What makes you different from the 7.9 billion people on Earth? It is undoubtedly your identity. Your identity is the way you present yourself to the world and the picture you create in there. Your identity is the only factor that defines ‘the unique YOU.’ Now understand how important your identity is to hold an impactable place in the world.
Just like how your personal identity presents your uniqueness, your business identity will present the quality of your business. Your business identity is as important as your personal identity. Just like how you cannot compromise on your personality, your business also should not. It is undeniably a must-have factor for any business.
Now, how to create that standout identity for your business? What are the other factors to consider while doing so? And why does that even involve colors, designs, and graphics? This blog is an answer to all these questions. Read this article fully to understand it better.
What is Brand Identity?
A brand identity is what image it portrays to the eyes of its customers. There should be some recognizable factors the moment its audience notices the brand somewhere. Brand identity is often being confused with branding. Let’s sort it out in this article.
Branding is when you market your brand to get a wider reach and build a bigger community of audiences for your brand. Brand identity is simply the identity that represents your brand the way it is. It has nothing to do with marketing and advertising. Let’s see an example to understand better.
Just think about going to a party. You will dress attractively to enhance your physical appearance. This way of presenting yourself to your audience is an example of brand identity. The people who see you will get familiar with you through these characteristics.
At the party, you talk to the people over there and share the things you do and you have done. This way of telling interesting things about you to establish a relationship with them is an example of branding. Through this, people will get to know more about you and what you do.
The starting point to develop an outstanding brand identity?
You know what brand identity is and how badly it is needed for your brand. Now the question is, how to develop one? Here is the answer. Building a brand identity is not as easy as pie. There are a lot of efforts and tactics involved in the process. But to get started, you have to know the ‘why’ behind your brand. Let’s see how to figure that out.
Before building an outstanding brand identity, you have to know what your brand really is and stay strong on it. It will give you a clear idea for developing your brand identity. If you do not know what your brand really is, don’t sweat it. Here are a few tips to figure that out easily.
Ask yourself:
- How did it all start? This will help you find the story behind your brand’s establishment. This also helps in branding. Your brand story is now ready.
- Why did you build your brand? This is the core purpose of your brand that lets your customer know their gain. This is the center point of your brand.
- What are your mission and vision? This will tell you more about your service and quality. This will portray your band’s generosity towards your customers.
- If your brand were a person, how would it appear? This will be the image of your brand. This is how your audience will picture your brand.
- If your brand were a person, how would be its tone? This is how your brand communicates with its customers. This plays a crucial role.
The foundation of brand identity:
Just like how you have dressed for the party to showcase your identity to the people there, it is important to dress your brand too to showcase its identity for its customers. What makes your brand showcase its identity is its design. Let’s see why.
Your brand’s design is the one basic thing that defines your brand. Design plays a crucial role in differentiating your brand from your competitors in the market. In short, the more appealing your design is, the better your brand’s identity will be.
You can represent your brand’s design through your logo, website, business card, brochure, ad design, etc. These are the most crucial things without which a brand cannot survive. Therefore, their design is also equally important to create an outstanding identity for your brand.
Designing your brand to create a standout identity:
To establish a standout brand identity, you must have a fascinating design. For that, there are a few important elements to be taken care of. They are – your brand’s typography, color palette, and form/shape. Keep reading to know more about them.
Typography:
Typography indicates your brand’s font. It is really important to choose one or two fonts for your brand and stick to it forever. When you do this, it becomes easy for your audience to find your brand through this part of your brand’s identity.
There are four common font types used to represent a brand. Those font types and their indications are listed below:
- Serif fonts like Times New Roman or Garamond represent trust or tradition.
- Sans serif fonts like Helvetica or Franklin Gothic indicate sleek or modern.
- Script typography like Allura or Pacifico adds a luxurious or feminine feel.
- Display fonts that are artistic/hand-drawn emphasize your brand’s identity.
Color Palette:
Psychologically, your brand color plays a secret role in the minds of your audience in picturing your brand. The color you choose can make a serious impact on your business. So make sure to choose your brand colors wisely. Here is a list of a few mostly used colors and their roles.
- Red makes your brand appear loud, youthful, and exciting.
- Orange makes your brand appear friendly and playful.
- Yellow makes your brand appear fun, accessible, and affordable.
- Green links your brand to money or nature.
- Blue makes your brand appear stable and trustworthy.
- Purple makes your brand appear royal and luxurious.
- Pink is targeted towards women. It indicates softness.
- Brown makes your brand appear rugged or masculine.
- Black makes your brand appear modern or sophisticated.
Form/Shape:
Your shape or form is another important thing that holds place for your brand among your audience. Round shapes, straight edge shapes, and straight lines are the three commonly used shapes. Here is what they will indicate if you choose them for your brand.
- Round shapes (circles, ovals, and ellipses) create feelings of community, unity, and love.
- Straight edge shapes (squares, rectangles, and triangles) make people think of strength and efficiency.
- Straight lines: Vertical lines indicate masculinity and strength. Horizontal lines indicate softness and pleasantness.
Giving life to your brand:
Your brand’s design is what creates your brand’s identity that gives life to your brand. This reflects in your logo, brochures, business card, and ads. Find a good designing & development partner who could provide kickass designs for your win. Establish a stand-out identity for your brand.
