A strong, unique, and recognizable brand can directly influence a business's success, which is why creating an effective brand identity is so important. When you create a brand identity, you're essentially applying your business’s values and aesthetic to any visual elements that will be used to promote your business. This means that a brand identity is more than just a logo. But, what goes into creating a brand identity supports your business goals, and why is branding so important? Viamark Advertising agency New Bern NC has been turning our client's values and dreams to reality with brand identity for years. Check out these 6 tips to developing and creating a unique and memorable brand identity in 2021.

1. Compose a brand strategy. This is a detailed plan that outlines exactly what your company is trying to achieve and how you’re going to achieve it. Include things such as your purpose, vision, mission, values, voice, personality, and any aspects of your brand identity that you already have. While your brand identity isn’t complete yet, it is a vital part of your overall brand strategy and will help you along the way.  

2. Research your audience and competitors. A brand identity’s sole purpose is to speak to its audience. To create a brand identity that’s memorable, you’ll want to know as much about your target audience as possible. Additionally, your brand’s audience may be the same audience as others (i.e. your competitors). It’s not enough to just understand your market to develop a strong brand identity, you also must evaluate your competitors. This enables you to understand where your company is positioned in your industry. ‍

3. List out the components your brand will include. A logo and a color palette alone do not make a brand identity. When designing your identity, you need to create a visual language that can be applied across mediums, and translate properly. A few common brand identity elements that Viamark Advertising agency New Bern NC suggest are:

• Logo
• Colors
• Typography
• Photography
• Illustration
• Icons
• Interactive elements
• Video and motion
• Web design
• Graphic elements

4. Generate a creative brief and begin to brainstorm. After compiling your strategy, research, analytical data, and desired identity components package it all together in a creative brief. This details the pertinent information needed to keep your team members on the same page. At this point, you want to take that text-based information and translate it into visual concepts. Use the emotional language about your brand’s personality, goals, and values, and have your team spitfire words that associate.

5. Design your elements. Brand identity is all about introducing yourself to people and building familiarity effectively, so it’s vital to make the experience as enjoyable as possible. In designing, that means providing a truly consistent and cohesive presentation. Bust out the pencils or design software, explore your color palette, and identify clear guidelines about the types of images, illustrations, and other graphic elements that you’d like to use. Finalize an icon that is clear, creative, and relevant. Select primary and secondary brand typefaces. Consider the proper order of content, including headers, subheaders, body copy, images, data, blurbs, etc. Look at a few examples of branding portfolios from Viamark Advertising agency New Bern NC here.

6. Finalize the details and build a brand style guide. Don’t spend all of this time brainstorming, creating, and organizing a brand identity for it to never get used—or even worse, used incorrectly. A brand style guide should include clear, easy-to-follow guidelines for every part of the brand identity. Include examples, use-cases, and practical details. Provide as much information as possible to help any designer replicate the brand without deviation. Once completed, distribute the guidelines to your team, store a digital copy in an easy-to-access place. Don’t panic if things aren’t perfect the first time. Trends are constantly changing, social media platforms redevelop frequently, so your branding should fit with the times. Remember to update and add brand materials as needed to stay on top! ‍

Brand Identity with Viamark Advertising Agency New Bern NC

Developing a cohesive and professional brand identity is an important part of any effective branding strategy for your company. Creating a brand identity requires research and attention to detail and style in order to develop a method that successfully meets the goals of your business and gives off the intended message. The designers at Viamark Advertising agency New Bern NC are the first to say that a successful brand identity creation requires time, effort, and experience. If you have the ideas but can’t seem to wrap your head around a DIY identity, leave the hard work to the professionals at Viamark Advertising. Stand out above your competition with the best brand strategy and contact us today.