For most small and mid-sized businesses, an experienced independent is the better deal for branding. A studio is worth it when the rollout is bigger than one person can carry. I have worked both sides: I was interactive director at a studio, Catalyst Studios, and I run my own practice now.
Should I hire a freelancer or a studio for branding?
The short version:
- Independent designer. You talk to the person who does the work, every time. Lower overhead, so a lower price for the same thinking. Limited by one person's hours.
- Studio. A team with a creative director, designers, a writer, and a project manager. More hands for big rollouts. You pay for the bench and the office, and the person who sold you may not be the person who draws.
- Online contest or template site. Cheap and fast. You get a mark with no thinking about the name, the voice, or who the customer is. Usually costs more later when it has to be redone.
When is an independent the better choice?
When the job is one brand for one business. Naming, identity, voice, and a website are a lot of work, and one experienced person can carry all of it. My prices for those pieces: identity from $2,500, naming and full brand from $6,000, website from $6,000. What a brand refresh costs lays out every piece.
The risk with an independent is a thin bench. If they get sick or overbooked, the job waits. Ask who backs them up.
When is a studio worth the money?
- Many locations or many products. Forty store signs, a packaging line, and a trade show booth in the same quarter.
- A hard launch date with a lot of pieces. When several designers have to work at once.
- A board that wants a name on the invoice. Some buyers need the studio brand for their own cover. That is a real reason. Just know you are paying for it.
What should I ask either one?
- Who does the actual work, and can I meet them?
- What do I own at the end? The answer should be everything: the files, the rights, the guide.
- What happens to the name, the voice, and the website? If the answer is "that is a different project," you are buying a mark and not a brand.
- What is the price, and what is not included?
- Can I see something you made that is still in use?
If you are only pricing the mark, what a logo costs covers that case.
What should I not do?
Do not hire a studio for a mark and then hire a freelancer to finish the website because the studio money ran out. The brand breaks at the hand-off. Pick one person or one team to carry it to the end.
The branding page has what I include. If you want a straight answer on whether your job needs a studio, say so on the start form, and I will tell you when it does.
Answered by Jared Lukes, Minneapolis. Twenty-five years in brand, UX, and technology, currently holding fractional AI and technology seats at three companies. About Jared.