Setup Guide
We want to design a webstore that:
- Introduces what you do clearly and succinctly
- Appeals to your ideal customer
- Helps customers find props, check availability and create quote requests FAST
To do this, you should create a Style Guide that defines your brand.
Why we need a Style Guide
A style guide provides direction for the cosmetics and content of your website, marketing emails, social media posts, ads, etc. It defines branding materials like your logo, colors, fonts, keywords, etc.
In our case, a good style guide will make the website design process fast and easy.
Unfortunately, most prop houses don't have a style guide. So how do you get one?
Hire a Branding Professional
You could hire a professional branding expert to help you create your style guide.
We highly recommend Sheila Buchanan who designed the branding for Propcart and Empire Props and understands the prop house business. She and her husband are world-class designers and artists and true masters of their craft.
Do it Yourself
Or you can try doing it yourself and we'll do our best to help.
In fact, we recommend this approach for new prop houses. Branding is usually something you spend money on after you've got the fundamentals of your business running smoothly. See the Prop House Hierarchy of Needs for details.
Brand design is not our core competency so results may vary. We also don't design logos, create artwork or graphics, but we can whip you up something quick and dirty if you're in a pinch.
If you want to create your own style guide, complete the following:
Then, if you haven't already done so, set up your digital marketing channels:
Do I really need a Style Guide?
No, we're happy to skip this step and give you a website with neutral branding.