A common (and expensive) mistake: building the website first, then trying to figure out branding afterward. It almost always means redoing design work once the brand is actually defined.
Brand decisions drive design decisions
Your colour palette, typography, tone of voice, and logo all inform layout, imagery choices, and even site structure. Without them settled, a designer is guessing — and guesses need to be redone.
It's cheaper to fix on paper than in code
Changing a brand direction during a strategy phase costs a conversation. Changing it after a website is built means re-theming pages, re-exporting assets, and re-testing — real time and real money.
A logo is not a brand. A brand is what people feel before they read a word of your copy.
Where to start
At minimum, settle your core message, target audience, and visual identity basics — logo, colours, fonts — before a single wireframe gets drawn. The website should express the brand, not invent it under deadline pressure.
