Consistency is Key

The aim of the game is to create a consistent, well-known brand that your customers will recognise. If you can master the art of consistency, your brand will do well. There are a couple of ways you can do this; firstly, you can do it yourself or secondly you could engage a professional designer to help with this.

Some important things to consider when creating your brand are fonts, colours, images and icons – these should be kept securely in a brand book document to ensure you continue to remain consistent in all future marketing. Everything you do which promotes your business could be consistent with your brand and use all chosen elements to make sure nothing looks out of place.

If you decide to outsource any work, it’s important to also supply your designer or marketing agency with your brand book to ensure they remain on point with your brand, and so they understand your brand.

Your target markets

If you have already written your business or marketing plan, then you should already be across your target markets. If you haven’t written either of these, I suggest you do so before proceeding any further. You should really give target markets some serious thought and once you know who your customers are you can begin to tailor your brand and marketing towards them.

The obvious way to tailor your brand to your target market is to choose a style that will be visually appealing to your target group, as well as considering appropriate content. It is important that you work with visuals and language that your target audience can relate to. Once you can do this, you most of the way there.

Use a second eye

I can’t stress enough how important this is. Remember, your content and branding are what sells your brand to your new potential customers. If you are like me, grammar, and spelling aren’t your strongest abilities; so this is why I strongly recommend having a second, or even third eye look over your work before you send it to live.

Don’t get me wrong – there are times where we miss the odd typo and they can often slip through the cracks with even the best proofreader; however, nothing should go to the public without a few proofreads and tweaks. This way, you know it will make sense and your brand will be seen in the best possible light.

Graphics are important

Now we are getting into the boring design lingo, but seriously, if you’re making your own content you need to think about your graphic resolution. I see time and time again where artwork has been downloaded or formatted to look pixelated or low quality. Much the same as grammar and spelling, it can really affect your brand image when you don’t take resolution into account.

There are a lot of unspoken rules that a lot of new business owners aren’t aware of including never squash or stretch your logo when scaling it; look after the ratio. If you created your logo or used a designer – you should have a style guide that include a list of colours, fonts, icons, and images that represent your brand. Follow these when making content or graphics, that way you preserve your brand style, and everything stays on point. If you are still not sure, just use common sense. Don’t go do things like place your logo on a crazy background that has nothing to do with your business.

Just a little extra to think about

Just remember, your business brand is your business story. It is what sets you apart from your competitors that’s why it is important to keep your marketing in line with your guidelines. It’s also important to spend some time putting together formal marketing and business plans, I know it sounds scary, but you will thank me later.

If you are still unsure about anything I have listed feel free to reach out for a complimentary business consultation where we can help you put all this information together. At the end of the day, your brand is your most valuable asset to your business and can be the difference to customers walking through your door or walking past to visit your competitors.