WE Blueprint how to build your own brand

We’ve curated a map that reveals the straightest path to holistically branding and marketing your business. Just follow the five stages in order, from top to bottom. BYOB.

Save yourself time, money, and heartache by following the Build Your Own Brand journey. Maison spent 15 years on this adventure, so you don’t have to.

the build your own brand formula

Explore these steps on your own, or hire Maison to guide you on the trek of a lifetime.

Cultivate cult-like loyalty with our secret sauce, our love potion for clients. BYOB.

BRANDING OBJECTIVES

Stages I & II:

Figure out your storytelling elements first, or you’ll have to back track – which wastes time, money, and headspace.

MARKETING TASKS

Stages III – V:

Design tangible items first, online material second (because platforms don’t last forever), and experiential once your foundation is ready.

I

Visual Language

market research
mood boards
dynamic logo design
icon development
background or pattern pairing
colour palette
fonts

II

Multimedia Narrative

brand script
graphic repository
photo library
cinematography
product renderings
merchandise design

III

Print Identity

brand guidelines
stationery
business cards
pitch decks
catalogues
posters
POS material
signage
packaging design

IV

Digital Presence

social media strategy
content creation
visual planning
flat website design
email templates
SMS marketing
ad design

V

Brand Experiences

trade show booth design and mockups

indoor + outdoor signage

decal design

vinyl wrap design

carts & stands

brand activation popup

event planning

client care, yearly campaigns + automation

unexpected mail

education campaigns

design your brand's visual language

You have 100 milliseconds to make a first impression. It should be love at first sight.

Logo design is not branding. A brand is the feeling you get when you look at a thing, and that starts with strategy and research.

A visual language consists of logos that scale to all the potential ways and places it can live in real life, icon sets that illustrate your services and values (because people process images 60,000 times faster than text), patterns for tasteful brand recognition, colour palettes with integrated psychological implications, and fonts that lend to your brand identity and personality.

The Oracle: Divining Your Brand Personality

Brand Character Arc: The Debonair

Brand Identity Design: Car Concierge Canada

Brand Character Arc: The Throwback

Brand Identity Design: Smashing Good Pinatas

Brand Identity Design: Good Dog Days Music Company

Brand Character Arc: The Bohemian

Rebrand: In Time Counselling & Consulting Services

Brand Character Arc: The Entheogen

Brand Identity Design: Maison Zolts

Brand Character Arc: The Nomad

Rebrand: Landguard Artscapes & Maintenance

Rebrand: Vision Real Estate Richmond Hill

Brand Identity Design: Devoir Copy Co.

Brand Character Arc: The Coquette

Brand Character Arc: The Cipher

Brand Identity Design: SWYPZ

Logo & Marketing Services: Vibe Vending

hoard a multimedia narrative

Tell your story in as many different ways as possible to appeal to as many different learning styles as possible.

Everyone has to sing for their supper.

That’s why having a compelling tale to tell is so important in nurturing the ideal client relationship.

Brand scripts are the foundational copywriting for your brand – they become everything from your print materials to your website to email campaigns and social media posts. That copy is pretty much always paired alongside branded graphics, stock or branded photography, or video.

We also can’t forget to show you what you brand should look like as an IRL experience, before you invest anything in manufacturing print items, merchandise, or gifts for clients.

a print identity makes a brand identity tangible

Are we even real if you’re not real? Breathe life into the relationship you have with your audience.

After folding Stages I and II carefully into brand guidelines, it’s time to get to sales because nothing compares to a physical connection.

This is where stationery, business cards, pitch decks, sponsorship packages, grant applications, catalogues, brochures, posters, point-of-sale items, signage and packaging comes into play. These items become foundational to your brand’s digital presence.

These items should be assembled prior digital marketing because marketing solves marketing problems – not sales problems. Not to mention, digital platforms aren’t immutable – there’s always another new hungry algorithm to feed, your current platform changes yet again, and they’re always at risk of disappearing, regardless of how long they have been around.

Also, print optimized items can easily be read accurately on computer screens, but digital-first products will not print correctly.

cultivate a digital presence

You are rare, but you shouldn’t be hard to find.

Put that killer first impression and arsenal of sales tools to the test by amplifying your brand online through your website, content creation, organic social media marketing. and value-driven database email marketing campaigns.

become a legend by being a legend

Brand experiences are the sum of the physical and emotional encounters a person has with your business.

From love at first sight to eternal devotion, foster cult-like advocacy for your brand through immersive experiences, brand activations, and immaculate client care. Now that you have business coming through the door and sales to pay the bills, don’t forget to nurture those relationships.

We’re talking about your elevating brand’s presence through events like trade shows and client appreciation, to your onboarding and offboarding processes, standard operating procedures, holistic marketing campaigns to past transacted clients, education efforts, and unexpected mail.

The more of the senses you tackle, the more likely you’ll be remembered in a pertinent conversation that will yield a referral – the holy grail of sales relationships.

Your reputation is our reputation

Maison takes pride in its work and our clients seem to think it shows.

Dasha is easy to work with and has a beautiful eye for design. She did a deep dive into creating a Brand Bible that I still use to this day!

The goat! I have worked with her on multiple projects and will continue to work with her in the future. Highly recommend and would 100% refer to others.

Dasha is an incredible designer. She transformed the branding of our business from something that felt outdated to a brand that feels new, fresh, relevant, and beautiful. She is a dream to work with and makes the experience easy and enjoyable start to finish. I highly recommend working with her on your next branding or design project. 10/10

Dasha and her team did a great job rebranding my business. She was able to understand my vision and values and come up with beautiful assets and a new logo. She worked with me on my new website layout also and rewriting my copy and did a really great job. I really wish I worked with her at the start of my company! Quality and attention to detail is her strength. She always kept on top of the project and making others accountable. She’s really helped me on my journey in more ways than I had thought. Dasha is also really easy going and nice to work with - highly recommended.

I had the pleasure of working with Maison ZOLTS for my rebranding, and it was an outstanding experience from start to finish. Dasha has a remarkable attention to detail, ensuring that every aspect of the design reflected my brand's essence while also being tailored to my new niche. What truly sets Dasha apart is her holistic approach to branding; she not only created beautiful design elements but also helped me envision my brand on a large scale. I couldn't be happier with the results and highly recommend Dasha of Maison ZOLTS for anyone looking to elevate their brand!

Dasha is the queen of branding and marketing. She completely redesigned my business, giving it a fresh look and incredible results. If you're serious about helping your business to be as successful as possible, look no further - she is the best in the business.

I hired maison zolts to craft my wordpress site and logo. She provided me with a versatile logo that I can easily utilize myself for other ads and promos, and the website is a nice waterfall style that stands out a little more than the plain templates I kept seeing on other sites.

Dasha had worked for our company previously and was always bright, cheerful and extremely professional. Her work speaks for itself, and she always put in the utmost effort in any project we had her take on. We were all very sad to see her go, but I’m glad she was able to find a place in her control, without any creative restrictions. Do yourselves a favor and give her company an opportunity to prove themselves. They do A+ work, are very communicative, and have been nothing but outstanding to work with. They are not happy unless their client is!

We recently hired Maison Zolts to create a branding for our new Social Enterprise Pinata business. We needed something fresh, creative, innovative and fun to attract our customer base to our unique product. Maison Zolts delivered and made the process of branding smooth and engaging. They listened to our needs and also guided us with their expertise. They were able to think out of the box and meet our needs. We can’t wait to launch the website soon! Thank-you Maison Zolts!

Maison ZOLTS has designed 3 logos for us, all have been delivered in the time frame promised with excellent quality which has enhanced our brand. Would highly recommend.

I'm excited to share my experience working with Dasha. Her aptitude in marking and configuration is really noteworthy. She has an eye for detail and a characteristic ability for making staggering plans that impeccably catch the embodiment of a brand... It was a joy working with her on a few undertakings, and the result was downright astonishing. Her commitment to her work is genuinely moving, and she exceeds all expectations to guarantee that her clients are content with the eventual outcome. On the off chance that you are searching for a gifted and solid planner who is likewise a delight to work with, look no farther than Dasha at Maison Zolts...

I recently had the pleasure of working with Dasha from Maison Zolts. She did the full rebrand for my business and I was BLOWN AWAY! I didn't know what to expect but she managed to capture my whole personality in every aspect. From the logo, to the merch she had branded for my business, it all was phenomenal!!! She even created a custom QR code for people to scan that leads them to a page with my contact info and links. Its great if you don't have business cards on hand!! If I could rate Maison Zolts 1 million out 5 stars I would. Again, thank you SOOOOOOO MUCH DASHA! Your hard work and eye for creative flare and detail will take your business to very high and far places. Looking forward to our next project!

We hired Maison ZOLTS to develop a brand for our start up company and we are incredibly glad we did! Dasha and her team went above and beyond to understand our vision, put together a diverse mood board and went on to develop an incredible brand package that we are so proud of. Everything was done in a timely manner and with great communication. Absolutely recommended!

We used Maison ZOLTS for our complete company rebranding and couldn't be any happier with the results. From logo redesign to our core brand value conceptualization, we were guided with smart, intriguing, and out of the box concepts that eventually led us to the brand we are today. Would 100% recommend them to anyone considering using them! You won't be disappointed.

I had the pleasure of working with Maison Zolts, to rebrand my small business and I loved everything that Dasha created. She really brought my visions to life. She was professional, kind and always had the projects complete when she said she would. Dasha did everything from my marketing, logo and rebrand. I would highly recommend Dasha to anyone looking to spice up their brand!

I absolutely love working with Dasha, she is not only professional but also brilliant. We teamed up with an idea that I had back in January and somehow she was able to read my mind and produce a marketing brand that blows my mind! She is a force to be reckoned with and will continue to amaze me through hard work and dedication. Her work speaks volumes. If you choose to work with her, you won’t be disappointed. I can honestly say i am proud to own the brand because of her dedication to the brands truth and authenticity

I asked Dasha if I could write a testimonial because I just love working with her so much. She is so emotionally intelligent. When I come to her with stress on a project, she listens, mirrors back what I’m telling her, and then comes up with great ideas. It’s been such a pleasure to go through this creative process with her

Do not hesitate to hire Dasha of Maison Zolts. She will surprise you with her beautifully balanced approach to marketing and branding. My first encounter with Dasha was an exciting, collaborative process that, after months of design decisions, resulted in my business visually coming to life! With a keen ear for listening and a talent for design, her final offering of images, icons, colour and patterns will be a visual insight into your business. She is easy to work with, balances foundation with creativity and will amaze you, as she did me, with detailed, thoughtful work. It was a pleasure working with Dasha and I highly recommend her for all your marketing and branding needs.

I had the best experience working with Maison Zolts! Dasha is so professional and great at what she does. She delivered exactly what I wanted and really elevated my brand. I highly recommend Maison Zolts!!

Dasha has worked with one of my good friends and I went with her recommendation of working with Dasha for branding of my business. Even though I had a time crunch Dasha accepted to help me out within my budget. And she’s done an amazing work! Dasha understands the person, the brand, the mood and vision in first meeting and delivers quality assets. She’s been patient all the while. Highly recommend her services. My best wishes to team Maison Zolts!