The Importance of Effective Branding & Logo Design. Branding is incredibly important to a business, and to the consumers, customers and clients who interact with a business. Branding is identity, which leads to recognition, and eventually trust.
Understand the importance of symbolism and clarity to a person, and you’ll appreciate the importance of branding to your business.
Modern Day Example of Brand Power – Coca-Cola Vs Pepsi
Cola is a pretty common commodity, one that is appreciated around the globe. The two giants of the cola industry are Coca-Cola and Pepsi.
Coca-Cola is a far bigger brand than Pepsi. Sure, Pepsi has enjoyed exceptional success in an industry that is full of competitors (after all, there are quite a few brands that produce cola), but Coca-Cola has enjoyed far more recognition and popularity compared to Pepsi. Why?
Well, the reason for this is unbelievably simple!
Both Coca-Cola and Pepsi have altered their branding over the last century. Obviously, for companies that have been running for such a considerable amount of time, it’s important to update the corporate image and branding to keep their company fresh and competitive in a modern market.
However, Coca-Cola’s brand redesigns have been far more subtle, and far more sympathetic to their previous designs, than the changes to the branding and corporate logo made by Pepsi. Despite their design changes, branding consistency has allowed Coca-Cola to have more time building a brand image that has developed considerable trust with it’s clients and consumers.
Pepsi, however, have only been able to reach a measurable degree of popularity before radically changing their branding, rendering the brand less recognisable, which in turn reduced the amount of trust consumers had in their company and products.
Imagine if McDonalds had a Makeover…
Let’s pretend that McDonalds underwent a radical makeover. For some unknown reason, they suddenly stopped using the golden arches logo. They ditched their corporate colours, they dressed their staff in new uniforms and reinvented their interior design.
The kept the food exactly as it was before. Their products remained unaltered, but their image had drastically changed.
Would you walk into that McDonalds? Or would you drive by, assuming that the new look must mean a different business, and look for a restaurant that your could recognize?
The truth is, not everyone enjoys the products that McDonalds offers; however, EVERYONE knows who McDonalds are because their branding is so clear, so simple and so consistent.
Branding Your Business – Asking Yourself the Bigger Questions
Each brand is unique to a business, and in order to create an effective and long lasting brand you need to ask yourself some questions about your business.
For example:
- What is the mission of your business?
- What is the philosophy of your company?
- What are the benefits and unique factors of your products and services?
- What do you want associates, prospects and clients to think of your business?
- What qualities do you want your business to be associated with?
By knowing your customers needs, you can began to use your branding to shape their expectations.
Branding Your Business – Creating a Complete Brand Framework
A brand is much more than an image. It is the definition of your business. Branding your business by yourself can be extremely tricky, as there are a lot of aspects you need to consider. However, here are some core concepts that will help you to create a long lasting brand for your business.
Get a Great Logo – A logo is the foundation to your identity and image. A good logo will act as an inspiration for other branding ideas.
Spread the Brand Message – Think about what it is you want the branding to say about your business, and spread this message on to your staff and colleagues.
Integrate the Branding – Branding will only work if it is consistent throughout every level of communication and interaction; from digital email signatures to the design of your corporate uniform and everything in between, your branding must be clearly seen.
Give Your Business a Voice – It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it. The ‘voice’ of you company is incredibly important. Are you a friendly company, or a ritzy company looking to impress? Whatever your business personality, be sure to give your company a voice that reflects your true nature.
Say it in a Sentence – Create a one sentence statement that defines your brand. This will help to keep your image clear and make your branding more memorable and meaningful.
Forget Fancy and Keep to Consistency – Take it from Coca-Cola and Pepsi, it pays to stay consistent, even during changes, rather than choosing radical new design. Forget fancy, and keep to consistency.
Brand Promises – If your brand promises something to your customers, make sure you deliver it! A broken brand promise can quickly compromise the effectiveness of your brand. Make efforts to ensure that operations can support statements from branding statements and campaigns.