brand-from-references

name

brand-from-references

description

Build a brand visual system and social media content from scratch using inspiration libraries and Claude Design. Use this skill whenever someone needs to create a brand identity, social media presence, or visual campaign and doesn't have existing design assets — especially when they're starting from a vibe, a website, or a rough idea. Triggers include: "build a brand," "design social posts," "create a visual identity," "make a brand kit," "I need a social media presence," or any request to go from raw business context to designed marketing output. Always use this skill before reaching for any other design workflow.

Brand From References

Build a brand visual system and social media content in under an hour using an inspiration library and Claude Design. This is the foundation skill — everything else you produce visually should build on the reference files created here.

What you need to start

• A business concept, website URL, or PDF describing what the company does
• Access to an inspiration library (Pinterest, Dribbble, Behance, or similar)
• Access to Claude Design

The workflow

Step 1 — Understand the business

Scrape or gather everything available about the company:

• Website copy and any PDFs they have
• Their existing logo or color palette if one exists
• How they describe themselves and who they're talking to

If they have a bad website, that's fine. You're not working from their design — you're working from their concept.

Step 2 — Build an inspiration board

Go to an inspiration library and search for visual styles that fit the concept. Good starting queries:

• Industry + aesthetic (e.g. "green science graphics," "dark fintech UI," "minimal health brand")
• Mood or feeling (e.g. "industrial bold," "clean biotech," "warm consumer wellness")

Save 10–20 images that feel directionally right. You don't need to know exactly what you want yet — go into this with a loose direction and let the rabbit hole sharpen it.

Recommended libraries:

• Pinterest — best for broad mood and aesthetic exploration
• Dribbble — better for UI, logos, and polished brand work
• Behance — good for full brand case studies and identity systems

Save images to your local drive — you'll need to upload them directly into Claude Design.

Step 3 — Drop everything into Claude Design

Open a new Claude Design session and upload:

1. All the inspiration images from your board
2. The scraped website copy or any PDFs from the company

Then give Claude Design a single prompt. Keep it direct:

"These images are the visual inspiration. This copy describes the company. Build a social media design system for them — including color palette, typography direction, and at least 3 post templates."

You don't need to over-specify. The reference images do the work.

Step 4 — Stay inside Claude Design

Once the system is built, do not leave Claude Design for any other design work related to this brand. Use it for:

• Additional social posts
• Website sections
• One-pagers and decks
• Ad creatives
• Any future campaigns

The reference files you uploaded become the foundation. Every new output should be built on top of them. This is what keeps the brand consistent without a design team.

Step 5 — Iterate by adding references, not by changing direction

If something doesn't look right, don't rewrite the prompt. Go back to the inspiration library, find more examples that show what you're after, and add them to the Claude Design session. References are the steering wheel.

What good output looks like

• A defined color palette (3–4 colors max)
• At least 3 post templates that look like you'd pay for them
• Typography that's consistent across templates
• A visual language you could hand to someone else and they'd know what to make

Notes

• You can do this for a brand you've never worked with before. Tom has done this for 5+ companies in a month.
• If the company has a bad website, scrape the copy anyway. The words tell you what they do. The inspiration board tells you what it should look like.
• Your reference board is a living document. Keep adding to it as you find things. The people with the most curated raw material build the fastest.
• Start a folder for every client or project you're even loosely interested in. You don't need a contract to start collecting.