When we started Elevate, we had no client list, no reputation in the market and no history to point to. What we did have was a clear idea of the kind of firm we wanted to be: one that could sit comfortably alongside much larger practices and be taken seriously by ambitious businesses.
The trouble is, nobody can see your ambition. They can only see what you show them. That is why one of the first serious decisions we made was to invest in proper branding.
First impressions happen before you say a word
Think about how most people find an accountant now. They search, they click, they scroll, and within seconds they have decided whether you look like someone they could trust with their finances. A homemade logo and a template website might save money in the short term, but they quietly tell people you are small, new and possibly not going to be around for long.
For a young firm, that is a hard message to overcome. A considered brand does the opposite. It signals that you have thought carefully about who you are, and that you will think just as carefully about your clients.
Choosing the right partner
We worked with Salisbury Media Group, a creative agency here in Wrexham. Robert Salisbury founded the business in 2018, and the team works from a studio at Bangor-on-Dee. Their client list includes names like Wrexham AFC, Liverpool FC, TNT Sports and Warner Bros Digital, which gave us real confidence that they understood how to build a brand that stands out.
What mattered just as much was that they took the time to understand Elevate. They did not hand us something off the shelf. They started with the identity itself, covering our logo, colour system and stationery, and only then moved on to the website. That order matters. Your brand should shape your website, not the other way round.
You can see the branding and website by Salisbury Media for yourself.
From brand to website
Once the brand was in place, Salisbury Media designed and built our website with a structure for our services and our blog, so it could grow as we did. Everything felt consistent, from a letterhead to a landing page. As I said at the time, they “transformed our ideas into a powerful brand and a high-performing website that truly represents Elevate.”
What it has meant for us
From a cold start, Elevate reached £1.7m in sales in its first three years. I would never claim a logo did that on its own. Our team, our service and our clients are at the heart of it. But I am certain that looking credible from the very first day opened doors that would otherwise have stayed shut. It gave people a reason to pick up the phone, and it gave us a platform we were proud to send people to.
My advice to other small business owners
If you are starting out or thinking about levelling up, here is what I would suggest:
- Treat your brand as an investment, not a cost. It works for you every single day, in every email, proposal and search result.
- Get the brand right before the website. A website built on a shaky identity will always feel slightly off.
- Build for the business you want to be. Design for where you are heading, not just where you are today.
- Choose a partner who asks questions. The best agencies want to understand your business before they open a design tool.
- Be consistent. Once you have a brand, use it properly everywhere.
Starting a business is full of decisions that feel more urgent than branding. In my experience, very few have had a bigger impact. If you want people to see you as an established, trustworthy business, it helps enormously to look like one from the start.
Liam Wilson is the founder of Elevate Accountancy, a Wrexham-based accountancy practice.