Is Your Brand and Logo Strategy Enhancing Your Bottom-line?
Strong brands are usually profitable businesses. Many people see branding as just a logo. However, there is so much more to branding than this. A brand is the character and attitude of a company. If you were to this of a business as a person, the brand would be the voice, personality and style of that person. Good brands offers a comprehensible promise regarding the products, services and customer experience. A logo is not a brand however it usually is a foundational aspect of any good brand. Your logo design needs to go hand in hand with your overall branding strategy.
How to Create a Brand Strategy that includes Your Logo Strategy
When coupled with a strong logo strategy, your branding will be more likely to be recognised by your target market. If you are planning to build a successful brand, these are some aspects of branding you should keep in mind:
The promise of your brand you provide your customers.
A name that will be remembered
The design style that best represents for brand including the colours, fonts and shapes used.
The unique offer your brand offers customers.
A tag-line or catch phrase that sums up your overall brand vision
While you can create and manage your own brand strategy, it’s often helpful to get an external perspective from someone who has experience working with brands. Sometimes we get to close to our own businesses that we miss things other people can see quickly and easily. Having said that, I would not suggest designing your own logo. While your logo strategy is just one part of your overall branding strategy it is crucial to get it right. When you work with an experienced graphic designer to create a logo strategy that reinforces your brand they will explore your:
- Target market
- Brand goals and objects
- Brand vision
- Brand personality
- Brand values
Once this branding information is collected, your graphic designer can work as your creative partner to create a logo design and logo strategy that best represents your brand. It will reflect your brand personality and what sets you apart. When you work with a graphic designer to create your logo design, it doesn’t stop there. They will now understand where your brand is headed and next time you need something designed the briefing process will be quick and easy. Say for example you had a graphic designer create your logo, now it’s time to produce a marketing brochure. Your graphic designer will have a strong understanding of where you are headed and create a design that best fits with your overall brand strategy.
Large companies develop ‘Style guides’ for their brand and logo to ensure things stay on track and are consistent. Designing style guides can cost thousands of dollars (trust me I have out a few together over the years) which is out of reach for most small businesses. These styles guides are quite details, showing how everything should looks in different circumstances. They will show how your stationery should look, your websites, your uniforms, your advertising, your flyers and all your other printed materials the list is endless. As a small business, I would suggest building a strong relationship with a graphic designer who can handle all your design needs. Your graphic designer should become your ‘Style guide’ and can keep your designs on track and on brand.
