The design and branding industry has a language barrier. Here’s a plain English translation of the terms that get used most, and what they actually mean in practice.
We need to talk about agency speak.
The brand and design industry has developed a vocabulary that manages to make straightforward things sound either very complicated or very vague. This is either a genuine communication barrier or a deliberate mystification strategy, depending on who you talk to.
Either way, it’s worth being clear. Here’s what some of the most commonly used terms actually mean.
Brand audit
An honest look at what’s working, what isn’t, and what you’ve probably been quietly avoiding. Usually involves looking at every place the brand shows up and assessing whether it’s doing its job.
Visual identity
Everything your logo wishes it could be, and the system that makes it consistent everywhere it shows up. Logo, colours, typography, visual language, guidelines. The full set.
Discovery session
A conversation. Not a pitch, not a test, not an opportunity for us to show you how much we know. A genuinely useful conversation about where you are and what clarity might look like.
Brand guidelines
The document that means everyone who touches your brand makes the same decisions you would. Also: the thing most agencies hand over and most clients never open. We build ours to actually be used.
Positioning
What makes your business the right choice for the right people. And why that needs to be clear before anything else gets built. Less about what you do, more about why it matters to the people you’re for.
Brand equity
The trust your brand has built up over time. Slow to grow, quick to lose, and worth protecting. The reason consistency matters.
Touchpoints
Every place your brand shows up. Your website, your business card, your email signature, the way your proposal looks, the way you show up on social media. All of it is saying something.
Deliverables
The actual things we make together. Not a mystery until the end.
Rollout
Getting the work into the world properly. Not just handing over a folder and wishing you luck.
If any of this made you realise you’re not entirely sure what your current creative partner is actually doing, that’s probably worth a conversation.
If this resonates, we’d love to have a conversation.
No jargon. No pressure. hello@sparklabs.co.uk