The 3 Questions I Ask Every Client Before We Start a Project

Not long ago, a client told me: “I thought we’d spend most of our time talking about fonts. But these questions you asked? They hit like therapy.”

And listen—I’m not trying to be your therapist.

But if we’re about to rebuild the thing that holds your whole business, we can’t skip the part where we make sure it’s built to hold you.

So before anything else—before strategy decks, before moodboards—I ask three questions. 

They’re simple. But they’re where every strong, strategic, sustainable brand begins.

Here they are.

Questions I ask before starting any brand or website design project

Q1: What’s working (and what’s carrying the weight)?

This isn’t where most people expect me to start. But I’m not most people.

And most brands don’t need to be burned to the ground.

They need to be recalibrated—around the offers that are delivering, the people who just get it, the positioning that’s already doing some heavy lifting. The stuff that’s working, even if it’s buried under a brand you’ve outgrown.

So I ask: What’s working right now? What’s holding the weight when everything else feels wobbly?

That’s what we protect. That’s what we build around.

Q2: What’s feeling out of sync?

This is the part you’ve probably already written down in a Google Doc or vented about to your business bestie.

Your site doesn’t reflect your growth. Your brand voice feels like a version of you from two years ago. You’re converting, but not with the people you want most. You’re tweaking and tinkering, hoping something clicks.

This is what I call the “duct tape phase.” And if you’re here, you already know it’s time to let go of what’s almost-working.

We name the friction so we can stop dancing around it.

Q3: Where are we headed?

This one gets skipped a lot in typical brand work. But I need to know the direction your business is moving—because your brand has to meet you there.

Are you scaling? Streamlining? Shifting your offers or pricing or audience? Are you done over-explaining yourself every time someone lands on your site?

This question gives us the map. So we can build a brand that not only looks good—but actually carries you forward.

These questions hold the real weight.

They shape the strategy. They ground the design.

They make sure we’re not just creating something beautiful—we’re creating something that works.

If you’re entering a new season—scaling, simplifying, realigning—and your brand can’t carry what you’ve built...let’s change that.

I’ve got a few January project spots open. Inquire here if you’re ready for a brand that finally fits.

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