Corporate identity design and logo design constitute the cornerstones of any company. The right steps to be taken and the right designs to be created here would ensure the rise of a business.
Logo and Corporate Identity
Just as your personal identity makes you unique, your corporate identity is the most important detail that distinguishes your business from other businesses and makes it unique. Your corporate identity design is the core element that shapes your company. So, what exactly is corporate identity? What does it have to do with design? And how can you shape a strong corporate identity that would take your business to the next level? Let’s start all the adventure with a definition. What does the term “corporate identity” actually mean?
What Is Corporate Identity?
Corporate identity is the sum of all the elements that a company creates to show the accurate corporate image to consumers. While sometimes wrongly considered interchangeable, the terms corporate identity and brand identity are different from “brand image” and “branding”.
The term branding refers to the marketing practice of actively shaping a distinctive brand. The brand is the perception of the company in the eyes of the world.
Your corporate identity is the detail that makes you instantly recognizable by your customers. Your target group associates your corporate identity with your product or service, and this identity becomes the element that establishes the bond between you and your customers, creates customer loyalty, and determines how your customers will perceive your brand.
How to Develop a Strong Corporate Identity?
Corporate identity consists of a few basic elements:
- Your mission
- Your values
- Your brand personality
- Your unique position among rivals
- Your brand voice
These are the elements that define your brand, and it is important to have a clear understanding of each before you start building your corporate identity. If you are having trouble understanding exactly who you are, do not worry. A brainstorming with the experts of the field will satisfy all your needs.
First of all, ask yourself the following questions:
- Why did we start this business?
- What are the values and beliefs of the business?
- What do we do better than anyone else?
- What makes us unique?
- What are the three words we would prefer to define our brand?
- What are the three words we would prefer to be used by our customers to define us?
Brand Positioning
Brand positioning strategy involves building brand relationships in the minds of customers to ensure that they perceive the brand in the expected way.
Why is brand positioning important?
Brand positioning strategies that shape consumer preferences are directly related to consumer loyalty, consumer-based brand value and willingness to buy the brand. Effective brand positioning can be defined as building a positive, distinctive and reliable perception of the brand in the minds of consumers.
How to capture a strong brand positioning?
Step 1: You need to analyse the following in order to achieve unique and successful brand positioning:
- What do consumers actually want?
- What are the distinctive skills and qualities of our company and brand?
Step 2: After answering these questions, you need to choose a positioning expression that would ensure the following:
- Interaction with consumers
- Accurate delivery by the company (actual skills)
- Distinction from rivals
An easy way of Brand Positioning is to “summarize it in three words”, such as “vegan, traditional and feminine”. Try not to choose generic words like “quality products, unique, and successful”, since these are the goals of any brand, away from distinction.
Step 3: Remaining challenges mainly include the development of brand personality, packaging design, products, services, and visual identity design, and the building of communication. However, creating them will just be a source of pride for you in the future.
Logo Design
Design is the cornerstone of Corporate Identity. The first detail that needs to be structured in brand designing is the “LOGO”. The “Logo”, which is the graphical emblem, symbol, sign or text of your brand, can be called the foundation stone of corporate identity. It inspires all the ideas about your brand in the mind of the persons who see it, and it is the second main element after the brand name in determining how your assets, brand and services will be perceived.
In addition to the logo, details such as packaging design, web design, social media images, business cards and the uniforms worn by your employees are other elements within the framework of Corporate Identity design.
In other words, all these stages included in clarifying your design and brand identity, are essential in establishing a successful business providing an accurate representation of who you are. Missing a leg will negatively affect your corporate identity. So how exactly should you design and create a brand identity that will take your business to the next level?
Developing your Brand Design
Design is the most important element and it needs to be accurately processed. The building blocks in your design assets that you need to identify and present to your clients include the following:
Typography
Typography is about the font (or type) you choose for your branding materials. It is especially important to choose logo fonts and brand fonts wisely. The typography you choose will tell a lot about your brand, so you need to be wise in choosing your fonts.
The Language of Colours in Corporate Identity
People, including your potential customers, have psychological connections with different colours, and strategic use of brand colours and logo colours can have a serious impact on the perception of how your brand in the minds of your target group.
Remember that most logos are not monochrome, and yours does not have to be either! Colours can work just as well when combined as they do on their own. However, you are not recommended to overdo by using too many colours. Generally, two or three colours are enough for a logo, and more than that will likely cause confusion on your design’s message.
Forms and Figures Used in the Logo
When it comes to your designs, you will also need to think about form and figures. This is why you should scrutinize this subtle yet effective element that can be used to reinforce the desired response from your customers. For example, a logo consisting of just circles and soft edges would inspire a very different response when compared a logo that is sharp and square.
Round shapes such as ellipses, circles, and ovals represent unity and love from a warm perspective. On the other hand, straight-sided triangles, squares, and rectangles make customers think of power and efficiency. Irregular lines may create a sense of stability and reliability, but you need to be careful: if figures are not balanced with something fun like dynamic colours, they may fail to connect with your customers. Straight lines also have their own effects: vertical lines express masculinity and strength, while horizontal lines represent peace and warm emotions.
How to Design a Successful Logo?
A successful logo is,
- Timeless
- Simple,
- Catchy,
- Remarkable, and
- Suitable for the field of business.
While there are always exceptions to the rule, most of the successful logos only use two or three colours and a single font. Besides, a successful logo can be printed in any size without sacrificing design.
Place Your Logo Anywhere
Once you start using your logo, it will appear everywhere your business performs. From the web to business cards, your logo design needs to look professional and clear, and is there a better way to test it than to see how it looks in real time?
Add your logo on an unpublished website. Print it on business documents and see how it looks on a letterhead. You can even put it on your social media pages and test if people like it.
Once you understand the building blocks of your design, it is time to work with a competent designer to realize your corporate identity and transform your brand identity into concrete design assets. That is exactly what we are here for. If you want to get professional services for your Corporate Identity and Logo Designs, please do not hesitate to contact us.