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Developing a Unique & Effective Brand Identity
An identity is a collection of elements used by a brand to portray an image to its consumers or target audience. It is made up of values, communication principles, differentiation pattern, personality and shapes impression with consumers or target audience after an interaction.
It is an embodiment of everything a brand is and does, it helps to shape the consumers’ perceptions about a brand, build loyalty, helps to distinguish a brand from others and transform how audiences interact with a brand. In order to differentiate yourself from your competitors, attract your target audience, and turn them into customers, a strong and effective brand identity is the solution.
Why Do You Need a Brand Identity?
Brand identity is a frequently a misunderstood concept, it is loosely confused with the term ‘Brand’, ‘Branding’ and ‘Brand Image’, not only does it have a specific meaning, it is a powerful tool that influences the way consumers think or interact with your brand.
In the current digital age where brands are competing for a market share and customer bases, it is hard to capture the attention of a modern consumer or target audience. However, having a strong and effective identity is critical to compete for a market share and forge relationships with consumers with benefits such as customer loyalty, trust, brand recognition and constant growth.
Developing your brand identity
An identity consists of attributes that connects with consumers or a specific target audience, either through a brand name, distinctive logo, typography, choice of colours, visuals, slogan, product packaging and etc. These attributes should correlate with your unique values, brand value proposition, beliefs, long-term goals, competitive position in the market and the emotional experience stored in the minds of your audience when they interact with your Brand.
A brand identity can be expressed in any number of elements depending on the nature of the brand as one element might be more or less important. Regardless, every brand needs a basic identity, which includes these three core elements:
- Brand name: A brand name is the main identifier of a brand; it personifies all values and proposition a target audience has about a specific brand and its products. A brand name is memorable, meaningful, distinctive, relevant to a specific industry and these elements resonates with the consumers or target audience.
- Logo: A logo is one of the most instantly recognizable components of a brand, it consists of texts, symbols and images that helps the consumers to identify and differentiate brands.
- Color palette: The psychology of colors is an important consideration when developing a brand identity, color serves as a great component to differentiate a brand from its competitors, it can also be used as a means to portray an identity that truly reflects the values and personality of the brand.
Conclusion
Consistency is key to creating a strong brand identity; the brand name and visual elements should be approached strategically in ways to portray an identity that truly reflects the values and personality of the brand, communicates a brand story and effectively conveys a message about what the brand actually delivers to its consumers.