BRANDING BASICS- PURPOSE,

VISUAL IDENTITY, VOICE

WHAT EXACTLY IS BRANDING?

Branding is a strategy that helps a business create a distinct identity in

the minds of consumers. It involves a company's name, logo, visual
identity, mission, values, and tone of voice. The goal of branding is to
attract and retain customers by helping them quickly identify and
experience the brand.
SIGNIFICANCE OF BRANDING

It gives your organization an identity, makes your business memorable,

encourages consumers to buy from you, supports your marketing and
advertising, and brings your employees pride.
BRAND ELEMENTS

Brand elements also known as “Brand identities,” They are the

components that help in identifying and differentiating the brand.
1. Brand Names:
Brand names are an excellent means of communication-whereas an
advertisement lasts half a minute, customers notice brand names and
remember its meaning in just a few seconds.
Ex: Apple, Google, Coca-Cola, and Tesla.
BRAND CHARACTERS

Brand Characters:
They represent a specific type of brand symbol. This element has a
tendency to take on human or real life characteristics.

Ex: Kellogg’s Bunny, Colonel Sanders of KFC, Ronald McDonald,

Vodafone’s Zoozoo.
Logo’s and Symbols
Although the brand name typically is the central element of the brand,
visual elements also play a critical role in building brand equity and
especially brand awareness.
Logo’s range from corporate names or trademarks (word marks with text
only) written in a distinctive form, to entirely abstract designs that
maybe completely unrelated to the wordmark, corporate name, or
corporate activities. Ex: Mercedes logo, Google, IBM, Harley Davidson’s
logo.
• U.R.L’s: (Uniform Resource Locator)
It denotes specific locations of pages on the Web and are also ordinarily
regarded as domain names.
Individuals wanting to own a particular URL often makes it imperative for
companies to use coined words for new brands if they wish to have a
website for the brand.
Ex: Facebook paid $8.5 to the American company Farm Bureau for the
domain name fb.com
• Jingles
They are nothing but fun musical messages written about the brand.
Ideally written by professional songwriters, they often are catchy and
sticky in nature which almost permanently registers in the minds of
listeners sometimes even if they want it or not.
Ex: Cocomo (Mujhe bhi do), Ding Dong Bubble gum
• Slogan’s
Slogan’s are short expressions that express descriptive or persuasive
data about the brand. They often show presence in advertisements but
can play an essential role in packaging and in other aspects of the
marketing program. They can operate as valuable “hooks” or “handles”
to assist consumers in grasping the meaning of the brand.
Ex: Hungry? Grab a snickers.
Have a break, Have a KitKat.
Some basics of branding include:
• Brand identity: The designs a business uses to communicate its brand, such as a logo, visual
identity, and brand style guide
• Brand touchpoints: The ways a business leaves an impression on customers, suppliers,
employees, and others, such as the website, email newsletters, and online reviews
• Brand positioning: The special place a business occupies in the minds of customers
• Brand associations: The positive impressions a business creates across brand touchpoints
• Brand voice and personality: The tone of voice and personality of the business
• Brand story: The story of the business
• Brand strengths: The skills, values, and innovations that the business is good at
BRAND IDENTITY

Brand identity is the collection of elements that distinguish a brand in

the minds of consumers. It includes the visual aspects of a brand, such
as its logo, color, and design, as well as the way a brand interacts with
consumers and the language it uses.
• Packaging
It is the process of designing and producing containers or wrappers for a
particular product. Just like any other brand element, packaging is
essential for a brand. It is the look of its packaging that inspires one of
the strongest associations consumers have with a brand. From the
perspective of both the firms and consumers, packaging must achieve a
no. of objectives, such as:
• Identify the brand
• Convey descriptive and persuasive information
• Promote product transportation and protection
• Assist in at-home storage
• Aid product consumption
Marketers must carefully work around the aesthetic and operative
components of packaging,

Ex: Ferrero Rocher, KitKat, Kinderjoy

BRAND TOUCHPOINTS

Brand touchpoints include every interaction a person can have with

your brand, whether within your control or beyond.
Some examples of touchpoints before a purchase are: Advertising:
Advertising is a common touchpoint for companies to get people
interested in their products or services before they buy them. Tv ads,
radio ads, and google search ads are examples of advertising.
BRAND POSITIONING

Brand positioning involves identifying what makes a brand unique and what
value it offers to customers. This could be a product feature, pricing, or
something else.
Example:
Through its personal care products, Dove sets itself apart by focusing on the
natural and real beauty of women. Their brand positioning strategy emphasizes
the way in which all women can embrace their authentic self through the use
of their products. Dove utilizes brand campaigns and other marketing tactics to
position themselves in an impactful way while resonating with their customers.
BRAND STORY

A brand story is the narrative that communicates a company's values,

mission, personality, and value proposition. It is a powerful tool for
establishing an emotional connection with customers and creating a
distinctive brand identity.
PURPOSE OF BRANDING

The purpose of branding is to help customers understand a brand's

values, mission, and what it offers, and to build a connection with
them. This helps a brand attract loyal customers, grow its market
position, and make sales.
VISUAL IDENTITY

Visual identity is the way a company, organization, or person is

represented visually. It's a collection of visual elements that help people
recognize and remember a brand, and communicate the brand's values
and personality.
• Some key components of a visual identity include:
• Logo: A distinctive symbol or mark that represents the brand. It's often the first
visual element that people think of when they think of a brand.
• Color palette: A set of colors that are used across all visual communications, such
as social media, the website, logo, advertisements, and brochures. Colors can
evoke emotions and have psychological effects.
• Fonts and typography: An important part of a brand's visual identity.
• Photography: An important part of a brand's visual identity.
• Graphics and illustrations: An important part of a brand's visual identity
• A visual identity is the foundation of a brand's image and
communication with the market. It can influence a customer's first
impression of a brand, and leave a lasting impression.
• A brand's identity is more than just its visual identity, it also includes
non-visual elements like a brand voice, mission statement, core values,
and copy editing guides.
• Why Visual Identity Matters:
• Recognition: Helps your brand stand out in a crowded market.
• Professionalism: Creates a sense of trust and credibility.
• Emotional Impact: Shapes how your audience feels about your brand.
• Examples of Strong Visual Identity:
• Apple: Minimalist design with a clean, modern aesthetic.
• Nike: Bold colors, dynamic imagery, and the iconic swoosh logo.
SOME RANDOM LOGOS
HOW TO CREATE A STRONG VISUAL
IDENTITY
You can’t just slap colors, fonts, images, and a logo together and consider your work
done. You need to approach the process strategically to get the right results.
Step 1: Understand How Your Brand Should Influence Your Visuals
• For your visual identity to be effective, it must reflect what your brand does, who it is,
what it cares about, and how you want to communicate this to your audience. This
means you need to carefully think about and plan your brand purpose, personality,
voice, tone, and messaging to ensure your visuals hit all the right notes.
• It’s also important to clearly understand your audience’s needs, wants, and
challenges. This will allow you to create impactful visual assets that resonate with the
people you’re trying to reach.
STEP 2: CONSIDER THE BASIC FUNDAMENTALS OF
DESIGN

• Although creating a visual identity is primarily a creative and artistic pursuit, there’s still some
science to it. You have to adhere to certain fundamental principles if you want to design
beautiful visuals that appeal to viewers.
• The fundamentals of design that you need to consider include:
• Repetition — Used to create unity and evoke a sense of rhythm.
• Contrast — For creating emphasis and highlighting the difference between various elements.
• Hierarchy — Used to call attention to the importance of different elements and make viewers
look at one over another.
• Balance/Balance using tension — For grouping weighted elements on a page
symmetrically or asymmetrically.
STEP 3: DEFINE YOUR COLOR PALETTE

• Different colors symbolize different things and invoke varied emotional

responses when people see them.

• Make sure you choose a color palette that embodies your company,
your brand’s overall personality, and the message you want to send to
your target audience.
STEP 4: CREATE A DISTINCTIVE LOGO THAT REFLECTS
YOUR BRAND

• Your logo is the foundation of your brand’s visual identity. It’s one of the
first things people will notice, so it needs to accurately communicate
the personality and values that define your brand.
• Your logo can be a symbol, icon, or even your brand name in a stylized
format. According to expert designers, your logo should be unique,
scalable, simple, and able to work well in monochrome.
STEP 5: CHOOSE YOUR FONTS

The font you choose should align with the aesthetic and tone of your brand. For example, a formal
or traditional brand might choose a classic serif font, while a modern or tech-savvy brand might
choose a sleek sans-serif font.
The main font categories you can draw from when designing your brand’s visual identity include:
• Serif
• Sans-serif
• Slab serif
• Script
• Handwritten
• Decorative
STEP 6: TEXTURES, SHAPES, &
ELEMENTS
• Like colors, the textures, shapes, and visual elements you use in your
design paint a specific picture in the minds of your audience, so you have
to use them wisely.
• For instance, using animations rather than regular images can add a fun
and creative feel to your identity. Round shapes can trigger feelings of
unity, love, and community.
• On the other hand, shapes with sharp edges — like triangles, squares, and
rectangles — can inspire a sense of trust and stability. But if you take them
too far, they can make your brand seem aloof and impersonal.
BRAND VOICE

Brand voice is the unique way a brand communicates and presents

itself to the world. It's a defining characteristic of a brand's marketing
strategy and should be consistent across all communications.
A brand's voice should:
Reflect values: Align with the company's values and speak to the target
audience
Be distinct: Be recognizable as belonging to the brand
Be consistent: Run consistently across all communications, regardless
of which teams are handling which channels
Resonate with the audience: Build trust with the audience and help
them feel a connection to the brand
A brand's voice includes its Tone and Personality:
• Tone: The attitude with which the brand conveys its values and beliefs
• Personality: The brand's traits and characteristics

To develop a brand voice, you can:

• Describe the audience, including their demographics, goals, and pain points
• Use qualitative user research methods, such as buyer personas, user interviews, and focus group
transcripts
• Read online reviews and social media posts
• Analyze customer support calls
• Write out examples that demonstrate how to write within the brand personality
Nike's brand voice is motivational because it promotes the idea of
'determination, courage, and resilience' – qualities that build strong
athletes, communities, and countries.

Coca-Cola's brand voice is friendly, inclusive, and optimistic. Their

messaging focuses on creating moments of happiness, joy, and
togetherness. They use lighthearted, feel-good language to appeal to a
wide audience and emphasize the importance of shared happiness and
unity.
SOCIAL MEDIA -STARTUP PRESENCE ADS
AND PAID CAMPAIGNS
Paid advertising can be an effective way for startups to increase brand awareness, drive
sales, and reach new customers. There are several types of paid advertising that
startups can use, including:
• Display ads

These ads can be in the form of images, videos, text links, animations, or moving
images, and can be displayed on websites.
• Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising

This is a type of online advertising where you pay a fee each time someone clicks on
your ad. PPC can be effective, but it can be expensive if you don't target your ads
carefully.
• Google Ads
This is a type of paid search that allows you to serve text and image ads
to browsers through search engines like Google and Bing.
• Native advertising
These ads are primarily content-led and are featured on a platform
alongside other, non-paid content.
Here are some other tips for using paid advertising:
• Create a compelling message that highlights your unique selling points
and how they benefit your customers.
• Select advertising platforms that align with your audience.
• Consider using direct mail, such as postcards, flyers, or letters, to
promote your business to nearby customers.
LOW COST MARKETING IDEAS FOR
START UP’S
Content Marketing
• From creating blog posts and e-books to producing podcasts and videos, content marketing
for startups is a strong way to increase brand awareness, establish your company as a
thought leader in your industry, and attract and engage potential customers.
• Moz, a search engine optimization (SEO) software company, has established themselves as
an industry leader in the SEO space by developing a comprehensive suite of valuable
content, like educational blog posts and their Whiteboard Friday video series.
• By creating and sharing informative, educational, or inspiring content that addresses the
pain points and needs of your ideal customer, your startup can build a loyal following and
generate leads that drive sales.
SMS MARKETING

• SMS marketing, is increasingly popular—a 2022 survey of 1,314

consumers, business owners, and digital marketers found 55% of
business owners text their customers using an SMS marketing platform
and 60% of them plan on increasing their SMS budget.
• This same survey found that this practice is most common in e-
commerce and retail, but 18.9% of respondents indicated they would
opt into text messages from a technology business. Consider how your
company might leverage SMS marketing to drive customer
consideration and engagement.