In a recent conversation with a prospective client in the pre-information gathering phase of qualifying consultants to help them with a corporate name and identity change, they asked “ can you give us an idea on your fee?” I answered the question with our standard minimum-level fee estimate “it all depends”.

I answered the question by explaining our minimum fee requirements.  Of course, that brought the conversation to an abrupt conclusion.  Apparently they placed a lesser value on the solution than the criteria our minimum fee required. We quickly determined that we were not good fit for them at this time. I recommended them to a talented freelance graphic designer. No harm, no foul…

Later I began to think more about the cost question. Why do clients fixate on the consulting fee– the smallest cost component in a fully implemented corporate rebranding initiative? From the client’s point of view, what should corporate identity development cost? I began to do some research to see if there was any form of pricing standard or guideline that potential clients could learn about and use to help them qualify the cost question early in their search for a brand and identity consultant.  Surprisingly I didn’t find much useful information out there. I checked in with a couple of my colleagues in the identity business, the common answer: “it depends”.

There’s useful information from identityworks.com, and an article on the question at hand. Read it here. This site contains useful information on the state of the global identity business as well as download on mapping out the process. Take a moment and check it out.

Key factors affecting corporate identity development costs.

The nature of identity change (both strategically and creatively) is quite different for a corporate organization than it is for a category brand (product or service). While neither is a trivial undertaking, corporate identity development not only involves top line naming and logo development, but also involves complex assessment, planning and strategic planning with executive management. Additionally, subsidiary identities, naming structures, product brands and the scope of implementation over a variety of physical properties will vary significantly depending on the size of the organization.

Category brand identities are no less important, but implementation, or the scope of the physical applications involved are notably not as complex. Category brand identities commonly express themselves in media advertising signatures, product packaging, retail environments and various forms of marketing communications. Strategic and creative development consulting fees for an organizational identity change commonly depend on these factors:

Direct engagement with CEO / CMO executives.
Rarely are such endeavors delegated to lower level managers who would have full authority to make critical decisions. If you have a steering committee structure with lots of opinions to cater to, you’ll most likely be required to pay more in consulting fees.

Size and scope of the organization, subsidiaries, business units, brand architecture.
If the identity change requires complex planning, rigorous market research of various audience segments around the globe, the development costs can be significant.

Reputation and experience of the identity consultant.
Will your corporate identity be developed by a generalist like your advertising agency or PR firm, or do you require the specialization of a global identity firm; or would you be better served by a smaller consulting team consisting of a highly specialized identity or brand strategists in concert with top identity design talent?

How much time is available to complete the assignment?
Assuming you are working with specialized talent in both strategic and design counsel,  there can be many business reasons why the process might be accelerated which would place a premium on the development costs.

A rule of thumb (sort of)

Because there are so many variables, development costs (consulting fees) for rebranding an organization can vary significantly from consultant to consultant. Usually buyers of these services have little or no knowledge, experience or appreciation for all the processess involved.

For enterprises with annual revenues of $250 million+, (exclusive of extensive market research, audience segmentation analysis or physical property and media channel implementation), here’s what you can expect:

Assessment / Planning / Strategy / Naming  $50-100K

Verbal and Visual Identity Design Development  $50-75K

Design Applications and Documentation (print or web based) $60-80K

This fee range assumes you’re considering a seasoned and highly skilled identity consultant with specialized expertise in corporate identity development.

The value of specialized expertise.

Identity development costs can be significant one-time expenses for any size organization. But when understood as an excellent one-time opportunity to leverage the event of a rebranding, there is no better investment to build the foundation to command greater attention and awareness, elevate perceived quality and renew market confidence.

Of course the cost to implement such a program over time (physically and in media communication channels) will always exceed the costs to develop the initial identity strategy. Highly specialized identity consultants come as close to creating and shaping the vibe of a client company as you can get, without actually being the CEO. Just think about all the valuable outcomes an institution’s name, logo, theme line, trade dress, unit names and unit signature system can potentially achieve:

establishing the ‘preferred positioning’ the entity intends to earn;

facilitating the entity’s distinguishing culture and quality that appeals to top talent;

revealing to vested audiences the coherence and purposes of the entity’s composition;

building the foundation of the entity’s value proposition to customers

determining the criteria around  “where we’re going, how must we best organize ourselves and behave to get there”.

Your identity (corporate or brand) is more than the face of your organization in the marketplace. It deserves the investment specialized expertise delivers to build lasting influence and market value over time.

Relative to the value you believe your corporate identity represents to your vested audiences, what price would you put on its development? Or think of it this way–what price would you pay to ensure a successful outcome?  What ever that “number” is for your organization, determines the perceived value you have for the benefits of the specialized expertise an identity consultant provides.

I have to constantly remind myself that most people will perceive any price as high when they believe they are buying a commodity in abundant supply. I hope this provides you with some useful insight on the subject. As always, your comments are most welcome.