From the minute we wake up, our lives are now surrounded by products and services that have been carefully ‘branded’. Think about the phone you look at first thing in the morning; the coffee you drink throughout the day; or the shoes and socks you wear!
So on that note, how much thought have you actually put into your brand identity?
Once you have your ‘whys’ and your ‘whats’ in place, creatives like me can build the visual elements of your strategy to bring your business to life. The same goes for when your business evolves and you might need to refresh your brand identity.
When it’s done well, branding can have a really positive impact on your business. Here are 4 things a well-researched and well-designed brand identity can do:
- Create the right impression – and remember you only have one chance to do that!
- Communicate clearly, and avoid sending confusing messages to your audience.
- Connect with your audience, and make sure they feel and think what you’d like them to about your business.
- Make more money.
And in a little more detail…
1. Create The Right Impression
You have one chance to make that first impression; you have to get it right!
Humans are primarily visual creatures, over 90% of the information transmitted to our brains is visual (source: Thermoplae Sciences), so brand identity is going to play a huge part in your business. A few seconds is usually enough for someone to form an opinion.
What sort of opinion do you want your audience to form?
What sort of impression do you want to create in those crucial 2-5 seconds you have? Working with a good designer means you’ll have an identity that’s unique to you. And in a noisy world, standing out with something different is ideal. You want something that grabs attention and makes a good first impression. It’s important to make sure that your brand identity can show people how you’re different to ALL of the other businesses out there that provide a similar product or service.
2. Communicate clearly.
Having a nice logo isn’t just about it looking pretty. A good brand identity will help you communicate CLEARLY! And with the RIGHT kind of client for your business. Along with great copy, it’s the simplest way to let people know who you are, what you do and what your values are.
When your brand identity looks professional and awesome, it makes your business look…well awesome!
Your visual communications will help people see how trustworthy and professional your business is, and when people trust you, they’re more likely to buy from you, as well as recommend you to their friends and family. So by communicating clearly, building trust and creating loyalty. Good right?
3. Connect with your audience.
A unique brand identity will help you form a connection with your audience. What do you want people to see when they look at your logo? How do you want them to react when they see your new brochure or even your social media posts? How do you want them to feel when use your product or services? (have a read of this blog about colour and the impression it can help create). This will lead to consistency, recognition and memorability.
How awesome would it be to become the the ‘go to’ person for a particular product or service?
People will automatically recognise your content because it has your stamp all over it, no matter what the touch point is!! Your reputation will grow and precede you!
Think about Nike. In the 1970s and 1980s their company name always appeared with the swoosh icon. In the mid-1990s they dropped the word Nike…they didn’t need it anymore! Years of consistently using both the name and the swoosh together helped to establish the visual elements of their brand, and now whenever you see the swoosh you immediately know the brand, you know what they sell, what they stand for and you know the quality of their products. The swoosh is deep rooted in your head!
4. Make more money.
When you’ve got the right branding in place, you’ll create the right impressions and connect with the right clients – see my points above. When you look more professional, you’ll have the confidence to charge like a professional.
If you use your brand identity consistently (I’m talking logos, colours, fonts) you could increase your bottom line by about 33% (source: Lucid Press). If you’re not using your brand identity consistently, you’re going to end up with less chances to increase sales.
And a little bonus! 5.
Having your brand identity designed and set up correctly is going to save you time! When you know what your brand looks like, what colours you use and what fonts you use, you’ll have more clarity. It’s much simpler to create strong marketing materials (social posts, brochures leaflets etc) and advertising campaigns when you know the correct elements to use. And don’t forget, using the right elements consistently will help build recognition…
And trust…
And loyalty!!!
And let’s just keep in mind that a badly designed visual identity, or rebrand, also has a lot of power – it’ll have a massive impact on your business, but not the right kind!
Why not say hello!
Are you a new business selling a super cool product or service? But you’re not sure how to attract the right clients so that your business is successful.
Or maybe you’ve been running your own business for the last 5 years? But you feel a bit meh about your brand identity?
