Branding has come a long way from being just a recognized symbol for an entity. Over the years, brand design has evolved due to the human perception of a product or a service. In today's world, branding is considered the entity's value reflection. Therefore, studying human psychology has become ever-important in driving business growth.
When we say "branding," many still think of the pretty logo, business cards, office paint & interior decorations. Although that is an integral part, it is necessary to understand the reasons behind those decisions to choose that logo or the color palette. Branding is the way a business communicates with & is perceived by customers. So, how do we achieve the best way to connect to our customers? We do that by following a process to help you gain your business goals.
Phase 1 - Become a brand detective
Brand research helps us understand the similarities & standardizations used in the business industry. For example, all public transport logos look similar wherever you are. And the significant part is it's easier to recognize these because of the similarity. Research also helps businesses to show their truth. The initial audits study how the brand currently appears, what language it uses, what kind of experience it provides to its customers, who its competitors are, etc. Then, in-depth research helps us find the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities & threats (yup, it's SWOT in action).
Phase 2 - Coming up with a narrative
Having a brand strategy in place helps businesses to convey what they do in an effective way. It is one of the factors that allows for acquiring loyal customers. Answering the most important questions about your business's existence is crucial to delivering your message.
Phase 3 - Let's design
It's more of joining all the dots, hashing all the unwanted data & present the brand's appearance in front of the world. Gone are the days when only a logo would suffice to stand out in a crowd. Over the years, brands have become complex & to gain a spotlight, just a logo or a symbol is not enough. So instead, the brand design includes building the brand's personality (attitude, tone of voice, etc.) to represent them.
Phase 4 - Design implementation
Now is the fun part of creating visual creativeness using the brand's personality we worked on earlier. This is when we decide which typography to use, what graphic elements connect most to the target audience, design the print media, etc.
Phase 5 - Increasing engagement
Everything is ready. Perfect. Now it's time to include that brand personality in your day-to-day communication with potential & existing customers. By doing this, you will bring the brand to life, & increase brand awareness & engagement.
To conclude, good branding only works if it's an honest one. If a business does not deliver what it promised in its brand campaigns, there will be no use of the efforts taken. The company simply won't grow.