Published April 13 2025

Published April 13 2025

Written By Brenton
Branding
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Stop Building a Brand — Start Solving a Problem

Tech pros waste months polishing. Start charging instead.

The Big Idea

Too many tech professionals spend months “building a brand” — tweaking colors, posting on LinkedIn, brainstorming taglines — without ever making an offer. Branding matters, but not before revenue. The fastest way to build credibility is to solve a painful problem and get paid for it. Focus on results, not polish. Your first client won’t hire you because your website looks nice — they’ll hire you because you made their problem go away. Solve something valuable. Charge for it. Then brand around that. Not the other way around.

Why It Matters

Tech professionals often confuse activity with progress. They spend weeks designing logos, fine-tuning font choices, tweaking LinkedIn bios, or building personal websites from scratch — all before making a single offer. But branding without a buyer is just performance. It’s a polished delay tactic dressed up as strategy.

According to CoLab Software, 90% of engineering leaders say they’ve delayed product launches due to late-stage design changes — decisions fully within their control. The same logic applies here: over-polishing slows down everything that actually builds momentum.

And momentum matters. MIT research found that 95% of new products fail — not because they weren’t built beautifully, but because they didn’t solve a real, defined problem.

In the long term, obsessing over branding before validating demand creates fragility. You end up investing in style before substance. You fall in love with your aesthetic — not your customer’s pain. And that’s where leverage disappears.

If your solution works, people will overlook your branding. But no one will pay for a polished identity that doesn’t solve a clear, valuable problem.

What to Know

  • Your brand doesn’t matter if no one’s buying.
    A clean site, clever tagline, or slick logo won’t build trust if your offer is vague. People don’t buy because your branding looks legit — they buy because your solution feels urgent and clear. Clarity wins. Consistency builds. But results come first.
  • Nobody hires a vibe.
    Clients aren’t shopping for aesthetic. They’re hiring outcomes. When someone has a problem, they don’t scroll your color palette — they look for proof you can help. You can always upgrade your branding later. But you can’t retrofit trust where results should’ve gone.
  • Solve → Sell → Then Brand.
    Branding should be a reflection of solved problems, not a prerequisite for solving them. Use this order:
    → Problem you can fix
    → Offer that makes it easy to buy
    → Brand that amplifies what’s already working
  • Most personal brands are built backwards.
    They start with storytelling, not service. With image, not impact. Don’t be a “build in public” ghost. Be the person who quietly solves a painful, expensive problem — then lets the receipts do the talking.
  • If it’s not monetized, it’s a hobby.
    Your brand can be personal, polished, even thoughtful — but if it doesn’t help someone move from pain to progress, it’s a side project. And that’s fine — as long as that’s the goal. But if you want freedom, the offer comes first. Always.

What to Do Next

Forget the perfect brand. Start with a useful offer.

Think of one problem you’ve solved more than once — for a teammate, a stakeholder, or a client. Write down what changed because of your input. That’s not just experience. That’s leverage.

Now ask: Would someone pay to skip that same pain?

If yes, skip the logo and start with a landing page. Or even simpler — send a DM. You don’t need a brand to sell. You need a reason for someone to buy.

Want help making sure your brand actually supports your offer — instead of delaying it?

Download the Iconic & Impactful Brand Checklist — FREE

It’ll help you align your positioning, language, and presence around what actually turns clarity into paying clients.

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