Branding can seem an intimidating subject on first approach. An elusive tool wielded and mastered solely by large corporations, the likes of Apple, McDonalds and Nike. The reality is that, if the fundamentals of branding are done thoughtfully, it is an effective and attainable device for growing all business, big to small and with tangible results.
Encompassing a host of strategies such as visuals, messaging, client journeys, and value-focused operations, measured branding allows businesses to successfully reach and communicate to their ideal customers.
Core to the purpose of branding is to bring clarity and continuity to the visual and messaging components of a business identity.
Exploring all facets of building a brand is a worthy exercise for businesses to undertake, one which deserves a deep dive that our word count doesn’t allow.
So, to break down the subject into a more bite-size morsel, let’s specifically look the visual structure of a brand, that is the way it looks and feels from a client-facing point of view. We will discover why bringing consistency to company aesthetics and carefully considering the health of a brand is more central to business operations than one may initially expect.
How leveling-up your brand can benefit your business
Developing a cohesive new brand or consolidating visual elements for an existing brand can reap many direct and ancillary benefits for businesses. Here are just some reasons investing into your brand can pay off.
Customer Recognition
Have you ever walked past a sign, seen an advert or social media post and automatically knew what company it was for? This is a perfect example of brand recognition due to steadfast visual representation. Brand recognition is built over time by maintaining consistency across all channels, that means in logos, colours, fonts, brand messaging, and other stylisations.
How does this contribute to growing a business? When shopping for a particular product or considering a company to perform a service customers will quickly recollect brands they have seen portrayed clearly and consistently and in turn will be far more likely to choose a brand that they recognise over something unfamiliar.
Building Trust
Trust is built on a sense of knowing a person and feeling they are reliable. In the same way, customer trust is gained by feeling they know a brand and what to expect from a service or product.
Building strong visual cues through consistent branding helps customers know what to expect when they see a business represented, helping grow a sense of dependability in that brand which directly translates into business profits. Forbes.com published research stating that consistent brand representation can increase revenue by up to 23%.
Accurate Representation
When attracting ideal customers, a business must think about who those preferred customers are and what values they will have in common. When thoughtfully executed a brand can communicate these values as well as the personality of a business, they provide insight into what kind of experience a customer will be investing into.
Giving a clear picture of who you are through your brand can also provide a means of differentiating you from your competitors. This can all be told through visual assets such as imagery, colours and fonts which is why carefully considering these elements is important to all businesses.
Attract Ideal Talent
Quality branding is not only about drawing in new customers, but also a way to help attract skilled staff and keep teams motivated by creating a sense of unit and reliability.
Having a professional and unified visual front to the business can also help establish a sense of pride with employees making them more emotionally satisfied in their role. Further to that, when a brand’s values are clearly distinguishable through its aesthetics, they are more likely to appeal to people who share the company values. This is a key to developing a longstanding and successful relationship between employer and employee.
Focus on the foundations
If you don’t know where to start, working with your designer to define your brand’s visual building blocks can have a surprisingly impactful outcome toward making a brand feel refreshed and more professional. Remember consistency is key. Once a set of complementary visual assets are established, documenting them in a brand style guide will ensure that replication and representation of your brand stays true.
