New Business Branding Checklist: 10 Steps in Order (UK)

Quick answer

Brand a new business in this order: decide who you serve, choose and check the name, secure the domain and social handles, register the company or trading name, then commission the logo, colours and fonts, write short guidelines, and only then build profiles, the website and print. A logo from us is £129; a full identity is £299.

Most new businesses do these steps in the wrong order: a logo before the name is checked, a van wrapped before the domain is bought, cards printed before the colours are settled. Each mistake costs money to undo. This checklist puts the branding jobs in the order that avoids paying twice.

Why the order matters

Branding decisions depend on each other. The logo depends on the name. The website depends on the domain, the colours and the fonts. Signage and printed items depend on all of them. Do a later step first and you risk redoing it: reprinting cards because the domain you put on them was not available, or repainting a van because the name turned out to clash with a registered trade mark.

The good news is that the early steps are mostly free. The paid work, design and print, comes after the decisions are settled.

The checklist at a glance

Step 1: decide who you serve

Before any name or logo, write three sentences: who your customers are, what you do for them, and why they should pick you over the obvious alternative. “Domestic electrician in Leicester for landlords, with same-week certificates” is a brand brief. “Quality electrical services” is not. This page of notes will guide the name, the tone of the logo and the words on the website, and any designer you hire will ask for it.

Add two more lines while you are at it: the price position you want (budget, middle of the market or premium) and three words you would like customers to use about you, such as reliable, tidy and straight-talking. Those notes shape everything from the colours to the way your quotes are worded, and they stop the brand drifting when you are busy.

Step 2: shortlist the name and check it properly

A name has to be available in several places at once. Shortlist three or four, then run each through these checks before you fall in love with one.

GOV.UK’s guidance on choosing a company name explains that a name cannot be the same as another registered company, and that if it is too similar to another company’s name or trade mark you may have to change it later. The UK trade mark search is free. Our business name checker runs several of these checks together, and if you are still searching, our guide to business name ideas has methods that produce names you can actually own.

Steps 3 and 4: domain, handles and registration

As soon as the name passes its checks, buy the domain and claim the social handles the same day, even if you will not use them for months. Register the domain in your own name or your company’s, not a friend’s or a designer’s. For .uk domains you can confirm who is listed with the Nominet lookup. Our guide to UK domain names covers .co.uk versus .com and the renewal traps.

Next, the registration. If you are forming a limited company, register it with Companies House once the name is checked. If you are a sole trader, you can trade under a business name without registering it as a company, but you still need to avoid names that clash with existing companies and trade marks. Either way, do this before you spend on design, because a registration problem is the most expensive one to discover later.

Step 5: the logo

Now commission the logo, with your step 1 notes as the brief. Make sure you receive:

• horizontal, stacked and icon-only layouts, so it fits a van, a profile picture and a quote;
• versions for light and dark backgrounds;
• vector masters (AI, EPS, SVG) as well as PNGs;
• written confirmation that you own the copyright once paid.

Our Logo Design is £129 with all of that included: unlimited concepts, unlimited revisions within the brief, every file format and a 3D mockup, with concepts in 48 hours. Before you register the logo as a trade mark, our guide to logo copyright and trade marks explains the difference between owning the artwork and registering the mark.

Steps 6 and 7: colours, fonts and guidelines

With the logo settled, choose the system around it: two or three colours with codes for print and screen, a heading font and a body font, and a few rules about photography. Then write it down in a short guidelines document, even a single page. That page is what you send to the sign maker, the printer, the web designer and anyone who makes a social post for you.

Our Brand Identity Design at £299 covers the logo, colours, typography, imagery and brand guidelines in one project, which is usually better value for a new business than buying them separately.

Steps 8 and 9: profiles and the website

Set up your Google Business Profile and social accounts using the icon version of the logo and the exact same name, address and phone number everywhere. Consistency from day one saves untangling it later.

For the website, a single page is often enough to launch. Our One-Page Website is £299 and a Custom WordPress Website of up to eight pages is £499; both are built around your identity, and you own the code. Use the logo cost calculator or the full price list to plan your launch budget.

Step 10: print, signage, vehicles and workwear

Print comes last because it is the hardest to change. Order a small first run of business cards, and get the van and signage designed from your guidelines. Our business card design uses your identity, and vehicle wrap and signage design starts from £99. Check every printed item against the guidelines, and proofread phone numbers digit by digit before you approve anything.

Workwear and vehicle graphics usually need the one-colour and stacked logo versions, which is another reason to get the full set at step 5. If a supplier asks for a file you do not have, ask your designer before letting the supplier recreate it, because their version will rarely match.

Mistakes new businesses make with branding

• Buying a logo before checking the name. If the name has to change, so does the logo.
• Letting someone else register the domain. It can be hard to get back.
• Accepting PNG-only logo files. Signwriters and embroiderers need vectors.
• Printing in bulk too early. Your phone number, address or offer may change in the first months.
• Using different names on different platforms. It confuses customers and search engines.

What the branding budget looks like

For a typical new small business, the branding essentials from us are a logo at £129 or a full identity at £299, a website from £299, and print and signage on top depending on what you need. Every price is on our pricing page. If you would like help deciding which pieces you need first, email support@luxbranding.co.uk and we will tell you honestly what can wait.