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Simply, Affordable, Quality Print & Design in Staffordshire and the UK
In today’s crowded marketplace, creating a strong brand identity has become an essential strategy for businesses looking to succeed and thrive. But what exactly does “brand identity” mean, and why does it matter so much?
At its core, a brand identity encapsulates the vision, values, personality, offerings and positioning of your business. It goes far beyond just a logo design, business cards or tagline – it includes the entire experience you deliver to customers.
Some key elements that make up a consistent brand identity include:
When all these brand elements come together cohesively, you have a successful brand identity that customers can form clear associations with. But why does it matter so much? Let’s explore some of the core benefits further.
Take Coca Cola for instance: from the font and colours of their logo, to the sound of the fizz from the advert to the silhouette of the glass bottle on the shelves, these small yet significant details are entirely responsible for making them one of the most successful corporations in the world.
One of the biggest challenges for any business is standing out from the crowd. With a thoughtful brand identity design that taps into customer desires, you can effectively differentiate from competitors. If you stand for something unique that resonates, your business gains an edge.
Consistent visual identity assets like colour schemes, logos, and typography will help customers recognize your brand easily. Studies show it takes between 5-7 brand impressions for a customer to remember you. Make recognition easy through trademark visuals.
Over time, a strong identity that delivers on what it promises breeds trust and loyalty. Customers who identify with your brand story and experience will become repeat buyers and advocates – part of your brand. Your brand voice captures “who” your customers want to associate with.
A brand identity unites and aligns your entire organization around a common mission and values. Employees “live the brand” through training and culture. Externally, your identity brings cohesion across all touchpoints.
At its best, a brand identity forges an emotional bond between your business and customers. Emotion conveys decision-making, so a compelling identity taps into meaningful human desires for belonging achievement, or fulfilment.
Great brand guidelines don’t happen overnight. It takes in-depth work to uncover your core differentiators and translate these into visual, verbal and experiential touchpoints that best represent your brand.
Here is an overview of the key phases:
Start by thoroughly researching your business environment, customers, and competitors. Uncover key insights that will guide your identity and help you stand apart. Develop a brand strategy that summarizes what you stand for.
Use your time and resources to research learnings to brainstorm creative concepts for your identity. Translate insights into potential visuals, taglines, and messaging frameworks. Explore different directions. Circle back to ensure concepts align with strategy.
With direction established, start designing key assets like logos, graphic elements, website UI, etc. Bring supporting identity elements like tone of voice to life through sample communications. When you begin to create a brand identity or brand image it can be handy to always remember the reasons behind why you started your company.
Roll out your new identity across touchpoints. Train employees to understand the brand story and deliver consistent experiences. Build brand guidelines and put them in place to govern usage and maintain integrity over time. Track performance and refresh as needed.
Investing the time to develop a thoughtful brand identity delivers immense value. Here are some of the key business results you can expect:
In today’s world, brand identity is no longer optional, its of the up most importance and really matters! To cut through the noise and connect with customers – and drive real results – taking control of your brand narrative has become indispensable. Treat your identity as a key long-term asset, and you’ll reap rewards for years to come.
For further help developing your brand identity, Print Stafford provides a comprehensive selection of printing services with full corporate branding and logo design including Brochures, Business Stationery, Advertising, Catalogues, Folded Leaflets and more. We have outlined some of the basic elements of brand identity and how to begin building a brand identity.
