Insights
The Most Important Impact Brand Element Requires Zero Design
The Most Important Impact Brand Element Requires Zero Design
Building a memorable brand feels overwhelming. Typography, color palettes, logos, websites, voice and tone. The list never ends. Branding feels like a massive undertaking that's either too expensive or requires skills they don't possess. So what happens? Impact businesses end up pulling from the same sustainability playbook. Green colors, leaf icons, earnest messaging about "making the world a better place." The result? A sea of sameness where every brand looks identical. But the thing this: The most powerful part of your brand isn't visual at all. It's something you already have. Something that doesn't require design software or a big budget. It's your story. The problem? Most impact businesses are telling it wrong. I sat down with Daniel Sammut from For Good Design Lab to dig into this sameness trap and discover the easiest way to escape it. Here's what I learned:
The big vision barrier
Before we get into telling your impact story we need to talk about the big vision barrier.
This is when a founder leads with their big, world-changing vision, the future world they wish to create.
It’s a great sentiment, but customers can’t see the immediate value for them in it.
So you end up getting a ton of impact brands who all sound the same because they never got deeper than “changing the world” or “building a movement” in their brand messaging.
(I write about this and 6 other traps of impact founders here, if you’re interested)
Quick quote from Daniel on his solar panel client:
"People can feel good that they're doing their bit for the environment. But the main reason they would let go of their hard-earned money is because it's going to save them money on their electricity bills.”
Think of it like nesting dolls: the problem you solve right now fits inside your bigger vision, but your customer starts with the smallest doll first.
I know, weird analogy.
Anyway, your sustainability story builds brand affinity. It's not your value proposition.
Your brand story in 5 sentences
When thinking about a starting place for your brand, you should be answering these 5 questions.
1. What do you do
This is your core offering in the simplest terms possible. Not your mission statement or grand vision, just what someone would tell their friend you actually sell or provide. "We make solar panels for homes" not "We're revolutionizing energy infrastructure."
2. Why do you do it
Your personal motivation or the specific problem that drove you to start this business. This is where your founder story lives, the moment you realized this needed to exist. It's less about changing the world and more about what personally compelled you to act.
3. How you do it
What makes your approach different or unique. This could be your process, your values in action, or your specific methodology. It's the bridge between the problem you saw and the solution you built.
4. Who you do it for
Your specific audience, not "everyone who cares about the planet." Get granular about who benefits most from what you do and why you chose to focus on them. The more specific, the more memorable.
5. How you come across
Your personality and tone. Are you playful like Oatly? Direct and no-nonsense? Warm and community-focused? This is what makes people remember you in a crowded market of do-gooders who all sound the same.
That’s it. Five sentences, as clear and concise and possible.
The hard part is actually simplifying your message down so that it’s easier for people to remember.
The authenticity advantage
You really want to think about #5.
In a world of AI generated content, vibe coded websites, and guru copy, your personality can be your true brand differentiator.
Daniel's agency uses the phrase "unfucking the world" - the same message as "helping impact companies do better," but delivered with personality that people actually remember.
Oatly disrupted plant-based milk not by inventing oat milk, but by having a distinct voice in how they delivered their message.
There are a million ways to say the same thing, you can get really creative to determine your way.
The best part about focusing on your story?
It's impossible to copy.
Your competitors can steal your color palette, mimic your messaging, and even copy your business model. But they can't replicate the specific journey that led you to start your impact business.
That's your unfair advantage. Time to use it.
The big vision barrier
Before we get into telling your impact story we need to talk about the big vision barrier.
This is when a founder leads with their big, world-changing vision, the future world they wish to create.
It’s a great sentiment, but customers can’t see the immediate value for them in it.
So you end up getting a ton of impact brands who all sound the same because they never got deeper than “changing the world” or “building a movement” in their brand messaging.
(I write about this and 6 other traps of impact founders here, if you’re interested)
Quick quote from Daniel on his solar panel client:
"People can feel good that they're doing their bit for the environment. But the main reason they would let go of their hard-earned money is because it's going to save them money on their electricity bills.”
Think of it like nesting dolls: the problem you solve right now fits inside your bigger vision, but your customer starts with the smallest doll first.
I know, weird analogy.
Anyway, your sustainability story builds brand affinity. It's not your value proposition.
Your brand story in 5 sentences
When thinking about a starting place for your brand, you should be answering these 5 questions.
1. What do you do
This is your core offering in the simplest terms possible. Not your mission statement or grand vision, just what someone would tell their friend you actually sell or provide. "We make solar panels for homes" not "We're revolutionizing energy infrastructure."
2. Why do you do it
Your personal motivation or the specific problem that drove you to start this business. This is where your founder story lives, the moment you realized this needed to exist. It's less about changing the world and more about what personally compelled you to act.
3. How you do it
What makes your approach different or unique. This could be your process, your values in action, or your specific methodology. It's the bridge between the problem you saw and the solution you built.
4. Who you do it for
Your specific audience, not "everyone who cares about the planet." Get granular about who benefits most from what you do and why you chose to focus on them. The more specific, the more memorable.
5. How you come across
Your personality and tone. Are you playful like Oatly? Direct and no-nonsense? Warm and community-focused? This is what makes people remember you in a crowded market of do-gooders who all sound the same.
That’s it. Five sentences, as clear and concise and possible.
The hard part is actually simplifying your message down so that it’s easier for people to remember.
The authenticity advantage
You really want to think about #5.
In a world of AI generated content, vibe coded websites, and guru copy, your personality can be your true brand differentiator.
Daniel's agency uses the phrase "unfucking the world" - the same message as "helping impact companies do better," but delivered with personality that people actually remember.
Oatly disrupted plant-based milk not by inventing oat milk, but by having a distinct voice in how they delivered their message.
There are a million ways to say the same thing, you can get really creative to determine your way.
The best part about focusing on your story?
It's impossible to copy.
Your competitors can steal your color palette, mimic your messaging, and even copy your business model. But they can't replicate the specific journey that led you to start your impact business.
That's your unfair advantage. Time to use it.
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200+
thinkers, builders, and investors
