Branding Agency

Build a brand that makes the value of your business clear

Helder develops brand strategies using the Brand Frame®, translates them into naming and brand design, and supports the roll-out across all relevant touchpoints.

Brands that have grown with Helder.

A brand only works when it provides direction

When your brand falls behind your offering, performance or markets, communication becomes more expensive and sales become more difficult.

Turn your brand into a strategic tool

We derive branding from analysis and strategy instead of starting with moodboards. For brands that make visible what a company is today and anticipate where it is going next.

Brand Frame® – the framework for clear brand decisions

The Brand Frame® is a framework developed by Helder to enable clear brand decisions. It condenses the core elements of a brand strategy – brand core, competence, values, mission and ambition – into one clear strategic framework.

The Brand Frame® helps companies answer:

• What do we stand for?
• What makes us relevant and distinctive?
• How do we want to act?
• What do we deliver for our customers?
• Where do we want to go?
• And most importantly: is the decision we are making actually on brand?

The components of a branding project

All our services can be booked individually as modules. You decide which steps to take and when.

The branding process with Helder

A branding project with Helder consists of four phases: Brand Strategy, Brand Design, Brand Launch and Brand Management.

1. Brand Strategy

We create the foundation for your positioning and strategic brand framework through a Brand Audit, Brand Workshop and Brand Frame®.

Deliverables:

• Market and competitor analysis within your market environment
• Interviews, target audience definition and buyer personas
• One-day facilitated workshop with your leadership team – CEO, CMO, Product, CRM – and two Helder facilitators
• Development of your positioning and definition of competence, mission, vision, values and brand core, documented in the Helder Brand Frame®

You receive: workshop documentation, a fully developed strategic brand framework and a completed Brand Frame® containing five central statements on competence, ambition, mission, values and brand core.

2. Brand Design

Based on the Brand Frame®, we develop a strategic design system that visualises the brand’s performance, offering and point of view.

Deliverables:

• Visual competitor analysis and benchmarks
• Development of two design routes to choose from, including logo, colour palette, typography concept, imagery and iconography
• Based on your feedback: iterative development of one route into a complete visual system
• Brand Guidelines

You receive: a design system including logo or wordmark, key visual, colour palette, typography, imagery and icons, plus Brand Guidelines with clear rules for application.

3. Brand Launch

Internal resources are not always sufficient to roll out a new brand quickly, consistently and at a high level of quality across every relevant touchpoint. That is why we support you in implementing the Brand Design and communicating the new brand internally across teams and decision-making bodies, as well as externally across marketing and sales.

Deliverables:

• Internal launch communication
• Handover of all assets
• Roll-out across prioritised touchpoints
• Briefing session for your marketing team
• Presentation master
• Template package for social media and print
• Support with website implementation

You receive: design assets, a template system, briefing session and 100-day check-in.

4. Brand Management

Brand management does not end with the launch. In day-to-day work, clear decisions, quality control and operational support are essential to keep the brand consistent and prevent it from becoming diluted. We support you over the long term as a strategic and operational partner, help with new touchpoints and advise your team on applying the brand.

Deliverables:

• Onboarding
• Training and internal workshops
• Brand Hub
• Retainer for ongoing communication design, for example trade fairs, pop-ups, events and on-product applications
• Regular brand sparring
• External Art Direction

You receive: operational support, consistent brand communication, strategic brand advice and ongoing development of the brand.

Branding for your industry

Stand apart from the competition – in a way that fits your target audience and market.

Make branding an investment, not a cost

With Helder as your branding agency:

• you derive design from strategy rather than personal taste or gut feeling
• you get the Brand Frame® as a practical decision-making framework instead of an 80-page PDF
• you work with a dedicated team throughout the entire project
• you can choose between individual modules or the complete process
• you are able to manage the brand independently after launch

About Helder

Helder is an agency for strategic branding and design. We develop brands based on what truly defines a company: its capabilities, strengths, goals and relevance to its customers.

Frequently Asked Questions About Branding Agencies

What is a branding agency?

A branding agency develops the strategic, communicative and visual identity of a brand. Unlike a design agency, it does not start with the logo, but with the question of what the brand should stand for and who it should be relevant to. Typical branding agency services include brand analysis, brand positioning, naming, corporate design and Brand Guidelines. Helder operates as a branding agency in Berlin and has completed more than 100 such branding projects since 2017.

What is the difference between a branding agency and an advertising agency?

A branding agency builds the brand; an advertising agency promotes it. Advertising generates short-term attention for a product or offer, while branding establishes what a company stands for over the long term. For a campaign to work effectively, the sender needs a clear strategic position – and that is the role of branding. Full-service agencies often offer both, but rarely master both disciplines equally well. Helder specialises exclusively in strategic brand development and does not provide campaign or media planning.

What makes Helder different from other branding agencies?

Three things: the strategic foundation of our branding work, the Brand Frame® brand model and our support after launch.

Every Helder project begins with analysis rather than moodboards. The Brand Frame® is a brand model developed by Helder that brings brand core, values, mission, ambition and competence together on a single page – rather than in an 80-page document that no one uses in everyday work.

We also openly share our methods, with 17 templates, more than 30 videos and a Brand Wiki, so teams can continue working independently. If you are looking for an agency that disappears after launch, Helder is not the right fit.

What does a branding project with Helder include?

A complete branding project with Helder includes brand analysis, brand strategy, naming, corporate design, Brand Guidelines and roll-out. All modules can also be booked individually.

Typical deliverables include a Brand Audit with competitor and target audience analysis, a facilitated Brand Workshop, the Brand Frame® as your strategic brand framework, an optional brand name, a design system including logo, colour palette, key visual, typography concept and imagery, documented Brand Guidelines, and implementation across your website, presentations, social media and business materials.

Which modules make sense depends on the foundations you already have in place.

How does a branding project with Helder work?

In four phases: Brand Strategy, Brand Design, Brand Launch and Brand Management.

During the Brand Workshop, two facilitators work with your decision-makers to develop your positioning, competence, ambition, mission and values. The result is documented in the Brand Frame®. During the design phase, we develop two design systems to choose from and refine the selected route iteratively based on your feedback. Brand Launch covers implementation across prioritised touchpoints and internal introduction of the brand. Brand Management is optional and includes training, templates and ongoing support.

How long does a branding project take?

As a guideline, a complete rebranding project including brand development takes around twelve weeks at Helder. Naming usually requires an additional four weeks, as does website development.

The actual duration depends on the scope, the complexity of the project and, above all, the number of decision-making bodies involved. Companies with shorter decision-making processes are generally faster. If you have a fixed launch date, you should allow around four months of lead time.

How much does a branding agency cost?

At Helder, a Brand Audit starts at €1,200, Brand Strategy at €15,000, a Brand Story at €7,500, Naming at €10,000 and Corporate Design at €15,000.

A complete branding process from strategy through to roll-out generally ranges between €30,000 and €65,000. Our calculations are based on the AGD remuneration agreement for design services.

Because our offering is modular, projects can also start with a smaller budget – for example with a Brand Audit or Brand Workshop. When comparing agency proposals, it is worth checking whether strategic services are included or whether the offer covers design only.

Do we really need an external branding agency, or is our in-house team enough?

An in-house team can implement branding, but it can rarely develop the entire strategic foundation independently. Internal designers know the product and organisation well, but are usually specialised in design rather than brand strategy, positioning and analysis.

There is also the issue of internal bias: the external perspective required to sharpen positioning is difficult to create from within the organisation. A combination therefore often works best – the agency develops the strategy and system, while the internal team applies them. Helder deliberately involves existing designers in the process because they will ultimately be responsible for managing the brand.

What types of companies and industries does Helder work with?

Helder primarily works with owner-managed companies, scale-ups and mid-sized businesses with around 20 employees or more.

Our core industries are e-commerce and D2C, lifestyle, B2B and industrial companies, B2B SaaS and financial services. References include benuta and Brain Effect in e-commerce, SIDES, JTL and plentyONE in SaaS, Schüco and Vetropack in industry, and Ratepay and MPF Group in financial services.

Helder is generally not the right fit for corporate communications environments involving numerous decision-making bodies or early-stage start-ups.

Does Helder also support implementation after the branding project?

Yes, in three forms: Brand Enablement, Brand Retainer and Brand Sparring.

Most brands do not lose consistency during the project itself, but during the twelve months afterwards, when teams change and new channels are added. Brand Enablement includes training and templates that enable your team to work independently. A Brand Retainer provides fixed monthly capacity for communication design and new touchpoints. Brand Sparring consists of regular reviews with your marketing team.

All three formats are optional and can be agreed after launch.

How does working with Helder begin?

With a 45-minute initial consultation in which we discuss your current situation, objectives and framework. Afterwards, you receive a modular proposal that allows you to decide which steps to take and when – without committing to the full package.

A typical starting point is a Brand Audit or brand analysis followed by a Brand Workshop. Helder does not provide design concepts as part of unpaid pitches, but we are always happy to answer initial questions without obligation.