Branding Terminology

There are terms that may seem similar but have different meanings. The more you know about them, the easier it will be for you to know exactly what you need!

Let’s get started!

Branding

A brand is an experience. It is the way you want your target audience to feel. Branding is the vision and mission of your company. It is your business’s personality as well as the message you want to convey to your audience. Your brand is the image or idea people have in mind when they think about you. Your brand is important for the experience but it also helps your business level up and stand out from the competition. Your brands voice, messaging, who you are, what you do and what you stand for all convey your business’s purpose and message and as a result your brand begins to stand out from the crowd.
So for example, a small business that sells natural, earth-friendly products and has a vision and mission to reduce their impact on the environment would want people to think about their brand as organic, wholesome and as business that cares about what they’re selling. They would need their brand to portray this message to the consumer to build that identity.

Brand Identity

Your brand identity is the perception people have of your business based on your business’s visuals. These visuals include elements like your logos, brand marks, patterns and illustrations. They determine how your potential clients interact with your business. The visuals have a huge impact on your brand and should be considered just as important as your products or services because they can either make or brand your brand (no matter how good your product is).
You need to visually capture your target audience in five seconds and this can be done through a cohesive, aesthetically pleasing and functional brand identity. It is important to establish an aesthetic. You need a defined look and feel for your brand identity.
For example, a fresh food store. They pride themselves in only supplying fresh, quality produce from ethically sourced farms but their branding is blue and bold and doesn’t relate to what they offer at all. They may offer really great quality, organic produce but if you had to walk past their store the bold, blue branding wouldn’t invite you in and tell you what you can find there. If they changed it up and had more of a green/rustic brand identity with visuals of fresh produce, you’d be more likely to walk inside. This brand identity could be carried through in the paper bags with their logo, hand-crafted labels and even a loyalty card with their brand feel. This creates consistency and it creates a trust in their product. If they’ve got their branding down and it’s aesthetically pleasing then you’ll easily trust that they offer good quality products too!

Now you can see that the brand identity (visuals) helps convey the message and purpose you want your target audience to associate you with, through your brand!

Brand Case Study

Nude Foods is a great example of a cohesive and aesthetically pleasing brand. They have their visuals down to a tee, from logos to custom labels to illustrations and their brand feel throughout their shop and website. You would begin to recognize their brand if you saw an advert for it without their name involved. It invites you in and makes you want to get involved with their brand. With everything tied together so beautifully it creates trust in their product. This shows you how beautiful design visuals create a brand identity which portrays the brands message and purpose, and creates a brand experience.

How can you create a brand identity and a presence for your small business?

Start by having a real, hard look at your brand. What areas need a revamp when it comes to your products and services?
Ask yourself what your current brand identity is conveying? If you supply high-end products is it conveying a luxurious, premium feel? Is your current branding conveying what your business is really about?
Next, begin to refine these areas but distinguishing what your message is and what the purpose of your business is. Is your business positioned uniquely in the market? Does what you offer make your stand out from the crowd?
Then you can begin developing your visuals like your logo, stationery, social media images, website, etc. Then implement strategies to see your brand identity come through.

They need to work together

Your brand and your brand identity are different but they still need to complement one another! This is what will give your business the aesthetically pleasing look and feel, a unified feel. Tell your brands story through your visuals and allow them to establish both your brand and your brand identity.

It can be tricky to tell the difference between the two and then put them together to create a cohesive feel for your brand but this is what we are here for! We’d love to help you work through your brand questions and create a unique brand identity for your business that will set you apart from the rest (in a good way!)

Feel free to get in touch! We’d love to collaborate with you!