Brand identity is a notion that is commonly misinterpreted. The loose and inconsistent use of brand nomenclature in the general press—and even in the marketing business itself—is to blame for a lot of the confusion. However, "brand identity" is a potent weapon you may use to affect how people think about your company. It has an exact meaning. The sooner you grasp brand identity and what it can (and cannot) achieve, the sooner you can start enhancing it and changing how people view your company. Let's begin with an explanation.
What is Brand Identity?
Your brand identity is your company's visual (and, to a lesser extent, linguistic) representation. It is divided into eight sections:
- Business name
- Logo
- Tagline
- Color Scheme
- Typography
- Graphical Elements
- Imagery
- Voice
Your brand identity provides vital visual clues that express positive traits and assuage concerns consumers may have about your brand when used to support a brand strategy. These characteristics are difficult to describe, but they are psychologically persuasive. A clean and modern identity, for example, might indicate a company's attention to detail and credibility.
When these cues are combined with additional information, such as the messaging on your firm's website or a speech given by one of its principals, your audience begins to generate good thoughts about your brand. They begin to trust you and link your company with specific characteristics such as particular expertise, a service offering, or positive outcomes. Each component of brand identity should contribute to these associations and favorable sensations in a small but significant way. These pieces, when intelligently developed, build on each other and communicate a unified visual narrative.
Differentiation is another crucial aspect of brand identification in a marketing plan. Professional services organizations already have difficulty distinguishing themselves from similar competition; a different identity can entice potential buyers to notice you and give you a second look.
What is the Significance of Understanding Brand Identity?
Your brand is more than simply a logo—it's a living, breathing entity that changes as your company grows. In the eyes of your audience, a well-developed brand identity will set your company apart. It will also provide your customers with a sense of understanding and dependability, forming a bond that will lead to loyalty, engagement, and long-term success. It will be simple to expand your brand once you understand brand identity and its persona. As your company grows, you'll be able to use your brand's identity as a constant reference point for your brand strategy.
A strong brand identity has the following effects:
- Customer retention
- Relatability
- Representation both within and outside
- Belief in the brand
- Consistency of the brand
- Obtaining new clients (while taking care of existing ones)
- Set yourself apart from the competition
How to Create a Brand Identity for Your Business?
Your logo is merely one component of your whole brand identity. Style guides, marketing materials, and color palettes are only the beginning. Your brand identity is the sum of how your company seems, feels, and communicates with customers. It has an impact on the entire customer experience, as well as how others perceive your reputation and business.
Your small business's brand identity will not appear anywhere with so much at risk. It takes time, study, and careful consideration, but the end result is well worth the effort. The stages below will walk you through the entire process, whether you're rebranding or creating a brand identity from scratch. Knowing your fundamental beliefs, audience, and competition is crucial to developing a strong brand identity. It also entails developing a visual identity and a style guide to ensure consistency.
So, here's a step-by-step strategy to creating a great brand identity:
1. Determine the Objective of Your Brand
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
What is the purpose of your brand and the issues it addresses? What sets you apart from the competition? It's critical to begin developing a brand identity by establishing your brand's core objective. This will eventually inform other areas of your branding strategy, such as your slogan, tagline, and brand voice, among other things. You can also utilize your brand purpose to create a list of your brand’s essential features and benefits that set you apart from the competition. What distinguishes you from the competition, and why should clients select you over the competition?
You could, for example, sell a note-taking app that aids in the organization of people's thoughts and ideas. In this scenario, your brand's goal could be to make the lives of thinkers and writers easier.
2. Do Your Homework for the Competition
One of the primary purposes of branding is to set your company apart from its competitors. And to set yourself apart, you must first comprehend what you must set yourself apart from. This necessitates a grasp of the competitive landscape and the branding methods used by your competitors. Otherwise, you could simply blend in and appear the same as everyone else selling the same items or services.
Get a sense of how your rivals present themselves. What brand personalities do they take on? What visual elements do you notice in the landscape that stand out? For example, you might observe that your immediate competitors' brand colors are a mix of greens and whites. This could be a great chance to set yourself apart by utilizing an entirely different color palette.
3. Examine the Demographics of Your Intended Audience
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
While what you want to show to the public usually shapes your brand identity, the tastes and expectations of your target audience should also play a role. Get very specific with your target demographic and determine what would appeal to them. What visual features and tone of speech would they respond to?
4. Establish Your Brand's Personality and Voice
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
Based on the information you’ve acquired so far, it’s time to establish the distinct personality and voice you want to associate with your brand. This is mainly determined by the product you're selling and the demographic you're aiming for. B2B organizations, for example, are more likely to have a professional and authoritative brand voice as well as a serious demeanor. However, as previously stated, if the primary target audience favors conversational tones, it could also be welcoming and instructive.
Depending on the above qualities, your brand voice could be lighthearted, welcoming, conversational, serious, technical, and authoritative. Similarly, your brand’s personality could be dependable, spontaneous, friendly, serious, and so on. You can pick from an almost limitless array of words as long as they resonate with your target audience. You should let your brand personality shine through every channel and platform imaginable, not just social media. Also, in all of your brand communications and advertising messaging, you must employ the same brand voice.
5. Create Your Own Visual Identity
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
Because images make up such a significant part of your entire brand image, constructing your brand's visual identity is one of the most critical components of creating a brand identity. Begin by turning all of the information you've gathered about your brand identity into graphic concepts. Make a mental brand image of the most important adjectives you want to connect with your business. Colors can help to express a strong message about your brand identity. Bright, youthful colors, for example, might represent energy and youthfulness, while black and white can convey elegance, simplicity, and refinement.
Furthermore, different colors can create diverse moods and boost your brand's visual portrayal. Green may connote wealth, stability, progress, or even a deep relationship with nature. Dark blue could represent maturity, dependability, and security. On the other hand, yellow can conjure up images of youth, optimism, and happiness. To better understand which color combinations will complement your brand's visual identity, study more about color symbolism.
Aside from aesthetics and typography, your brand's personality will be defined by your typography. Serif fonts, for example, are timeless and communicate ideas of respectability and trust. Modern fonts, likewise, express intelligence, flair, and exclusivity. Understanding font psychology will aid you in determining which typefaces to identify with your brand.
Brand Identity Examples
Are you looking for ideas for your brand's identity? These brand identity examples demonstrate how effective your brand identity can be.
∙ Mastercard: A Brand Identity That Has Withstood the Test of Time
Image is taken from Mastercard
Everyone is familiar with the Mastercard logo, which consists of two intersecting circles in the company's signature red, yellow, and orange color scheme. Mastercard's brand identity, believe it or not, hasn't been static all these years; in fact, it unveiled a new, modernized brand identity just a few years ago, in 2016. You're probably thinking that the change was barely noticeable, and that's the key to an effective brand identity overhaul: retaining the core brand identity characteristics and elements that your audience recognizes while infusing a fresh, modern feel.
∙ PayPal: A Brand Identity That Is Consistent Across the Digital and Physical Worlds
Image is taken from PayPal
PayPal's brand identity was revamped in 2014. PayPal, like Mastercard, retained its recognized brand identity characteristics while adopting "an identity to better express its innovative DNA and future as the leader in digital payments," according to the fuse project. "As a result, the system now has a bolder wordmark, a stronger monogram, more vibrant colors, and a dynamic angle graphic that increases user perceptions of trust and innovation."
∙ Coca-Cola: A 130-Year-Old Iconic Brand
Image is taken from Coca Cola
Coca-Cola was founded in 1886, and while its brand identity has evolved over time, it still retains the core characteristics that it began with 133 years ago. (That's right: Coca-brand Cola's identity dates back 130 years.) The brand's signature bright red and white colors are instantly recognizable, particularly when combined with Coca-well-known Cola's typeface.
Create a Brand Identity Through Strikingly Website
Strikingly is the best website builder for creating a website that will help you establish a strong brand identity. You may create an eye-catching website with outstanding features. Furthermore, you may have a website like that without having extensive website-building experience.
Strikingly makes it simple to construct your own website. You simply need to select a template from Strikingly's library of ready-to-use templates. Sign up for a Strikingly account and start creating a brand identity through your website if you're interested.
Conclusion
Your competition in today's digital economy isn't just the store down the street. There are tens, hundreds, or even thousands of businesses exactly like yours competing for attention on the internet. A solid brand identity is more vital than ever for small businesses to stand out. Because small businesses don't have the resources to run major marketing efforts to compete with larger companies, it's even more important to know who you are, what you provide, and who you're selling to thrive.
Small business branding isn't an option; it's a requirement. It is critical to ensure clarity and create a professional corporate brand. A brand is the most critical business driver for all communications, and it affects all parts of your company. Your brand is ingrained in the minds of your clients. Create unforgettable experiences for your customers. They will love you back if you wow them and show them that you care about them.
