How to choose a branding agency, in Pune or anywhere else
If you are starting a business or rethinking an old one, choosing who builds your brand is a big decision. We are based in Pune and work with clients across India, the UAE and Southeast Asia, and these are the questions we would ask if we were in your place.
By Saurabh Khatri, founder of The Brand Odyssey. 12 November 2026.
Start with what you actually need
"Branding agency" means very different things depending on who you ask. Some studios mainly design logos. Some are really social media teams. Others run ad campaigns and add design on top. Before you speak to anyone, write down what you need in the next six to twelve months. A new name? A logo and packaging for a launch? A website? Help with Instagram? That list will quickly show you which agencies fit and which do not.
It also helps to have a rough budget and a launch date in mind. A good agency will ask about both in the first call, and having answers ready saves everyone time.
Look at work that is close to yours
Every portfolio looks good. What matters is whether the agency has solved problems like yours. If you run a restaurant, look for restaurants, cafes or food brands. If you sell to other businesses, look for work that had to explain something complicated in a simple way.
When you see a project you like, ask what the brief was and what changed for the client afterwards. People who did the work can talk about it in detail. If the answers stay vague, the agency may not have been close to the result.
Ask who will work on your brand
In many agencies, the senior person you meet in the pitch is not the person who designs your logo. That is not always a problem, but you should know. Ask who will lead the project, who will design, and who you will speak to each week.
At The Brand Odyssey, every project is led by our founder, and we bring in specialist designers and developers depending on the work. We tell clients this in the first meeting because it shapes how the project runs.
Ask how they start
The first few weeks tell you a lot. An agency that jumps straight to logo options is guessing. A better start is a workshop or a few conversations about your customers, your competitors and what you want people to feel when they see your name. That should end in a short written brief you both agree on.
We often say that brand is a business decision before it is a creative one. If an agency does not ask about your business, they will end up designing for their own taste instead of your customers.
Questions worth asking in the first meeting
- What will we get at the end, file by file?
- How many design routes will you show, and how many rounds of changes are included?
- Who owns the final files and the rights to the logo?
- Will we get brand guidelines our team and printers can follow?
- How long does a project like ours usually take?
- What do you need from us, and by when?
- What happens if we need more later, like packaging or a website?
There are no trick answers here. You are listening for clear, specific replies. If an agency cannot tell you what you will receive, it will be hard to hold anyone to it later.
Be careful with very cheap or very fast
A logo for a few thousand rupees in two days is possible, and for a small side project it may be enough. For a business you plan to grow, a rushed identity often costs more in the end, because it gets redone when you open a second outlet, launch packaging or start advertising. Ask what is included in each quote so you can compare like with like.
Read how they write
Look at the agency's own website, proposals and emails. Branding is as much about words as visuals: your name, your tagline, menu descriptions, website copy and social captions. If their own writing is unclear, there is a good chance yours will be too.
Meet the person who will lead your project
If the agency is in your city, meet them in person. You will learn more about how they think in an hour across a table than from a polished deck. If they are not, a video call with the person who will lead your project does the same job.
Where the agency sits matters less than it used to. Many of our own clients are not in Pune at all. We have built brands and websites for Nusantara Estates in Bali, Frosty Bro in the UAE and Ruby Talkies in Mumbai, and much of that work ran over video calls and shared links.
If you would like to talk to us, you can book a meeting, or read how we approach logo and brand identity design and website design.
Questions people ask us
How much does branding cost in Pune?
It depends on the scope. A logo on its own costs far less than a full identity with naming, guidelines, packaging and a website. Ask each agency for a written scope with the price so you can compare properly. We price every project after we understand what you need.
How long does a brand identity project take?
At The Brand Odyssey, a logo with a basic brand kit usually takes three to five weeks, and a full identity with naming, packaging and guidelines takes six to ten weeks. How quickly feedback comes back makes a big difference to both.
Should I hire a freelancer or an agency?
A good freelancer can be a great choice for a logo. If you need several things to work together, like a name, packaging, a website and social media, a studio that handles all of it usually keeps the brand more consistent.
Does my branding agency need to be in my city?
Not really. Most branding work runs well over video calls and shared links. We are based in Pune and work with businesses in Mumbai, across India, in Dubai and the wider UAE, and in Bali. A local agency helps mainly when you want workshops in person or need someone to check signage and printing on site.
Planning a new brand or website?
Tell us what you are working on. Book a call or send a short brief, and we will come back with how we would approach it.