A Great Brand Identity is Built on a Solid Foundation

The brand identity of a business can’t just be what someone thinks looks good. An effective brand must: accurately represent the business; engage positive customer response; and differentiate the business from its competitors.

Decades of market research have quantified every detail from colors, fonts, and shapes to the number of words in a slogan (7 max). This research informs how we do our work in developing a brand identity that does its job now and for years to come.

In addition to broad marketing research, we need to conduct specific research with each client. We need to know about your mission, your audiences, your competition, and your goals, among other key insights. Here’s a list of the questions we’ll ask when developing your brand identity:

1. What is your industry:
   Your industry makes a difference in the choice of a color palette, among other things. Blue is the most popular color for businesses that want to convey stability and integrity. It’s the most common corporate color overall. Here’s a quick rundown of branding color psychology: the brand values and industry sectors associated with each.Blue: (secure, trustworthy): Finance, technology, energy, health care
   Green: (wealth, health): Health care, energy, agriculture
   Yellow: (light happiness): Energy, hospitality, household
   Orange: (fun, vitality): Health care, household, technology
   Red: (dynamic, passionate): Hospitality, automotive, retail
   Purple: (royal, creative): Tehcnology, arts/crafts, finance
   Black: (sophisticated, upscale): Retail, automotive, technology
   White: (clean, pure); Health care, retail
2. What is your business?
   Within an industry, there’s a wide range of products, services, and customers. A surgical equipment manufacturer and a wellness spa are both in the health care sector, but their businesses are very different. Target and Neiman Marcus are in the same business, but their customers are different; that’s why Target’s logo is red and Neiman Marcus’s is black.You may have noticed that in the color list, some sectors appear more than once. Colors can be further refined to represent your specific business. A regal deep purple gives an impression of authority, whereas a light lavender purple creates a sense of spirituality. You can even combine colors to produce a desired effect. McDonald’s combination of red and yellow is one brilliant example.
3. What is your mission?
   What do you do? Why do you do it? How do you do it? You know your mission and your vision. Help us understand it so we can develop a brand identity strategy that effectively communicates it to your various audiences.Brand identities shouldn’t be something that needs frequent retooling. They should have a certain amount of staying power, if you’re in a trendy or rapidly-evolving field. You’ll want your identity to reflect your modern approach but isn’t dated two years from now. Understanding your mission and vision are important to us so we can develop an effective brand identity with a certain timeless quality.

   The examples from Target and Neiman Marcus illustrate the staying power of a well-researched brand identity. Target is bold, clean, and modern. Neiman Marcus is slim, elegant script. Each appeals to the tastes, lifestyles, and motivations of their customers and are classic designs that won’t soon look dated.

4. Who are your customers?
   A brand identity program needs to meet the expectations of your target audience. A whimsical cartoon drawing makes a good logo if your audience is parents of young children; not such a good choice if your prospects are corporate decision makers.The psychological principle of cognitive dissonance is at play when we see a discrepancy between our perceptions and reality. To resolve that dissonance, we will usually leave the situation – meaning we leave your business behind. When we see a high-end watch being offered for sale by a street vendor, we are suspicious. Our perception is that high-end watches belong in high-end stores. When we are presented with a different reality, we tend to walk away because we don’t like the dissonance.
5. Who are your competitors?
   Your brand identity should clearly differentiate you from your competition. We need to get to know them, too, to make sure we aren’t following them. Ethically, we would never copy anyone else’s look. Practically, we don’t want to look like others in the industry because it will confuse the customer. Our goal is to convert them with what our brand represents.
6. What are your marketing arenas?
   Your brand identity should look good on everything from business card to a website to a trade show display. It should be easily-recognized on tiny smartphone screens and grainy newspaper ads. It should be visible on different-colored backgrounds you might use in a magazine or TV ad.“Less is more” is our design mantra for brands. Minimal imagery outperforms cluttered imagery for legibility, scalability, and recognizability. We consider every element of your overall brand identity: artwork, color palette, lines of text and words per line.

   We know you’ll find lots of application for your newly-designed logo. Well provide you with all the resources you’ll need: color and grey scale, low-resolution for email ads and high resolution for printed brochures. We’ll give you logo files with and without your slogan. We can provide logos for specialty applications like presentation templates, logowear, novelty giveaway items, and animation.

The more we know, the smarter we design

We want to deeply understand your brand’s platform and its customers. We apply proven marketing strategies to designing a brand that empowers your marketing campaigns, customer responses, and ultimate business success.

Don’t worry if you don’t have all the answers. We have decades of experience in marketing and brand design and we’re happy to help you define your brand. Contact us today for a complimentary consultation.

What do your brand and iconic brands like Ivory Soap, Campbell’s Soup, and Coca-Cola have in common?

From time to time, they each need to re-evaluate and refresh to stay current with audience expectations.

How do I know when it’s time to refresh my brand? Is a brand refresh simply a new logo? Will I have to build a new website?

These are all good questions. Let’s address them one at a time.

When is it necessary to refresh your brand

There are really two areas to assess when considering a brand refresh: internal factors and external factors.

Internal factors include mission, vision, values, and core product/service offerings. Your mission defines what you do and why you do it. Has that changed significantly over time? It likely has adapted to the demands of a changing marketplace. As your mission has evolved, so has your vision: this is your aspirational goal that drives you away from complacency and toward growth. These are two fundamental components of your brand and your culture. Your brand should reflect them. If they’re out of sync, it’s probably time to refresh your brand.

Each organization has its own culture built around its values. As your mission and vision have shifted, you may have had leadership changes, significant growth, different hiring practices, or outside forces (like a global pandemic) that have impacted your culture. If your brand and your values don’t align anymore, you should consider a brand refresh.

You have evolved your product and service offerings as the marketplace demands. Recently, the global pandemic brought unforeseen changes to organizations literally overnight. Many organizations switched from on-site to online delivery of services (think restaurants, telehealth, and education just to name a few). Brick-and-mortar businesses became e-commerce businesses. Audiences that had been reluctant to embrace online offerings like banking, shopping, and investing have embraced apps and QR codes in untold numbers. How has your business changed as does your brand still represent your business model? If your brand has not moved forward with you, a refresh is in order.

External factors are those areas that are largely out of your control but have a definite impact on your business. Expanding global markets, audience shifts, competition, and the ever-shifting industry landscape are all factors to consider when you evaluate your brand.

Does your current brand reflect cultural attributes that don’t translate well into regions where you anticipate growth? Assessing your growth patterns and understanding how your brand will be perceived and accepted in those cultures is a critical factor in deciding to do a brand refresh.

When was the last time you put your fingers on the pulse of public opinion? Do you know your audiences’ perceptions of your brand? As technology has evolved, and people have more information than ever, audiences are making decisions differently. In many cases, audiences are influenced more by what other consumers have to say about your brand than what you have to say. Is your brand still connecting with your audience? Research can be enlightening when considering a brand refresh.

Can you succinctly say how your brand stands out from the competition? Can your employees? Can your audience? If you’re not standing out, you’re not moving forward. A brand refresh can help you stake your claim in your industry and differentiate yourself from the competition.

Every industry experiences a shifting landscape. During the recent pandemic, no industry was left untouched. Organizations everywhere were upended. New technologies have significantly impacted how people research, purchase, and share their opinions. These disruptions lead to change throughout your organization – your brand needs to keep pace.

Is my logo my brand?

Your logo is a visual representation of your brand. It’s the most recognizable and public-facing component of your brand, so it is integral to communicating your brand to your audiences. As you refresh your brand, you will need to consider whether this important piece still reflects your brand goals. In many cases, your logo will need an upgrade. Sometimes, especially in the case of mergers, you may need an entirely new logo.

Keep in mind that a new logo is not the same as a new brand. To be truly effective, work with a firm that can help you with your overall brand strategy – including your logo.

Will I need a whole new website?

Your website is the hardest-working tool in your marketing toolbox. It’s something that should be refreshed regularly, and rebuilt from time-to-time. One of those times might be when you refresh your brand.

Your website is the most visible element of your brand. If your website is slow to load, doesn’t make e-commerce easy, or function well in a mobile environment, in the minds of your audience, those flaws are attributed to your brand. Sometimes a brand refresh only requires a few tweaks to your website. But keep in mind the critical importance of your website to your brand’s reputation and don’t be afraid to start fresh with a new website.