Want to build a unique brand positioning? Start with ticking these boxes.
“[A brand is] a set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships that, taken together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service over another.”– Seth Godin
Your brand is how your audience experiences your company, which makes every interaction with your brand precious. To create a lasting brand impression and differentiation, make sure it has the following elements:
The Words People Associate with You:
- Name
The name of your brand is the choice of word(s) that reflects your company, its products, services, or ideas. While coming up with a brand name, consider reflecting on your core beliefs, values, strengths, and concepts, and wrap it all up in a name. Make sure the name is also memorable, and not more than 2-3 syllables long.
- Tagline
“Just do it” and “Think different” have helped the brands Nike and Apple respectively, come to life. That’s what catchy headlines can do. So think of a crisp headline that compels your audience to take action.
The Visuals People Associate with Your Brand:
- Logo
Your logo is basically a visual trademark that helps your audience identify your brand. Your logo must easily adapt to all sorts of traditional and digital media. You may choose to use logos with slight variations for different mediums.
- Colors
The sight of a color stimulates emotions, which further drives people’s ability to make decisions. Choosing the right color is largely based on psychological factors rather than the designing factor. Therefore, understanding how you want to position yourself in your audience’s mind will help you choose the color or colors that would best serve the purpose.
- Typeface
Though it is one of the critical parts of the design, typeface is often left unplanned by most new businesses. Just like the color sets the emotions, the typography sets the tone and values. While choosing typefaces or fonts, consider the mediums across which the brand is likely to be promoted. For instance, Serif fonts are used for print mediums such as newspapers and magazines, whereas Sans-Serif fonts are preferred for digital mediums such as blogs and social media ads.
These elements are just the basics of your brand identity. In reality, your brand is much bigger than your logo and your font: it’s about how you connect with your audience. Yes, work on these elements to create a disruptive and distinctive brand identity… but they’re just a starting point.
Photo courtesy of Justin Casey
