The importance of a good visual identity in the strategy of any business must be seen as a priority. When the strategy is well crafted, the process of enchanting and converting customers is easier. In cases where branding is scarce or poorly developed, the reality is harsh but direct: nobody (or almost nobody) will give your business attention.
Everyone has a set of characteristics. From their name, to aspects of their personality and appearance that make them remembered and recognized. Having a defined identity is important not only for human beings in society but also for brands and businesses. After all, how can one be recognized without an image?
Do you want to know how this happens in practice? We’ll tell you next!
Think about it for a minute. Of all your characteristics (whether physical or not), there are the ones that catch the eyes of others and make you be remembered. Even those that are not your favorites or are part of the set that forms the personality matter. You have a name and an image of your own that sets you apart from the others.
What is visual identity?
For a brand to be equally positively recognized and successful in its niche, it is necessary to define it. Highlighting its best qualities in order to make it unique and interesting.
Visual identity is a construction of various graphic and visual elements. Which is responsible for creating an atmosphere about who the company is. Furthermore, the values, and even how it sees the world and society.
In this way, the brand will be recognized at the time of purchase and decision-making as a whole. The set of aspects that form the visual identity goes far beyond a business card. Think of it as basically the “personality” of a company synthesized and exposed to the world.
Therefore, the more detailed and understandable the strategy, the more space the brand gains in the consumer’s daily life. There are companies that work their visual identity so well to the point of being recognized only by their colors!
Some of the main elements that make up the development of a visual identity are the logo, typography, color palette, promotional materials (flyers, posters, and billboards, for example). Furthermore, elements of social networks such as images of posts, avatar and the cover.
How important are branding and identity for a brand?
Red background with the white logo, a red dot next to a yellow-orange one, and the yellow letter M applied on a red background.
If you thought about Coca-Cola, MasterCard, and Mcdonald’s without much difficulty, you just proved that reinforcement and investment in a good visual identity are beautiful strategies for brand recognition.
MasterCard, after decades of signing its own name on the logo, decided that the two circles will be the main components present.
The action of removing the name of the logo was a strategy. It was adopted after realizing that the visual identity was capable of promoting a recognition rate that reached 80%. Therefore, it was no longer necessary to reinforce who MasterCard was. Everyone already knew just by looking at the design. It is important to work with the visual identity for several reasons. One of the main ones is that, with it, it is possible to define in a visual, practical, and “at first glance” way who the company is.
Imagine if Mcdonald’s didn’t have a logo or a defined color palette? It would probably get lost among the other fast food establishments early on. It would have missed the opportunity to stand out and win the hearts (and stomachs) of people around the world. As we pointed out, no one exists without identity, and the same goes for brands.
Visual identity leads to the recognition and value of a brand. The greater the presence of elements in someone’s life, the greater the feeling of proximity and even need in relation to the products or services offered.
Over time, that identity will gain a space kept in the consumer’s brain. It will affect the choice process (favorable to the brand) into something practically automatic. Think about the brands you buy from without a second thought.
They, most likely, worked extremely hard for years to build a good and efficient visual identity. Subjectively, visual identity is responsible for generating a strong sense of identification, trust, belonging, and engagement with brands. Do you want a better way to grow and generate sales? We do too.
Visual identity and branding: what are their main differences?
The concepts of visual identity and branding can generate some confusion. As much as they are within the same spectrum, their meanings are not similar. Thus, it is very important to be able to differentiate one concept from another.
A company’s visual identity is basically its logo. It is possible to unfold the word and use it with other meanings, we have even done it in this post when defining a brand as a company. However, in the world of design, we are talking about the logo.
A business logo is a visual representation of who it is and how it wants to position itself in the market. There are more traditional, modern, bold, or conservative logos. Indeed, all the variations present in them say a lot about the company in question.
Branding, on the other hand, is the word that defines an entire strategy that goes beyond visual identity. It is the entire process of strategy development, planning, and creation of concepts about who the company is. It shows how it positions itself, how it sees the world, and how it wants to talk to customers.
However, branding goes far beyond graphic issues. Without a well-defined branding, it is not possible to create an identity, as it dictates the brand’s premises. Thus, it defines the essence that will be unfolded in visual content.
When we work the set of visual identity and branding strategy, it becomes easier to enter and establish yourself in a market spontaneously, generating loyal consumers and promoters of that product or service. Therefore, it is extremely important to invest in stocks with due attention and importance.
