AVOIDING THE WONKEY TROLLEY AT ALL COST
Written By
Gail Brogan
Let’s get our arms around brand strategy and visual identity. Same thing no?... erm no, not really…
In simple terms, a strategy is a plan to achieve an outcome. It’s not a black art or something that can only be delivered by phd ‘strategists’ in ivory towers, it’s quite straight forward really. Think of it like taking a car journey - you need to have a good idea of where you want to go before you set out to achieve it and everyone who is travelling with you needs to be going in the same direction else you’ll never get there.
Branding equally requires a plan and structured thinking. But not only that, it requires creativity - your secret sauce, if you will.
I’d challenge you to find a brand without a logo or some form of visual badge, 99.99% of businesses have one but what you will find are plenty of brands without a strategy, yikes... It’s like that shopping trolley - the one you always end up with...You know, the one with the wonky wheel travelling in all sorts of random directions. No matter how much you try to get it on a straight line, it veers off with an element of surprise and motivation to do it’s own thing.
Gone are the days when sticking a logo on a box was enough to stand out. Today's world is a different world and the consumer is an entirely different beast. They have extremely high expectations and if you’re expecting them to be wowed by the aesthetic beauty of your visual identity in isolation, brace yourself…that might be your ‘fur coat, nae knickers’ moment and consumers don’t buy it. Without a strategy to engage, resonate with and nurture those consumers, nothing sticks.
Phrase “Fur coat and no knickers”
|To have an impressive or sophisticated appearance which belies the fact that there is nothing to substantiate it.
Strategic branding on the other hand, brings your brand to life in the mind of your target audience allowing them to subconsciously and deeply engage with it. A brand with purpose, belief, personality, a familiar tone of voice and a message that speaks on an emotional level to your audience’s pain points will make a connection with you.
It’s the cornerstone of modern day branding.
If all you have is a visual brand with nothing in place to make connections with your target consumer, it’s a pretty lonely place. Of course visual branding does have an important role - it’s job is to establish brand awareness to lead consumers back and reinforce the emotional connections but it’s far from being the be-all and end-all.
So in summary, understanding the minds of your target audience, what they want and how you can give them what they want in a way they’ll remember is key to success. Once that’s clear, then every other element of the strategic brand is developed with helping that audience to associate the brand with solving their problem. Visual identity is one piece of the puzzle but not the puzzle itself.
In simple terms, a strategy is a plan to achieve an outcome. It’s not a black art or something that can only be delivered by phd ‘strategists’ in ivory towers, it’s quite straight forward really. Think of it like taking a car journey - you need to have a good idea of where you want to go before you set out to achieve it and everyone who is travelling with you needs to be going in the same direction else you’ll never get there.
Branding equally requires a plan and structured thinking. But not only that, it requires creativity - your secret sauce, if you will.
I’d challenge you to find a brand without a logo or some form of visual badge, 99.99% of businesses have one but what you will find are plenty of brands without a strategy, yikes... It’s like that shopping trolley - the one you always end up with...You know, the one with the wonky wheel travelling in all sorts of random directions. No matter how much you try to get it on a straight line, it veers off with an element of surprise and motivation to do it’s own thing.
Gone are the days when sticking a logo on a box was enough to stand out. Today's world is a different world and the consumer is an entirely different beast. They have extremely high expectations and if you’re expecting them to be wowed by the aesthetic beauty of your visual identity in isolation, brace yourself…that might be your ‘fur coat, nae knickers’ moment and consumers don’t buy it. Without a strategy to engage, resonate with and nurture those consumers, nothing sticks.
Phrase “Fur coat and no knickers”
|To have an impressive or sophisticated appearance which belies the fact that there is nothing to substantiate it.
Strategic branding on the other hand, brings your brand to life in the mind of your target audience allowing them to subconsciously and deeply engage with it. A brand with purpose, belief, personality, a familiar tone of voice and a message that speaks on an emotional level to your audience’s pain points will make a connection with you.
It’s the cornerstone of modern day branding.
If all you have is a visual brand with nothing in place to make connections with your target consumer, it’s a pretty lonely place. Of course visual branding does have an important role - it’s job is to establish brand awareness to lead consumers back and reinforce the emotional connections but it’s far from being the be-all and end-all.
So in summary, understanding the minds of your target audience, what they want and how you can give them what they want in a way they’ll remember is key to success. Once that’s clear, then every other element of the strategic brand is developed with helping that audience to associate the brand with solving their problem. Visual identity is one piece of the puzzle but not the puzzle itself.
Are you building a brand now or in the future?
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