There are so many different elements and ideas that go into creating a professional brand for a client. It may seem easy to say “Green is my favorite color” or “I like sans serif fonts” or “I have a logo and a headshot” but how do these puzzle pieces all work together to create an overall message that a client really identifies with and captures what they’d like to convey to the world?

Logo and graphic design:

A logo or identifying mark is the most obvious element that can make a business identifiable right away. But that is one of many elements used to create a look that resonates with your audience. A bigger picture is created by making many other choices that may not seem obvious right away, because after all, an extension of yourself should seem natural, easy and effortless. There are a few other decisions that need to be made, besides a logo, that creates a signature personality for your company’s presence.

Photography or illustration:

Another important item is the photography or illustration used in packaging, social media or website. Photography has been very popular for awhile, although styles and techniques do change. A personalized photoshoot can really go a long way as far as providing content to use throughout advertising and online needs. A headshot is very nice for an about section of a website, but as far as a landing page, something that gives more insight into your personality can really bring a lot more of yourself into the design. A lifestyle photoshoot can give a more relaxed image, and reveal more of yourself to set the tone and make the design memorable. Similarly, illustration does go in and out of popularity with countless style variations. Right now it is coming back in, and the type of illustration can really express who you are in a creative way, differently from a photo. Going with photography or illustration is an essential decision that needs to be made, depending on your business and your audience. It is our job to strategize and figure out which path is best for you.

Color:

Color brings up so many complex emotions for me in it’s endless possibilities and mixtures. I get so inspired when I see a beautiful combination in a movie, a magazine, or social media post. There are many different possibilities within each hue, and they can articulate a variety of different emotions depending on the saturation, lightness, temperature and the other colors that they’re used in conjunction with. The saturation is the intensity or purity of a color, the lightness would be the amount of black or white it’s mixed with, and the temperature is the warmness or coolness of it. When designing, sometimes we focus on one main color, but very often it’s the combination that’s repeated throughout that sets the mood and the tone.

Texture:

Texture is another element that can support the overall feeling of a design. A smooth glossy texture is very different than a rough distressed one, even if they’re the same exact color. Maybe this is something that isn’t super-obvious, but this should coincide with the other aspects of the design to make it feel authentic.

Fonts:

The fonts used either in the logo, or throughout the packaging, social media posts, or website are something that should be consistent. The type chosen can express different feelings with sans serifs being more modern or serif fonts being more traditional, with countless other styles beyond those two main categories. Type used in different sizes can help lead the viewer’s eye and help with hierarchy and organization. Decorative fonts can be good for titles, or website sections and then repeated within an image for social media posts for consistency. Subheading and body text fonts should compliment the title font and be legible at a small size.

Copywriting:

The copy itself, the writing used in the various sections of your product or website, should follow the attitude and tone of the overall visual and personal aesthetic. The subject matter discussed, the tone of voice, and mannerisms is your chance to express yourself verbally. Especially important now that we are able to have robots immediately write something for us that sounds like everyone else.

Professional designer:

I’ll be going over all of these things in a lot more detail in the coming posts, but overall, these are the elements that should be used in a strategic combination to articulate who you are and how you’d like for your business to be perceived. It can be a difficult task to do your own branding (believe me, I know!) but having a professional asses your needs and bring it all together for you, can be found via the contact page.