Your Brand Isn’t Making Anyone Feel Anything (And That’s Why It’s Not Working)
I was getting dressed for a client meeting last month when I caught myself doing exactly what I tell my clients never to do with their brands.
I was standing in my closet, completely focused on what I wanted to wear. The dress that made me feel powerful. The shoes that I thought were gorgeous.
I wasn’t thinking about my client at all.
Sound familiar? Because this is exactly what most business owners do with their brands every single day.
The problem: you’re having a one-way conversation
Here’s what I see happen over and over: brilliant business owners create brands that perfectly express who they are. They choose colors that make them happy. Fonts that feel like their personality. Images that reflect their aesthetic.
And then they wonder why their beautiful brand isn’t connecting with anyone.
I had a client—let’s call her Sarah—with a gorgeous brand. Every design element was perfectly curated. Her color palette was sophisticated. Her photography was stunning.
But her conversion rate was terrible.
People would visit her website, compliment her beautiful design, and then... leave. No inquiries. No bookings. No connection.
The problem? Her brand was saying "look at me, look at how beautiful I am, look at how talented I am."
But it wasn’t saying anything to her ideal clients about how working with her would make them feel.
The power of one perfect detail
My family is absolutely obsessed with my one-year-old niece. And I get it. She’s adorable.
But here’s what I’ve noticed: Nobody wants to see 47 photos of her entire day.
They want to see the one perfect moment. Her tiny hand wrapped around her dad’s finger. Her face covered in birthday cake. The way she laughs when the dog licks her face.
One powerful detail tells the whole story.
Your brand works the same way.
You don’t need to show everything you do. You don’t need to explain your entire process. You don’t need to list every service you offer.
You need one perfect vignette. One story that captures who you are. One example that shows how you work. One result that proves what’s possible.
The most powerful brands don’t try to paint the whole picture. They show you the detail that makes you want to see more.
What your outfit knows that your brand doesn’t
When you choose what to wear to an important meeting, you’re not just thinking about what you like. You’re thinking about the entire experience you want to create.
You want to feel confident, yes. But you also want the other person to feel like they can trust you. That you understand their world. That you’re someone they want to work with.
That gorgeous dress doesn’t just make you look incredible—it makes you feel incredible. And when you feel incredible, you show up differently. You create an energy that other people can sense and respond to.
Your brand works exactly the same way.
The real story your brand should tell
I have a client who owns a company called Sound Ergonomics. They design acoustic solutions for offices and restaurants.
When I asked what visuals they used for marketing, they showed me stock photos of office buildings and boring shots of acoustic panels. All very literal. All very forgettable.
Then I asked: "What does your work actually do for people?"
"Well," she said, "it creates spaces where people can think clearly. Where they can have conversations without strain. Where they feel calm instead of overwhelmed."
"So you don’t just install acoustic panels," I said. "You create peace."
We completely shifted her visual strategy. Instead of showing the product, we showed the feeling. A person reading peacefully in a busy café. A team having an effortless conversation in an open office.
Her inquiries doubled in the first month.
Because people don’t buy acoustic panels. They buy the ability to focus. They buy comfortable conversations. They buy peace of mind.
The typography story you’re already telling
I have a mason jar in my kitchen that I will never wash. It has my grandmother’s handwriting on the label: "Peach preserves - August 2019."
She passed away two years ago, but every time I see that jar, I hear her voice. I feel her presence.
Her handwriting is more than letters on a label. It’s her personality. Her care. Her love.
Your typography is your brand’s handwriting. It’s how your personality shows up before anyone reads a single word.
A serif font feels different than a sans serif. A script font tells a different story than a bold, geometric one.
What story is your font telling? Does it match who you are? Does it feel like you?
The bridge between you and them
Your brand needs to be authentically you—absolutely. But if it stops there, you’ve created something that looks good in your portfolio but doesn’t connect with anyone.
The magic happens when your brand bridges the gap between your authentic self-expression and what your ideal clients need to feel in order to trust you.
It’s not about choosing between being yourself and serving your audience. It's about finding the intersection where who you are naturally serves what they need.
What this actually looks like
I worked with a leadership coach who was struggling to attract executive-level clients. Her brand was beautiful—clean, minimal, very "coach-like." But it wasn’t connecting with busy executives who needed to trust her expertise immediately.
We shifted everything to focus on the emotional experience her ideal clients needed: confidence, clarity, and calm in the midst of chaos.
Instead of generic inspirational imagery, we used visuals that showed the kind of clarity she created for clients. Instead of soft, nurturing colors, we chose a palette that felt grounded and trustworthy.
The result? She booked three high-level executive clients in the first month.
Same person, same expertise, same results. But now her brand was creating the emotional experience her ideal clients needed.
Your brand should work while you sleep
Here’s something people don’t talk about enough: the right brand doesn’t just look good, it makes your business easier to run.
When your brand creates the right emotional experience, you attract clients who are already primed to work with you. They come pre-sold on your approach. They trust your expertise before you’ve even had a conversation.
You spend less time convincing and more time creating transformation. You have fewer tire-kickers and more serious inquiries. You command premium pricing because people can feel the value.
This is what I mean when I say your brand should work even when you’re not actively selling.
If you’re reading this thinking "I know my brand isn’t creating the right emotional experience, but I don’t know how to fix it," you’re not alone. This is exactly the kind of challenge I help business owners work through.