The Ultimate Guide to Brand Identity
Brand identity is essential to your business’ success. Not only does it build awareness and lead to trust, but it also has a huge impact on how people perceive your business. Here is everything you need to know about brand identity, and how you can build a strong one that attracts your ideal customers and sets you apart from the competition.
Brand vs. Brand identity
Brand
A brand is a perceived image defined by the public. It’s what you stand for or what people believe you stand for. A brand is made up of everything such as your voice, your values, your mission, and so much more. This is why maintaining a positive image is so important in branding.
Brand Identity
Brand identity is the visual marks that make up your brand. It’s essentially the face you give your company. Common brand identity elements include logo design, color scheme, fonts, tagline, website, social media assets, as well as any other visual collateral. Your brand identity plays a central role in your brand and branding strategy since these are the unique visual assets that determine how your brand is perceived.
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Why brand identity matters
Brand identity influences whether or not a customer wants to do business with you. Most people tend to gravitate more towards brands they know and trust—rather than invest in the unknown and risk a bad outcome. A strong brand identity has the power to overcome rare lapses in product or service excellence, while a weak brand identity can drive prospective customers away. This is why brand identity is so important, as it makes you more recognizable and trustworthy in the eye of the public.
3 Main Brand identity ingredients
Logo
As you probably guessed, the logo is one of the most essential pieces of your brand’s identity. It’s the first thing people see when they encounter your brand. A logo is a symbol that conveys your brand name and character in the marketplace. There are so many different logo styles out there. You should choose a logo that represents the character of your brand and resonates with your target market.
Pro-tip: The best logos are simple, easy to remember, and unique.
Typeface
Typeface refers to the unique font styles your brand uses in marketing collateral, logo, website, internal and external communications, etc. When choosing fonts, you should consider what your brand stands for and then think about the emotions you want people to experience when they see your visual design. There are five basic classifications of typefaces: serif, sans serif, script, monospaced, and display. Each font leaves a different impression.
Pro-tip: I recommend having a maximum of 2 or 3 different fonts for your brand. Having too many font styles can make you appear inconsistent and unorganized.
Color Scheme
A color palette is a powerful tool in both marketing and brand identity. The colors you use impact how people feel when they encounter your brand. It's important to choose colors that reflect your brand's personality since they will be used in your logo, social media, your website, and other marketing collateral.
Just like your fonts, the fewer colors, the better. I suggest selecting about 2-3 core colors for your brand. They should be used across your marketing collateral, business cards, website, and social media channels. Remember, your color palette should reflect your brand and the overall expectations customers have when they do business with you.
For instance, if you have a yoga studio business, you would steer away from colors that are loud or dark such as red or black. Instead, your brand colors should reflect feelings of calmness and serenity such as light green or earthy tones.
Pro-tip: Research your competitors and see what colors and fonts they use. This way you can determine which colors and fonts to steer away from.
Recap
In a nutshell, brand identity is composed of your brand's visual elements. This includes but is not limited to your logo, color scheme, font styles, and any other visual collateral. Brand identity plays a huge role in how your brand is perceived by others. Brand identity increases awareness, trust, and authority in the competitive marketplace. By having one, you can distinguish your brand from other similar brands and put your business on the map!
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