Best-selling, branding and marketing expert, and author, Martin Lindstrom, once communicated the importance of having a smashable brand. This term dates back to 1915 when the Coca-Cola Company asked designers to design a bottle that consumers would still recognize even if you threw it on the ground and broke it into many pieces. Equipped with the proper graphics, this bottle is still a signature item promoting their brand today.
Graphics play a huge part in communicating the right message to get your customer to engage with and buy from your brand. While brands like Coca-Cola have enormous marketing budgets to create the right graphics, you as a small business owner likely do not. While we don’t want to overwhelm you with the inordinate amount of thought and detail that goes into graphics, here are some basics to consider:
Color and Font
When considering graphics selection and font, you need select just the right color scheme. For instance, if you want to communicate that your brand is environmentally friendly, an earthy shade of green and a sky-like shade of blue would be appropriate. If you want your brand to communicate urgency or immediate action, a red and yellow color scheme may be best. For example, have you ever noticed that almost all fast-food restaurants who want their customers to take action and get a quick meal, have yellow and red as their dominant graphic colors?
Emotion and Calls to Action
The appeal to emotion combined with the right calls to action need to be a core part of your graphics selection. As one example, have you noticed how many charitable organizations use visual personas describing the type of person you’ll be helping if you contribute to their charity? A key component of your graphics includes your calls to action. Messages on your website such as “subscribe to our free newsletter” or “click here for more information” are effective. Print marketing messages communicating urgency can be a good idea as well, such as “limited time offer.” Other, more subtle calls to action can be appropriate as well, such as a dentist who offers free dental care tips on their website.
Consistency and Clarity
The importance of consistency and clarity in your graphics across all mediums is vitally important for communicating your brand. To make sure your graphics are consistent and clear, use the 10,000 foot approach. Immediately after departing the runway when you’re in an airplane, you’re not able to see the landscape that you can at 10,000 feet above the ground. Look at all your graphics and marketing efforts from a distance and then descend in to see what needs to be fixed for consistency and recognizability.
Summary
Just like other aspects of properly marketing your brand, the time and effort you think you may need to dedicate can seem overwhelming. In reality, it is not as difficult as it may seem. For creativity and smashable brand ideas from an expert, please contact us. Serff Creative Group, Inc. is a “top Denver branding agency” and has assisted many small businesses stay ahead of the curve whether it’s implementing the right graphics or other aspects of marketing.
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