Yufemayi
N 30.27 / W 97.74 AUSTIN, TEXAS STANDARD TIMELINE: 3–4 WEEKS

Process

A brand identity project at Yufemayi runs on a fixed day count, not a vague estimate.

This is the actual sequence, taken from a Logo Mark plus Visual Identity System engagement running the standard three-to-four week schedule. The same steps apply whether the job is a vector logo redesign for an existing mark or a single project page for a small business launch. A rush timeline compresses the same steps into ten business days.

  1. Step

    Discovery call and intake

    A forty-five minute call covers the business, the audience, the competitors worth looking different from, and whether an existing mark needs to be reacted to or replaced outright. We confirm scope against the estimator figures and lock the fee band before any design work starts.

    Day 1
  2. Step

    Reference gathering and hand sketching

    No screens yet. Two directions get roughed out in pencil against the intake notes — one safer, one that pushes further — and a short written rationale is attached to each before either gets built digitally.

    Days 2–5
  3. Step

    Two directions presented

    Both directions are built as clean vector files and shown in black on white first, then in colour, then applied to one real object — a card, a cup, a sign face — so the client isn't judging a flat logo in a void. One direction gets picked on the call, not by email a week later.

    Day 6
  4. Step

    Refinement, round one

    The chosen direction is tightened: spacing, weight, how it holds up at three millimetres and at three feet. Round one is included in the base fee and typically resolves construction issues rather than concept issues.

    Days 7–9
  5. Step

    Refinement, round two

    The second included round. By now changes are usually small — a kerning pair, a colour value nudged half a step. If round two is opening new concept questions instead of closing them, that's a sign the wrong direction got picked in step three, and we say so.

    Days 10–12
  6. Step

    Additional revision rounds, if requested

    A third or fourth round is available at a flat $150 each, added to the estimate rather than hidden in it. A fifth round is where the studio will usually say no — not to be difficult, but because a fifth round rarely produces a better mark, only a different one.

    Days 13–15, if used
  7. Step

    Identity system build-out

    Type pairing is finalised and pressure-tested in Word and Google Docs, not just in Illustrator. Colour system, paper stock notes and application rules get written up into the guideline document — nine pages for a simple mark, up to fourteen where a secondary mark or a pattern is involved.

    Days 16–19
  8. Step

    Proof review

    Where print is involved, a physical proof is compared against a lightbox for colour accuracy before a production run is approved. This step doesn't apply to a digital-only delivery.

    Days 20–21
  9. Step

    Delivery

    Final files arrive as vector outlines in .ai, .eps and .svg, the spec sheet with exact hex, Pantone and CMYK values, and the guideline PDF. Nothing is delivered as a screenshot or a flattened PNG standing in for the real file.

    Day 22–24
An open sketchbook with pencil concept sketches for a logo mark.
Step two, on paperRough pencil passes for both directions, before either one touches Illustrator.
Rush timeline

The same nine steps compress into ten business days for a 25% surcharge on the running estimate. Revision rounds still cap at two included — a rush schedule isn't the place to add a third.

See the rush toggle in the estimator
Revision structure, plainly

Two rounds included. A third costs $150. A fifth might get a no.

Two revision rounds are built into every Logo Mark and Visual Identity System fee. That's usually enough to move from a strong direction to a finished one — most of what happens in round two is spacing and colour, not rethinking the concept. A third or fourth round is available at a flat $150 each, billed only if used, and the estimator on the services page adds it to the band automatically the moment it's requested.

What we won't do is quote five directions up front to look generous and then charge for the six rounds it takes to narrow them back down to one. That structure exists to make a studio look busy. It doesn't make the mark better, and it isn't how this studio prices a project.

Hands comparing a printed colour proof against a lightbox.
Step seven, when print is involvedA physical proof held against a lightbox before a run is approved — screen colour and printed colour rarely agree without this check.
Where the work happens

Reviews happen at a table, not over a shared screen.

Mood boards and swatches get laid out physically for every review call that can be done in person — colour reads differently under studio window light than it does backlit on a laptop, and a client picking a mark from a monitor is picking the wrong version of it. Remote clients get the same boards shot flat and lit evenly, which is slower but closer to accurate than a screen share.

A consultation table set with printed mood boards and paper swatches.
Set for a reviewPrinted boards and paper swatches, laid out before a client arrives.

See the day count against your own project

The estimator on the services page turns scope, page count and revision rounds into a live band and a realistic delivery window.

Open the estimator