Top Tips For Visualising Your Brand
The visual side of your Brand is most likely the very first thing a potential customer will see. It will be the first thing that comes to their mind when they think of you, your services, and your products. It will also evoke an emotional response, so you want to make sure it does what you want it to do!
The visual assets you can create within your Brand Identity are logos (you can have a main logo, secondary logo, or watermark), iconography or symbolism, patterns, backgrounds, document templates, social media templates, typography, imagery… the list goes on!
In this article, I have compiled a few handy tips for what you should consider when building your brand, or creating a design brief if you choose to outsource to a designer. If you want to know about the importance of Branding, make sure you check out my article here!
Think of a name
This might seem a little bit out there, but I have had multiple clients come to me wanting a Brand created and agreeing to pay for my service without even having a name to associate with their business. As a designer, I hate to say it, but this is not something I can do for you! Unfortunately, there is no set guideline on creating a business name, but you should consider what it is you are selling, what are other companies called in your industry and also, what would you be happy to put your name to.
A good business name is usually catchy, recognisable, simple to read and pronounce and ‘should’ indicate what you offer. These are good places to start but realistically, you need to be happy with it and as long as your overall Brand Strategy is the best it can be, the name will fall into it however you see best.
“Your Brand is what other people say about you when you're not in the room.”
Jeff Bezos
Colour
Colour psychology is fascinating – the general idea is that different colours can give us an emotional reaction or assumption on a subconscious level. It is worth noting that this is still debated, however, it is always good to take into consideration the potential meanings associated with colour when deciding what would work for your business.
Here is a quick colour guide:
Green – Peaceful, Growth, Health
Green gives the message of growth and all things ‘natural’. It gives the impression that a company is environmentally friendly and ethical – which is something people are looking for nowadays! Whether the company is these things is another story – examples of green branding are Starbucks, Whole Foods, Tropicana, BP and Land Rover.
Yellow – Optimism, Clarity, Warmth
Yellow branding is great for instilling a sense of joy and attracting attention – yellow brands such as Mcdonald’s, Post-It and Ikea all seem fun and ready to use! It is worth noting that with a yellow logo, you may want to think of an alternative to colour to balance it out as Yellow can appear washed out on different backgrounds – so you can copy McDonald’s and pair it with a red (or black as they now seem to be doing), Ikea with the yellow and blue or even Subway who use yellow with Green.
Red – Excitement, Youthful, Bold
Depending on the shade, red is a very powerful colour to use in your brand with it being associated with ‘taking action’. Coca-Cola is probably the most well-known, instantly recognisable and still looks like a young brand, much like Lego or Nintendo. A strong, bright red also gives the impression of importance -much like a ‘breaking news’ headline – this could be why media brands like CNN have used it.
Orange – Friendly, Cheerful, Confidence
Orange gives a sense of playfulness and confidence; it can get you noticed! Similar brands such as Nickelodeon, Fanta and Amazon are linked to being fun and being reliable. You know what to expect from them.
Blue – Trust, Dependable, Calm
By far one of the most popular colours for businesses (in my experience, at least), and this could be because it is a very professional colour to use. It instils a calming yet reliable link to the brand it is associated with and also works well for those who are red-green colour blind. It is very popular amongst social media companies, tech companies and even healthcare companies. Look to Facebook, the original Twitter, Dell, HP and even Pfizer for reference.
Purple - Luxury, Wealth, Creativity and Originality
The jury is out on this one – I think it could depend on the shade of purple that you use, and what your experience with purple is. In the UK, for example, Purple has traditionally been a royal colour used to signify nobility, wealth, and luxury. This may be why brands such as Cadbury’s and Hallmark opted to use it. However, it is also said that purple is linked to creativity and unique things, almost a magical colour that would appeal to children. As you read this you may think ‘Oh, but don’t you have a purple brand?’ – yes, I do indeed and it is for two reasons; 1. I love purple and the mix of purple and green has always been attractive to me and 2. Purple is creative and unique, so let’s roll with that one. Brands like Aussie, Ribena and Welch’s utilise purple very well and let’s not forget the icon that was Prince!
Grey/Monochrome – Neutral, Balance
Grey Brands and Monochrome are another popular one – not only do they give a sturdy, dependable vibe but also their logos and iconography are completely adaptable. Brands like Cartoon Network, Nike, and Puma are all very recognisable, and yet their logos don’t contain any bright colours. They can however switch up their logo’s colours for one-off designs, special events and whenever they feel like it – but the core logo remains the same.
Typography
One thing I never thought would happen as I grew up was that I would become obsessed with fonts, using them, creating them, and recognising them – a good font can go a long way.
For example, the Harry Potter brand has a fantastic styling throughout however, the most recognisable element is the typeface. I always recommend setting two typefaces for your brand and then keeping that consistent in all your marketing, outward correspondence and any visuals (if you can). It may be tempting to use beautiful swirly, custom fonts throughout your Brand, but you also need to consider accessibility. Make sure you have at least one simple font in your Brand arsenal and then save your pretty font for your Logo, headers, and taglines to accentuate the styling of any design work.
Spacing
Sometimes the absence of design can leave a powerful impact on your audience. Spacing, if used right, can help focus the attention on specific parts of your design assets. Not only that, but it also makes things easier to absorb and even helps when people are skim-reading – you may notice in newspapers they have set spacing between wording, larger headings and they separate sections for subsequent reading. The art of spacing doesn’t just apply to Brand design, it also applies to marketing, so it is definitely a handy one to think about!
Keep It Consistent!
The key to crafting the mother of all Brands is keeping everything consistent – that’s why Graphic Designers will (or should) provide Brand Guidelines if you use their services. This is so you can maintain the aesthetic of your visual brand throughout all platforms. If you pick a font, use it. If you selected specific colours, use them!
I think there are exceptions to the rules when it comes to seasonal promotions but even then, you can maintain your branding throughout. For example, if you’re doing a Halloween post, you could switch to spooky or autumnal colours but still keep your fonts the same. Most importantly make sure your logo is on EVERYTHING you design. This will protect your work and help stop people from using it without your permission (or at the very least, they’ll have to give you credit when doing so).
Discovery Calls with Emma Rae Designs
If you have an idea for a Brand but aren’t quite sure how best to implement it, get in touch and we can have a chat with one of my no-obligation discovery calls. In these calls, I’ll ask you questions and discuss with you some options and try to nail down how best to get your vision out of your head and into the world.
Simply fill out the Brand Enquiries form available here