In the world of 2021 where countless businesses are trying to make a mark for themselves, having a strong and unique brand identity is a must to make your business stand out from the rest. Many times entrepreneurs confuse brand identity with logo. The logo is only one of the components that build brand identity. Brand identity includes much more. It is a collection of all the visual components of a brand that help consumers distinguish it from its competitors. For instance, when you think of Spectrum TV, it’s not just the logo that comes to your mind but everything else including the social media graphics, website design, colors, and typography.
Developing a brand identity is all about applying the aesthetics and values of your business to its visual elements so that the audience can recognize it instantly. Here are some tips that can help you make a memorable brand identity in 2021.
#1. Research Your Audience, Product Value & Competition
To create a unique brand identity, you first need to have a good understanding of who your target audience is. This is important because it would help you strategize the way you target or promote a certain product or service. Different people want different things from a company/business; a pre-teen would have different needs and expectations than a college student. When you’re aware of your consumers’ interests, characteristics, and desires you’d be in a better position to build a brand personality that they can relate to.
It’s also important that the product or service you’re offering to the consumers has unique properties. Research about what value you can offer to your customer that others cannot. Being able to know the difference between your business and its competitors is vital to developing a strong brand. Competitors’ analysis helps you understand where your brand is positioned in the market and enhances your knowledge about the kind of branding techniques that work or don’t work.
#2. Establish Mission Statement
The mission statement is a statement of your business vision and commitment. It serves as a roadmap for the accomplishment of your goals. So you must have a direct and to-the-point mission statement with a well-defined path and clear goals.
Creating a unique personality for your business would not be possible if you’re unclear about its purpose and direction. The mission statement serves as a constant source of guidance and point of reference when devising and implementing brand-building strategies. When everyone from the designers to the developers and marketers is on the same page, it would be easier for them to come up with logos, taglines, and other visual content that are an apt reflection of the company’s vision/personality.
#3. List Down the Elements Your Brand Would Include
As mentioned earlier, a logo alone does not make a brand identity. When building a personality for your brand, you need to create a visual language that can be applied and used across all mediums. So list down the components of your brand personality. Typically, a brand identity includes elements such as colors, photography, logo, illustrations, web design, icons, typography, video and motion, interactive elements, and graphics.
#4. Design Your Elements
It is your brand identity that introduces your business to the consumers and builds familiarity with them. Hence it is important to provide them an experience that they enjoy and connect with. When it comes to designing the above-mentioned elements, you need to ensure that their presentation is cohesive and consistent. So, brainstorm ideas, experiment with your design software, explore color palettes and study the feasibility and impact of the graphic elements you wish to incorporate. Also, consider the order of your content (headings, sub-headings, etc) and choose an icon that is creative, relevant, and clear. Designing all such aspects with attention to detail would go a long way in building a strong bond between your brand and audience.
#5. Maintain Your Brand Identity
Building a brand identity is not a one-time job. You need to constantly monitor it to maintain or improve its positioning in the industry. To assess how consumers perceive your brand personality and how they interact with it, you could make use of key performance metrics such as social media discussions, comments, surveys as well as Google Analytics. After having an idea about public perception regarding your brand, you can implement changes or modifications to correct a mistake or further enhance brand identity.