Why brands look cheap — and how to stop it
We hear it almost every time at the start of a conversation with a new client: we have a great product, but we are not getting the inquiries we expect. The price feels high to people. They do not take us seriously.
People do not buy products. They buy the confidence that the way those products are presented gives them.
Ilina Dimitrova
Founder & Creative Director, IN TREND
In brief
Brands look cheap mainly because of three things: mixed fonts and colours, photos with inconsistent quality and lighting, and a lack of visual consistency across channels. The fix is not expensive — you just need a style guide.
3 symptoms that you have a positioning problem
- Clients ask for a discount before they have understood what you offer.
- They compare you to cheaper competitors even though the products are not comparable.
- You need many conversations to convince a client — the brand is not doing the work for you in advance.
5 visual mistakes that have been costing you clients
- A template font — chosen for speed, not for message. Typography is voice.
- Stock photos — generic, recognisable, forgettable.
- A colour palette chosen because it is pretty, not because it is right.
- A website built on a ready-made template identical to thousands of others.
- A lack of consistency — a different tone everywhere, and the audience cannot recognise you.
Where to start
Before you change anything visual, answer three questions: Who are you for? What do you promise? How do you want people to feel after every touchpoint with you?
If the answers differ depending on who in your team you ask — that is the root of the problem. At IN TREND every project begins with a diagnosis, not a logo.
About the author
Ilina Dimitrova
Founder & Creative Director, IN TREND
Ilina Dimitrova is Founder & Creative Director of IN TREND (intrend.studio) — an AI-native creative studio in Bulgaria. She specialises in brand strategy, visual identity, founder personal branding, positioning, and intentional content marketing. Co-founder of IN TREND alongside Teodora Karaslavova.