Engage branding agency: Top 10

Introduction

To be successful with your business, it is important that you build a strong brand. A brand with clear values that is both recognizable and distinctive. Building a strong brand is a complex process that is actually never finished. If you do not have the necessary knowledge or lack the time, it is advisable to hire a branding agency.

What is a branding agency?

A branding agency is a specialized agency that focuses on developing, maintaining and strengthening brands for companies. Therefore, the goal of a branding agency is to help companies create a unique, consistent and recognizable brand identity that sets companies apart from the competition and connects with the target audience. Branding agencies have plenty of knowledge, expertise and creativity in the areas of brand research, brand strategy, brand identity, brand experience, offline and online campaigns and design.

Read here 10 reasons why branding is so important.

Why hire a branding agency?

Hiring a branding agency can be wise if you don't have the time and/or expertise to develop your brand yourself. Branding agencies offer different services, generally you can expect the following:

• Brand Strategy: Developing a brand strategy that aligns with corporate goals and vision, and forms the basis for all brand communication and marketing efforts.
• Brand identity: The creation of a visual identity/house style, including logos, typography, color palettes and other graphic elements that fit well with what the brand wants to convey.
• Packaging and product design: Designing packaging and products that reflect the brand and match consumer expectations.
• Brand communication: Developing communication strategies and campaigns that tell the brand story and increase brand awareness.
• Digital brand experience: designing and developing digital experiences, such as websites, social media and mobile apps, that reinforce brand identity and promote customer interaction.
• Internal Brand Experience: Helping companies engage and motivate their employees to embrace and live out brand values.
• Brand Monitoring and Evaluation: Tracking and analyzing brand performance, which can be used to measure the effectiveness of branding efforts. This data can then be used to make new strategic choices.

How do you select a branding agency?

There are plenty of branding agencies in the Netherlands. How do you know which agency suits you and how do you select a branding agency? Here are some tips:

• Look for brands you admire and ask which branding agency they work with.
• Ask around in your own network: which branding agency are fellow entrepreneurs satisfied with?
• Look at the locations of branding agencies: do you care if they are in your area?
• Check out different websites of branding agencies: which ones appeal to you? What companies have they worked for? Have they won any awards? What kind of people work there? What specializations do they have? Does their way of communicating match what you personally like? What are their rates?
• Make a selection of three agencies. You can ask them to do a pitch and create a proposal based on a branding issue. While presenting the proposals, get to know the people behind the agency, see how they work and how creative their proposals are.

How does a branding agency work?

Have you found your ideal branding agency? Then you can count on following these four steps in shaping and building your brand:

Step 1: Research your company and brand

Together with a team of creative brand strategists, you'll begin an examination of your brand. How did your company come to be? What setbacks and milestones have you encountered? What is the "why" of your brand: why does it exist and what does it want to mean to your customers? What values are typical of your brand? Who are your target groups and competitors? How do you differentiate yourself from similar companies? This research usually consists of interviews with you and your employees, and possibly some customers. This research lays the foundation for a strong brand positioning and brand identity: the character of your brand.

Step 2: Develop brand strategy

Based on the results of the research, the branding agency works out your brand identity and brand strategy. What is your desired brand image? What are the key values that should stay with your target audience? How should the target audience perceive your brand? Your branding agency will then write your brand story and develop your branding strategy. Your branding strategy makes clear what goals you want to achieve and how you want to do that.

Step 3: Creative translation and execution of your branding strategy

Your brand identity is translated into a visual identity, complete with brand name, logo, corporate identity, imagery and tone of voice. On this basis, concrete products can be developed and you will implement your branding strategy. Your branding agency can develop all possible means: from websites to online ads, from billboards to social media. Anything that fits into the strategy to grow your brand. By the way, these efforts are not only aimed at external audiences. Actions must also be determined internally, to ensure that your employees live your brand story and act according to your brand values. Because you only build a strong brand if you do what you promise in every way.

Step 4: Evaluate, adjust and continue to develop

Building a strong brand is never done. That's why it's important to keep working closely with your branding agency. Brand strategists are always measuring how your brand is doing, how your communication tools are scoring and how the target audience is experiencing your brand. It is a matter of constantly researching, measuring, adjusting and adapting. This is necessary, because once you have created a good image for your brand, you naturally want it to stay that way.

Top 10 branding agencies

There are a huge number of branding agencies to choose from as an entrepreneur. We have listed the top 10 branding agencies:

1. Pentagram
   • Locations: New York, London, Berlin, Austin, San Francisco
   • Top clients: Mastercard, Tiffany & Co., Windows, Slack, Harley-Davidson
   • Pentagram is the world's largest independent design firm and is known for its multidisciplinary approach.
2. Landor
   • Locations: 26 offices worldwide, including New York, London, Paris, Dubai and Sydney
   • Top clients: Apple, Procter & Gamble, FedEx, PepsiCo, BP
   • Founded by Walter Landor, Landor has a history of more than 75 years of creating iconic brands.
3. Wolff Olins
   • Locations: London, New York, San Francisco
   • Top clients: Google, Uber, Spotify, London 2012 Olympics, TATE
   • Wolff Olins is known for its bold and innovative approach to brand development.
4. Interbrand
   • Locations: 21 offices worldwide, including New York, London, Milan, Sydney and Tokyo
   • Top clients: Samsung, Microsoft, Coca-Cola, Disney, BMW
   • Interbrand annually publishes the "Best Global Brands" rankings, a leading survey of the most valuable brands worldwide.
5. Siegel+Gale
   • Locations: New York, Los Angeles, London, Shanghai, Dubai
   • Top clients: CVS Health, Motorola, Hewlett Packard, 3M, American Express
   • Siegel+Gale specializes in simplicity and clarity, helping clients address complex branding challenges.
6. IDEO
   • Locations: Cambridge, Chicago, London, Munich, New York, Palo Alto, San Francisco, Shanghai, Tokyo
   • Top clients: Apple, Ford, Coca-Cola, Bank of America, Sesame Workshop
   • IDEO is a global design and innovation firm known for its human-centered design approach.
7. MetaDesign
   • Locations: Berlin, Geneva, San Francisco, Zurich
   • Top clients: Apple, Lufthansa, Volkswagen, Samsung, Siemens
   • MetaDesign is an international design firm specializing in brand strategy, identity design and digital experiences.

8. FutureBrand
   • Locations: 16 offices worldwide, including New York, London, Paris, Milan and Shanghai
   • Top clients: Nespresso, Bentley, Nestlé, Microsoft, Airbus
   • FutureBrand is part of the IPG Group and focuses on creating brands that have a positive impact on people, businesses and society.
9. Saffron Brand Consultants
   • Locations: London, Madrid, Vienna, Istanbul, Mumbai, Lima, Bogotá, Miami
   • Top clients: Coca-Cola, Goldman Sachs, Vueling, HSBC, A1 Telekom Austria
   • Founded by former Wolff Olins director Wally Olins and former McKinsey & Co partner Jacob Benbunan, Saffron is known for combining strategy, design and culture in their approach to brand development.
10. Prophet
    • Locations: New York, San Francisco, Richmond, Atlanta, London, Berlin, Zurich, Hong Kong, Shanghai
    • Top clients: Samsung, Siemens, UBS, T-Mobile, GE
    • Prophet is a global consulting firm focused on digital transformation, growth strategy and brand development, working closely with clients to help them grow and compete in the digital world.

Looking for something closer to home? We are an Eindhoven-based branding agency that will help you create a distinctive positioning and corporate identity.