What’s In A Name – Brand Strategy and Identity
In an age of almost limitless information, there is no nothing more buzzworthy than a brand story that sticks out, that resonates with clients and employees alike. Whether it’s a multi-billion dollar company started in a garage (Apple), or a toy company that seeks to prove that even ‘princesses’ can become engineers (Goldiblox), the human mind seeks connections with companies and brands that espouse their values, aspirations and ideals.
THAT is the ultimate goal of a comprehensive Brand Strategy and Identity process.
At Beespoke, we work very closely with you –the client – to understand your product/service, the industry you operate in, the overall customer journey and any issues they encounter, and how you promise to be different and beneficial.
During this process, there is substantive thought given to the overall brand strategy: at which stage we are also looking at your long-term business goals, and how they are interlinked with, or affected by, your internal values, the markets you operate in, and what your customers expect. We hone in on a few key areas:
- How different your offering is compared to the competition
- What competitive advantages do you have, and how do they translate into a better offering
- How fluid and frictionless should your customer service be
All of this helps establish the entire spectrum of brand values – values that are inherent and are the guiding light for your brand and your mission and vision; values that will be consistently applied on an everyday basis. We use these values and the customer proposition to create what we call “Supreme Brand Story” or “Brand Positioning Statement”- basically why you do what you do, and how it ultimately benefits the customer.
This Supreme Brand Story (who you are, what you do, who you do it for, and more importantly why you do this) gives us clues and insights to your internal value language, the tone of communication with internal and external stakeholders (customers, vendors, employees), and the brand feel you want to communicate.
In essence, this is the blueprint that builds your entire brand storytelling process, and answers a simple question: If your brand were a person, who are they? What is their life story? What do they stand for?
Brand Identity Design
While your brand image tells people who you are and what you stand for, your brand identity is what makes you instantly recognizable to your customers. Think of a blue lowercase ‘f’ in a white square, or a white swoosh on a black t-shirt – these are instantly recognizable iconic logos that don’t need any additional explanation.
It is absolutely crucial that your audience is able to associate your brand identity with your product or service, because over time, that identity is what forges a strong, deep connection between you and your customers, building loyalty, based on how they perceive your brand and your values.
It also determines how your customers will perceive your brand, and how aggressively they will stand up for it. In essence, you want your brand to become a hive around which your loyal fans will be creating a buzz.
The Beespoke design team – especially our brand identity design experts – then work with the strategy team to brainstorm how to encapsulate all of the above into a brand name, and a brand identity framework – the logo, the fonts used, icons and styling, application of color theory and a brand palette, brand design guidelines for consistent communication across all channels and how your brand is reflected in each, and a whole lot more.
At this stage it is also very important to keep in mind the various touchpoints where anyone outside your company may come across your brand identity, where they be:
* A brick-and-mortar location
* An online marketplace
* Social media
* Physical clothing or handbags
* An app
* Visiting cards
* Brochures and Billboards
Keeping a wider frame of mind about these touchpoints helps anticipate future usage of your brand identity template, and makes it easily adaptable to a new situation down the line.
The end result is not only your final Visual Brand Identity, but also a Brand Design Guideline Document. This document becomes the go-to resource for anyone in your company to access how to use your brand visuals effectively and easily, depending on multiple situations described therein.
The values, brand tone of voice, brand image and design framework will, in next steps, be used to hone in on a medium-specific brand content strategy.
To find out how Beespoke can help you create an impactful brand story and identity, feel free to get in touch with us today.
