Start up, side gig or solopreneur, at some point in your business journey you’re going to wonder if you should invest in branding. Like a Negroni is more than just gin, you realise that branding is more than a logo. You see others with flavourless, bland brands. You want a non boring brand identity that makes you standout. But how do you know when to go all in with branding?
We all want a memorable brand identity. One that’s aligned with you, how you do business and that translates from your mind to your marketing. It’s your currency, superpower and DNA distilled into your digital and print collateral to make magic across your buyer touchpoints. But what is brand identity design?
Brand design is the first ingredient for a brand that shakes the room. It’s the first splash of flavour that ignites your entire brand experience. It sets the tone, capturing the essence and personality of your brand in a glance. It’s the bold statement that grabs attention; the subtle nuance that leaves a lasting impression.
Your brand and website is a puzzle that should be done together, by the same designer who created the strategy behind it all. No one knows your brand better than the designer who’s brought this visual identity to life.
Sheradyn got in touch last year when she needed to update her website to allow her business to grow in the way she needed. But we quickly realised what Sheradyn was missing wasn’t just a great website but in fact a brand that felt like her and attracted the right clients.
Today I hand the spotlight over to Cheeky Green, two Melbourne girls who I had the pleasure of creating a brand design for in 2020. One year on, the girls share more about their journey in starting a new business and how branding played its part in it.
First impressions are the most important! And your visual branding is what potential clients will see before anything else. Research states that you’ve got 1 – 20 secs max to capture your audience in today’s current digital market. It is a crucial part of how people engage and experience your business before digging into you and your offering. Your design needs to be professional, impactful, emotional and BOLD.
People will judge your brand based on visuals – as it’s the first thing we see. So, we know first impressions are critical. Consumers are savvy; they will dig deeper into you, what you stand for and what you offer. So, it’s super important to make the first impression memorable and align all brand elements with intention and meaning to convert your audience into buyers, not fence-sitters.
Research shows the ‘connections’ we make with brands can be as deep and emotional as our relationships with people. Think about it, is there a brand you LOVE that makes your heart flutter? To be a success, people need to get to know your brand, like it (or love it), trust and feel connected to it.
Successful brands are consistent! So then, what does inconsistency do to your brand? Firstly, it causes confusion. Secondly, inconsistency is one of the biggest turn-offs for people! When images, logo, voice, colours, fonts (and the list goes on) isn’t consistent – especially across the socials, it undermines your credibility.
There is a formula for everything these days, including creating a purposeful and meaningful colour palette. There is entire psychology for colours because it is a proven communication tool. We (designers) use colours to evoke mood, encourage action and influence emotion. In essence, it gets your audience to not only see but feel what you want them to.
True, deep brand love can be unconditional – your flaws are accepted & forgiven. Premium price? Product failure? These things don’t help, but they’re a lot easier to swallow if you have an emotional connection with the brand.
The Design Room offers visual identities + website worlds to non-boring women in business so they can BOOM – shake the room.
Each month I’ll send tips and insights on branding, brand strategy and websites so come on in and get nerdy with me.
