I know judging a book by its cover (or in this instance, a business by its branding and website) is pretty lousy, but when it comes to marketing, visuals are everything. In a world full of endless options, branding and web design play a key role in connecting with us to earn our trust and business. While it may not be explicitly stated, don’t we all tend to remember, trust and respect businesses that exude a polished image?

I’m telling you this because I want you to see your branding and website as powerful tools that can elevate your business, attract the right clients, and improve your first impression as a pet professional and as a business owner. Our industry already faces an uphill battle trying to elevate the reputation of grooming as a legitimate and respectable profession. The last thing we need are factors that aren’t doing you any favors. So what’s an already busy pet groomer to do?

In the same way there are specific techniques to groom a dog well, there are techniques for crafting an eye-catching brand and website that will work wonders for your business. Let’s start with defining two key terms people often mix up…

Your logo is a symbol you use to represent your business. It’s a very important part of your business, but it’s not everything. And your brand is the unique identity and story of your business. Your brand’s job is to bring your business’s unique personality to life in a way that stands out and connects with people.

In addition to your logo, your brand consists of:

1. A color palette
2. Fonts
3. A distinct “look” or “vibe”
4. A mood board and images that match the vibe
5. A brand “voice” or tone (professional, casual, etc.)

Your logo is like a collar. Your brand is the dog wearing it. Without a brand, a business is like a collar with no beloved dog to wear it. It’s missing the most important part!

The best way to understand this is with an example. Let’s say Holly has a mobile pet salon. Her business is named “Holly’s Pet Salon” and she describes her business’s personality as chic, glamorous, playful and stylish (with lots of pink). She is a Certified Pet Esthetician and wants clients to recognize the value of her all-inclusive membership packages that feature exceptional routine care with fabulous styles. She wants people to know that “their pooch will be treated like a star and walk out ready to strut down any runway with sass, class, and style.”

Notice how vivid the description is? This is how specific I want you to be when describing the vibe of your business, how you do things and how you want people to feel when they bring their beloved pets to you.

Of course Holly could just say her motto and call it a day, but what if she used branding to visually show it? Let’s look at Holly’s old logo and banner and see how rebranding makes her stand out so much more (Fig. 1). Imagine these were on her van at a busy stoplight. Which one would be more likely to catch your attention? I think we both can agree on the one on the right.

Now, here’s something you might be thinking: What about the cute poodle and sparkles Holly had in her original logo? When you only have a logo and no brand, you try to “fit” everything into the logo. This can make the logo too busy and hard for people to remember. Holly’s old logo is a good example of that. Remember, your logo’s job is to be simple and recognizable.

The beauty of having a brand is that your logo can then invite people into the full story of your business. Holly’s poodle and cute sparkles didn’t go away; rather they became a part of something much bigger and show up throughout the entire brand. If Holly did want to keep the poodle, she could turn it into a secondary logo that can be used as a cute sticker, a watermark/sub-mark or whatever else she comes up with (Fig. 2).

Apart from helping her stand out, her branding significantly increases the likelihood of creating a positive and professional first impression on her clients. People naturally associate better quality and trustworthiness with businesses that appear well-established and sophisticated by today’s standards. This can increase the perceived value of Holly’s services even though her services were the same top-notch quality before the branding update. Let’s take this one step further and see how branding transforms her website and, in turn, your perception about her business (Fig. 3).

Even though this is a made-up brand, I bet if you randomly saw it on a billboard one day, you’d definitely recognize it and likely have a great impression about it. This is the magic of branding.

In the way you know how to bring out the best in a dog’s unique coat, great branding and web design can highlight the strengths of your business to create a professional and “pawsonality”-packed image. This is revolutionary when it comes to establishing your presence as a dedicated professional and business owner. So let’s get those creative wheels turning and see what fabulous first impressions you’ll make this year!

Vivi Diaz de Leon is a web designer and founder of Fido Designs, a branding and web design studio dedicated to helping pet professionals elevate their businesses. She and her team create one-of-a-kind brand kits and easy-to-customize website templates that make it fun and easy to get a professional look for your biz in no time. Vivi is continuously researching the latest trends in design and technology to help busy pet professionals keep up and thrive. You can read more of her helpful tips and shop at fidodesigns.com