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Business Advisory Launch Programme · Stage 6 of 10
Your Brand
Build a name and a look that signal authority in a field anyone can enter.
How long
2–4 days
You’ll have
A checked name, a visual identity, and an authority story
Steps
3 steps
Resources
2 resources
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01 Step 01
Step 01
Choose a credible name and positioning
Your name signals whether you are a serious practice or a hobby, and it is expensive to change later.
Do it yourself
- Decide personal brand (trust fast for a solo adviser) versus firm brand (scales, hides solo status).
- Check it is free: Companies House, domain, key socials, and a trademark search.
- Make sure it does not imply a regulated status you do not hold (avoid "financial advisers", "insolvency", "legal").
- Lock in your positioning line from Module 1 as the tagline.
Common mistake · A vague or grandiose name that implies a big team or a regulated service. It collapses on first contact and can mislead.
Time~2–4 hours Cost£0 (domain ~£10/yr; optional trademark later) DifficultyMediumResource for this step
CHECKLISTName and availability checklist
Decide personal versus firm brand, then sweep the name for conflicts.
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02 Step 02
Step 02
Build a lean visual identity
A consistent, professional look makes a one-person practice feel established.
Do it yourself
- Get a simple logo, two or three brand colours, and one or two fonts, kept clean not flashy.
- Invest in a professional headshot, the highest-return visual for a personal-trust business.
- Pull it onto a one-page brand sheet so site, LinkedIn and proposals match.
- Set up branded templates for a deck, a document and your email signature.
Common mistake · A DIY amateurish logo and a phone-selfie headshot, which quietly cap how much you can charge.
TimeA few days Cost£0 DIY up to a few hundred £ for logo and headshot (rough) DifficultyMedium -
03 Step 03
Step 03
Establish authority and proof
With no licence to point to, credibility comes from experience, credentials and social proof.
Do it yourself
- Write a bio leading with relevant experience and outcomes, told as capability, not an invented statistic.
- Consider a voluntary credential as a signal, such as the CMI Institute of Consulting’s Certified Management Consultant.
- Gather early proof: a first testimonial, a named prior result, a LinkedIn recommendation.
- Never imply a regulated status or invent a number.
Common mistake · Either dismissing voluntary credentials entirely, or hiding behind letters instead of demonstrable experience.
TimeBio ~2–3 hours; a credential is a multi-week process if pursued Cost£0 for the bio; CMC assessment ~£645+VAT+ (rough, verify) DifficultyMediumResource for this step
CHECKLISTAuthority stack checklist
The bio, credentials and proof that stand in for a regulator’s badge.
What you’ll have after this stage
- A credible name, checked and free of regulated implication
- A lean visual identity and a professional headshot
- A one-page brand sheet and branded templates
- A bio and proof that show you have solved the problem before
Next · Stage 7 of 10
Build Your Website
Keep going yourself — carry your momentum straight into the next stage.
Prefer we build it?
Hand this stage to us
A brand and the website it lives on are genuinely our work. If you want your practice to look established and authoritative from its first proposal, we can build the identity, the templates and the polished look that carries across everything you send. We handle the design and the website, not the advisory work itself, so the expertise stays yours.