Why Your Brand Needs Values and How to Create Them

Values. Ethos. Pillars. Philosophy. Principles.

Whatever you call them, we believe that your brand needs a set of values that can serve as your North Star. By having a list of values, you have a core set of beliefs that can reaffirm your perspective as a brand. When you’re feeling stressed, unsure of a client or project, or lost, you can look back at your values to realign yourself.

Values can be treated like a compass. If you’re unsure about a certain client and their approach, look back to your values to make that decision. If you set values for yourself and don’t follow them, you’re not acting with integrity and grace, which can create ripples of discomfort in your business.

Our values at Bold august design Studio:

We have these values listed and explained on our about page, so that clients and partners can learn how we like to work and determine if they’re a good fit.

It’s okay if your values don’t align with someone else’s.

People are different, and that’s great! Diversity in thinking and understanding is what keeps us challenged and growing. If you find that your values don’t align with a colleague or lead, determine whether or not this means a mismatch of personalities or if you both can come to the table with respect for differences.

At Bold August Studio, we don’t sacrifice our core set of values. If a client can’t communication, be kind, treat work with balance, or be dedicated, they’re not our ideal client. And that’s okay! But we found that our set is what made us stand apart and stay focus.

How do you come up with values for your own business?

Coming up with this set of values is tough.

Think through the problem areas of your business, where things have felt stuck or uncomfortable, and create solutions for them.

Discomfort is sometimes great for growth, as every yoga instructor has ever told me. But sometimes, feeling uncomfortable or stuck can be a reflection of a core boundary or value not being respected.

Are you feeling stressed because a client is overwhelming your inbox?

Boundaries are a value for you.

Are you constantly tired and feeling overworked?

Balance is also a value for you.

Are you craving narrowing your services or audience to create a more focused presence?

Clarity is a value for you.

Think about your non-negotiable qualities you seek in a relationship.

These things can be values for you, too! Trust. Transparency. Connection. Humor.

If “humor” is something you like for in a partner and you’re laughing at how that could ever be a value, well, it can be! For us, we would lump humor in with kindness. We love sneaking a joke or two or personal comment in emails, to remind everyone that we’re all humans in this walk of life and in these projects.

If you wouldn’t enter into a relationship with someone without understanding their values, you also wouldn’t want to enter a project with a client who doesn’t have these values, either.

Think through your process as a business, and define key points of exchange.

We all have processes as businesses. Whether you’re another designer, a therapist, a consultant, a service based business, or another business, you have points of exchange with your clients. Some of these excite you, and some of them you dread.

Take phone calls or client communication for example. If you come alive at the idea of a productive phone call, then collaboration might be a core value for you. If creating a client portal and a clean set of client documents really makes you excited, then organization is a value for you.

Design or create your values in a visual format.

Don’t simply write your values down on a sheet of paper and forget about them in a year. Take to Canva, get out your colorful pens, or write your own blog post about them. Commit them to memory and bring them to life, so that you can set your compass to success.