3 reasons why your brand is more than just your visuals
It’s sometimes easy to forget that your brand is more than just your logo. It’s more than the way that your website looks and functions, it’s more than the feel of your business card in your hand. It’s more than the words that you say, the strategy that you stand behind and the stories that you tell. It’s more than just the vision that you have for yourself (and your visuals.) It’s ALL of those things. All of them working together, as a team, to give you an overall and cohesive identity — one that your clients remember and makes them feel something. Your brand isn’t just an identity, though, either — it’s an expression.
Today, I want to hit on just (3) reasons why your brand goes beyond the design that you invest in or create (and that’s the honest truth coming from me, a designer.)
1. Your brand is an experience.
Your clients (and prospects) should have the same experience every single time that they come into contact with it. All of your materials, tangible and non-tangible, print and digital, in-person and online — should be cohesive and consistent. Whether someone looks at your business card, browses your website, reads your social media posts or the content that you put out, meets with you via video conference or over a coffee chat, etc., they should know that it’s you, each time. They should feel something and be able to see how genuine and authentic you are and what value you bring to the table, with the services that you provide.
2. Your brand reflects what others think of you.
If your brand is professional, legitimate and polished, people will feel the same way about it (and you.) They will take you seriously and more confidently hire you, if they truly like and trust you. If they are digging what you’re about, who you are, what you offer and see that you can serve them (all with the help of the different aspects of your brand that they experience, see point #1 above) — they will undoubtedly want to work with you. I want to hire someone that I feel is not only professional, talented and experienced — but who I can also relate to. As humans, I’m sure that most of us feel that way, as well.
3. Your brand includes your vision, mission, strategy and content — not just design.
These “non-visual” elements should come first, even before design and your logo is created. When you get super clear on who you are, what you do, what you want to be known for, who you want to serve and how you’re going to serve them, it will be much easier to decide on things like color palettes, typography, style elements, website function/development, printed/in-hand materials, social media platforms and more. When you have brand clarity, by knowing yourself and your craft really well and the words, strategies and systems that will attract paying clients in place, the “fun and pretty” aspects of your brand will come to life more quickly because they will simply complement and express the other aspects that you’ve already established.