Let us ask you this—how do you carve out your own unique space within your respective industry? Markets are crowded, competitors are everywhere, and consumers are picky about where they spend their dough. Being different from everyone else is the lifeblood of your business.
This is where your brand identity really f*cking matters. Think of it as your company’s DNA, a strategic blend of visual elements, personality traits, and core values that resonate with your target audience. It’s the reason they give a sh*t about you over other brands. Your brand identity is literally pasted and engrained in and across your entire business—your logo, marketing materials, company culture, and approach to customer service. It is what makes your brand unique, and is why people repeatedly buy and engage with you.
Where companies go wrong is they think their brand identity is a one-time thing, designed, implemented, and done. While there is truth to consistency, there is even more truth to change, and this carefully orchestrated process of identifying your brand requires a deep understanding of who you are and who your customers are. You’ve heard of companies rebranding? This is why.
Let’s get into brand identity—what it is at the core, the difference between brand image, the actual design process, and mistakes to avoid. And while we at M&P identify as a humble bunch, we won’t shy away from sharing some client success stories to prove why we’re a great brand design agency to work with. (We also won’t shy away from talking about our blog writing, social media, photography, and paid search skills either.)
Before you keep reading, schedule a call with us. We’d love to talk about how we can help with your branding and identity needs.
What Is the Core Identity of a Brand?
Without getting too spiritual, the core identity of a brand is its innermost essence, the fundamental ideas that define who the brand is. It’s the guiding light that makes up the brand’s core mission, vision, and values.
A brand’s core identity answers this deep question—who are you, and why do you matter?
Let’s take a look at three brands in three very different industries:
- Patagonia: They make clothes but their identity is environmental responsibility and activism. They use sustainable materials to help protect our planet.
- Mayo Clinic: They strive for medical excellence and a patient-first approach. They live by prioritizing patient needs and constantly seeking advancements in medicine.
- Ben & Jerry’s: Everyone loves a pint of B&J’s but even an ice cream company has a core identity. They want people to enjoy their product so their identity is making really good ice cream from really high-quality ingredients, and participating in social initiatives.
Poke around. You’ll find your favorite brands all live by an ethos that means something important to them. A core brand identity provides direction, builds trust, and brings loyalty to your brand.
Brand Identity vs. Brand Image
Brand identity and brand image are often thrown around interchangeably. While they sound similar, they represent different aspects of your brand. And if you’re really trying to build a brand, understanding the difference will take you much farther than brands who take shortcuts.
Brand identity is the story you make about yourself. Like we mentioned before, it’s that core sense of who you are as a brand that infiltrates all aspects of your company. Brand image is the extroverted sibling to the introverted identity. It’s how your brand is perceived by your audience based on their experience with your brand. (These experiences include marketing campaigns, interactions with customer service, and word-of-mouth recommendations.)
Having a consistent brand identity will help strengthen your brand image. But brand image isn’t totally in your control. It sucks, but sometimes your fate is left up to the people you’re catering to. Best you can do is try to resonate with them.
The Brand Design Process
If you haven’t picked up on it by now, brand identity is way more than creating a logo. You have to transform strategic planning into a recognizable and captivating brand image.
When we work with a brand, our process starts by chatting with you about your mission, vision, and values. Market research sheds light on the competitive landscape, while internal discussions help us get that inside look into your brand’s “why.” This discovery phase lays the groundwork for all design decisions we make moving forward (along with your input and approval).
Target audience research and creation then take center stage. Buyer personas are developed and competitor branding is analyzed to ensure the brand identity resonates with the right people. And it starts with your brand’s voice. Are you authoritative? Snarky? Funny? A distinct brand voice injects human qualities that people want to see. And yes, then comes time for that logo, along with color palettes, typography, and other visual branding elements. (Side note: consistency across all touchpoints is super important for visual identity.)
Finally, the fun begins. We help craft a compelling brand narrative, capturing your audience and connecting with them. And as you can see, it’s so much more involved than a cheap website and a logo. A good web design agency will take the time and patience in building the core of who your brand is.
Common Pitfalls in Designing Brand Identity
Designing a brand requires a solid foundation. So don’t fall for these pitfalls:
- Skimping on strategy and failing to understand your audience and core values.
- Being inconsistent, especially visually, and creating a forgettable brand.
- Chase trends and try to jump on bandwagons. Do what makes your brand unique.
- Fail to see your brand as a living thing and not adapt your identity to your audience and the market as they evolve.
By avoiding these pitfalls and prioritizing a strategic approach, you can do your best to craft a brand identity that stands the test of time.
Brand Identity Design Services: Our Case Studies
We want to call out two of our clients who we’ve done brand design for. It was a blast getting into their brand and really finding out what makes them tick in order to give them the best results.
Fast Water Heater
Fast Water Heater‘s rapid expansion across four new markets presented a unique challenge: maintaining a local feel while leveraging a single website. We tackled this head-on with a comprehensive branding and design strategy. We modernized Fast Water Heater’s brand identity, transitioning from a character-centric logo to a more abstract design, allowing for greater flexibility. We also expanded their color palette, offering more freedom in developing branded assets. This refresh made sure Fast Water Heater’s brand identity remained consistent across all locations while feeling modern and approachable.
Read more about Fast Water Heater and our work with them here.
Prevail Fitness
Faced with the disruption of COVID-19, Prevail Fitness sought a pivot to an online coaching model. They partnered with us to navigate this digital transformation, leveraging our branding and design expertise to establish them as a national brand. We understood the importance of a strong brand presence for this endeavor, so we revamped their branding, crafting a new logo, name, and brand bible that effectively communicated their state-of-the-art fitness services. We also developed a unique and compelling color palette that would become the hallmark of Prevail’s marketing materials across all digital touchpoints. Oh, and we captured custom photography specifically tailored for the digital space to further solidify their brand identity.
Read more about our work with Prevail Fitness here.
Interested in brand design and identity work of your own? We’d love to share more of our experience and talk with you about what you’re looking for. Schedule a call with us today. We look forward to meeting you.
