware of the stakes and true cost of brand mediocracy.
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So, welcome then to The Identity Bureau, a small naming and branding agency for start-ups and businesses that want to be seen among the unremarkable.

Are you ready for your brand to be noticed, admired and remembered? Make yourself known at The Identity Bureau...

Book a Discovery Call...

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