What’s a Design Sprint?

How to launch in 6-8 weeks. Really.

We’ve worked with startups for over a decade. We know the need to scale quickly, impress investors, and win loyal customers – all while preserving precious cash and launching yesterday.

That’s why we developed our Brand Launchpad Design Sprint. This six-to-eight-week intensive leverages our experience in a fast and affordable package. 

Together, we’ll collaborate to build a powerful identity and launch in a matter of weeks, not months.

Ready to cross branding off your startup’s to-do list? Inquire about our Design Sprints.

Week 1: Exploration

The first step to successful branding is always the same: know your audience. 

Cut the fluff and focus on what matters. Share your target audience’s challenges and pain points. How do you already resonate with them? Who’s your competition, and what makes them competitive?  What’s your brand personality?

Our experience with startups serving disenfranchised groups as well as sensitive topics means we’re also experts at exploring any relevant cultural context.

We distill this discussion down into a simple questionnaire followed by a quick Zoom call to handle any questions. This framework lets us get the answers we need for our creative work, with the right amount of structure to keep us lean.

Weeks 2-4: Creative Direction

Based on our findings from the Exploration phase and our own research, we then proceed to craft your brand identity concept(s). These include logo, color, imagery, typography, and other core elements for your visual design system.

Behind the scenes, we’ve also surveyed the competitive landscape to make sure you’ll stand out. We’ve rapidly iterated on concepts before landing on the final creative for your review.

We then meet with your team to walk through the identity concepts and get real-time feedback. This phase is very much about aligning and fine-tuning as we transform your vision into a strong visual identity.

We’ll iterate quickly on any revisions to keep the process moving forward. The goal remains to reach the most powerful brand positioning as quickly and simply as possible.

Weeks 4-6: Visual Identity System

At this stage, your brand comes to life as we complete its visual identity system, which includes the full scope of colors, images, and typography. All assembled in your digital brand standards book.

A complete visual identity system includes: 

‣ Brand mark and usage guidance 

‣ Color palette development 

‣ Brand fonts / typography system 

‣ Patterns and secondary design elements (if applicable) 

‣ Photo/illustration direction (if applicable) 

‣ Banners and avatars for social media 

‣ Examples of the brand in use 

Weeks 5-8: Website

In the final phase of the design sprint, if desired, we can apply your visual identity system to build a one-page website based on content you supply.  We’ll arrange a discovery call to understand website objectives, tech stack, and user goals.

Next, we’ll build your site on the powerful Webflow platform, and prototype interactions such as hover effects, and animation. After your review and approval we’ll launch your site and stand by for two weeks to squish any bugs that pop up.

After launch and as your startup grows, C42D can continue to provide you with ongoing brand support.

Ready to fast-track your startup’s brand? Inquire about our Design Sprints.