What's stopping UK creators from building a brand?
Adobe Express survey shows UK business owners struggle to show up confidently with their brand
Whether you're building a side hustle or running a full-time creative business, strong branding should help you stand out, not stress you out.
But according to a new Adobe Express survey of 728 UK business owners and creators, design-related anxiety is hitting a breaking point. It's costing them visibility, confidence, and sales.
This article explores what’s causing branding burnout for UK creators, from perfectionism and comparison traps to time constraints and tool fatigue. It also looks at what’s working: the kinds of design support and tools that are helping small brands show up with more confidence.
Short on time?
Here’s a table of contents for quick access:
- The design confidence gap
- Branding is more stressful than customer service
- What’s helping creators feel more confident
- What marketers should know
Patrecia Meliana
The design confidence gap
Branding isn't just a marketing task anymore. It's a mental barrier. A striking 82% of creators in the UK said they’ve avoided promoting their work because they felt their branding wasn’t professional enough. Even more worrying, two-thirds said they’ve delayed product launches for the same reason.
This lack of design confidence is deeply tied to comparison culture. Nearly 7 in 10 respondents said they felt pressure to compete with bigger brands’ visuals, creating a constant cycle of second-guessing their own efforts.
What’s most often getting in the way? Time. Nearly half (48%) cited a lack of time as their top challenge, followed closely by perfectionism (47%) and a lack of design skills (38%). The cost of hiring help also ranked high on the list, which adds another layer of difficulty for creators already bootstrapping their brand growth.
Branding is more stressful than customer service
Design isn't just hard. It's exhausting. On average, creators are spending six hours a week on branding tasks. That’s almost a full workday spent just trying to make things look good, and it’s wearing them down.
Fifty-five percent of respondents said they felt burned out by the design side of their business. In fact, they rated it as more difficult than customer service (38%), finance (28%), or even sales (25%).
One of the biggest sources of stress? Decision fatigue. Sixty-seven percent said they feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of design choices they have to make — fonts, colors, layouts, templates — and it’s draining their creative energy.
What's helping creators feel more confident
It’s not all bad news. The survey also revealed a clear trend: when creators had access to easier design tools, their confidence improved and so did their business outcomes.
Sixty percent of UK respondents said they’d improved their branding in the past year. Of that group, 68% reported feeling more confident promoting their work. More than half saw tangible benefits, including higher engagement (65%) and increased sales or enquiries (50%).
What made the difference? Tools that made design simpler. Easy-to-use interfaces (65%) and customizable templates (55%) were the most helpful, suggesting that creators don’t need more tools — just better ones that work with their limited time and skill set.
What marketers should know
For marketers working with small business clients, freelancers, or creator partners, these findings offer insight into how branding stress affects performance — and where you can step in to help.
1. Perfectionism kills momentum
If clients are hesitating to launch or promote, it might not be a strategy problem. It could be design self-doubt. Help them reframe "good enough" branding as a growth tool, not a finished product.
2. Templates are underrated
Custom design isn't always the answer. Even experienced creators benefit from high-quality templates that lower the barrier to entry. Providing or recommending them can help your partners move faster.
3. Streamlined tools drive better output
Creators don’t need more platforms to learn. The most effective solutions are ones that remove decisions and simplify execution. If you’re consulting or building resources, prioritize ease of use.
4. Branding is emotional
This isn’t just about logos. It’s about confidence. Small creators are comparing themselves to global brands and feeling like they fall short. Understanding that mindset makes you a more empathetic and effective partner.
This survey highlights what many creators already know but rarely say out loud: branding can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re doing it solo. The good news is that confidence grows when support shows up in the form of better tools, clearer templates, and fewer perfectionist traps.
Whether you're a marketer supporting creator clients or a small business owner yourself, the takeaway is the same. Branding doesn't need to be perfect to be powerful. It just needs to be visible — and that starts with cutting through the burnout.
