YOUR LOGO - YOUR BRAND

If you had to choose a word, a phrase, or even a paragraph that described the very essence of your business, that you wished to project to your target audience; what would that be?

And so in theory, each time we interact with a client by completing a job for them, or an item of our promotional material is read, or an article on our website is opened, it reinforces this core message. That we aim to produce a thorough and creative graphic design, website development and marketing advice service, that is personal and goes to great lengths to make every job a success for our clients.

If we can inject these feelings into our work, our attitudes, our premises, our promotional material and our website communications, then over time it will become the essence of our company and therefore our brand. And when used effectively, this can become a very valuable tool for our company to use on all forms of promotional and marketing material.

So what about your company? Do you understand the value of your business branding? In many cases, over time and built up reputation your brand can be more valuable to your business than your tangible assets. Although largely intangible, your brand embodies the very essence of your goods and services, so often symbolised in a logo, but conjuring up many emotions and responses by the public.

For example, New York brand consultants Interbrand has estimated Coca Cola’s brand value (a few years ago now) to be approximately US $69 billion! A crazy figure and who knows how they arrived at it. The point is though, market research will show time and again that most people agree that Pepsi tastes better than Coca Cola when the brands are unknown. However when the taste tester knows what brand they are drinking, the test results are reversed and the results show that most like the taste of Coca Cola over Pepsi! This is clearly an emotional and loyal response to one of the world’s most well known products and brands since its inception in 1886.

Now not many people are dealing with a brand as enormous as Coca Cola, but through good brand management and market research to devise your brand strategy, you can capitalise and develop a strong brand image for your business that will also incite the desired response from your target audience.

Below are some tips on how to develop, nurture and use your brand through your logo and marketing material to the best advantage for your business:

1. ANALYSE IT: It may just be a logo in your mind, but look at it honestly. Are you proud of it, does it have the look you’re trying to project to your customer? Does it look fresh and up to date, or have you outgrown it?

2. FIX IT: Depending on what stage your business is it, maybe a total redesign of your logo is in order. As your business has grown and diversified, your logo may not have! Perhaps a fine tune is in order. Whatever your decision, if you have the budget, we recommend using an experienced designer at this point. Your identity is so important and as your logo appears on everything, it should be the best it possibly can be!

3. APPLY IT: Now that you’re happy with your logo, look at its application to all bits of marketing and promotional paraphernalia, business stationery, placement on product packaging, websites... the whole box and dice. If it’s going to work best for you, it has to be applied to everything, and consistency is paramount.

4. REFERENCE IT: I cannot emphasise enough how critical this is. You need to ensure company colours, fonts, and the general integrity of your logo and its application can be quickly referenced in a manual. Small or large, depending on your business size, this is a guide supplied to all who use your logo and thus promote your brand. You must protect its integrity.

5. TRADEMARK IT: Why go to all of this trouble if you don’t trademark and protect your brand! To find out how, go to www.ipaustralia.gov.au.

6. LIVE IT: While a picture paints a thousands words, a creative and consistent visual identity is only part of your brand. The way your business and product performs is also a big player in setting you apart from your competition. Really know who you are, who you supply and the service you provide, and your brand will evolve with you. You must keep your staff up to speed in this area too, they must learn to live and breathe your brand if it is too develop in the way you wish.

Last but not least, there is no set formula to branding. It’s very individual. Your business history, your client relationships, your existing logo... these are all the building blocks to developing your brand image. The way that customers feel about your brand, including personal experience, rumour, belief and other information filtered through when dealing with your company is the real measure of your business’ brand.

Melissa Scott-Gawinek
Director, Divine Creative Design

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