While you can be recognized by your brand name, these days it’s not enough: you need a stronger brand identity. Brands are often recognized by their logo, and some brands are well-known enough to be recognizable through their color scheme, too. This is their branding; from your website to your social media to your guest posts, you’re easily identifiable before you introduce yourself.
There are several components that go into building a strong brand identity, starting with the obvious of a logo but going as nitty-gritty as font choices. We’re going to talk you through everything you’ll need to get started with crafting your business identity.
7 Components of Strong Brand Identity
1. A Solid Logo
There are some logos that we all know; McDonald’s, Pepsi, Apple, Audi. As vastly different as those brands are, almost everyone knows their logo before even seeing the company name. That’s what you want for your brand: you want a logo that stands out and says who you are without words. It should be in a style that reflects your company tone, have colors that represent who you are, and it needs to be recognizable no matter what.
When designing your logo, you should think about every situation that could arise. If you put a Christmas hat on your logo, can people still recognize it? If you go green for Saint Patrick’s Day, is your logo’s shape unique enough to still be recognized as you? Can you see the logo whether it’s huge on a billboard or tiny and printed on a pencil? You want a logo that stands out no matter what the size and season.
2. Recognizeable Colors
McDonald’s has red and yellow, Pepsi has blue and red: they can easily create graphics, clothing, and more with these colors. They’re easy to coordinate and represent the brands well. You want to be able to do that, too. Pick colors for your logo that you can use again and again on your website and in your graphics. However, you can’t just choose random colors and leave it at that.
You need to know your audience. Do you cater to kids? You need happy, bright colors for children. Are you a wellness brand? Calming, soothing, pastel colors work well, with lots of green to represent nature. Are you a company selling energy drinks to gamers? Then RGB colors that match your flavors are the way to go. No matter what colors you choose, they need to represent your audience and represent you.
3. Go-To Fonts
There are a finite number of colors in this world. Let’s say you have red and blue graphics; how do people tell your stuff apart from a better-known red and blue brand, like Pepsi? Part of it will be precise shading and tone of the colors you use, but fonts are a big part of your brand. Ensure you use the same fonts across your website and on the graphics you post on social media. This helps you create consistency, and it makes your visual content more representative of who you are.
You always want to use a font that people can read, and that screen-readers for visually impaired people can read, too. Still, ensure the fonts represent you. Custom fonts are great, but there are thousands of free and paid fonts out there already – so go digging. If you’re a wellness brand, a relaxed and approachable font works. If you’re a sports brand, then you want something big, bold, and clear. Pick a font and stick with it for your identity.
4. A Brand Voice
Once you have the visual aspects down, you can start creating a website and crafting graphics for your social media profiles, but now you need to figure out what you want to say. Who are you to your customer base? Are you that big, authoritative voice that speaks as a force in the industry? Are you quirky and relatable? Are you a kind friend who happens to be an expert in a certain niche? Determine these things.
You always want your readers and customers to know that it’s you once they start reading. You can’t go from being a friend one day to an uninterested corporate business the next. Stick to one tone so people who enjoy your style can find your content and get used to it. Then they’ll keep coming back for more because they enjoy your tone and it resonates with them. Think about what tone reflects who you are; then start crafting your brand’s voice.
5. Art Style
Some businesses have little drawings on their website or graphics. If you’re going to incorporate drawings of some kind, ensure it’s always in the same style. You should also make sure it’s the right style for you.
Let’s say you’re a wellness brand wanting to depict someone meditating on a yoga mat you’re they’re selling. The style needs to match the branding. If your website has muted colors, the drawing needs to use muted shades, too.
A month later, you want art to go with new face masks. If the yoga mat drawing was cartoonish, the face mask drawing would require the same cartoonish style. This is for consistency and branding purposes. Great artists are known for their distinctive art style – your branding should be the same. Any time someone sees a drawing in your art style, they should know it’s for your product.
6. Photography Style
If you prefer photography over graphics, ensure you’re consistent with the images you create and use. Try to photograph the same models and landscapes for new imagery. Don’t post pictures of New York one day and Seattle the next because they both count as “city”. Pick one location, ideally where you’re based. Apply this principle to fields and forests and skylines; select different pictures of the same area, again ideally where you’re based.
Meanwhile, with models, see if you can hire some. If not, choose images with the same stock models if you’re buying your pictures. Again, this is so people see someone’s face and associate them with you. You can’t have people see Tall Brunette Man and associate him with you if you’ve been using Short Blonde Woman to model your products. You want people to see her and think “Oh, she’s [brand]’s model!”
7. Marketing Strategies
You want your marketing to be everywhere. Put it on social media, guest post on other peoples’ websites and social media, and do email marketing campaigns. However, you want to ensure your strategies remain the same. Of course, marketing trends change over time and you should change with them, but make sure it’s still you.
If you rely on clickbait, don’t quit clickbait. Change to the new clickbait style if trends shift. Do you avoid clickbait at all costs? Then never, ever use a clickbait title on your website or social media. People who dislike clickbait will think you’ve changed, and they may like you less because of it. Stay true to yourself when you’re marketing.
If you need help solidifying your brand or even building your website from the ground up, don’t worry. Contact us at Social Media Move. Book a consultation call, ask about our services; we’ve got you covered, from logo to fonts to SEO implementation across your site. You’ll have a solid brand and a marketing strategy that works.