A ServerWise five part Series
Be Consistent With Your Brand Identity Everywhere, But A Clever Marketer Knows The Power Of An Unexpected Switch Up
"Brand is the sum total of how someone perceives a particular organization. Branding is about shaping that perception."
What is brand identity? The easy answer is the collective combination of your logo, color palette, online and offline presence, marketing and any other aspect of your image that you share with the world.
The modern answer is a bit more complicated. Brand identity is more than just visuals, it’s culture and reputation, integrity and service. It is everything you want your customers, present and future, to feel and think about when they come across your brand.
4 Places Your Brand Identity Must Be Consistent
Your Brand Identity On Your Website
Whether your prospective member to your membership site or coaching service found your brand on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram rest assured most will begin their due diligence on your website.
Your website is the first major opportunity to display the scope of your brand identity. You’ll want to make sure your brand color palette is properly used and represented.
Ask yourself if your website colors, fonts, and logo reflect your brand identity? Are you using your color palette appropriately, even throughout your content?
Your Brand On Social Media Platforms
You want to build trust and credibility between your brand and your members or clients. To do that, you need consistency. Your brand must have identical representation regardless of the social media platform (and you should be found on most of them).
That means your logo, color palette, photos, profile image and font face should be identical everywhere. This includes on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and any others.
All Company & Brand Specific Communications
In this digital age you can’t forget the classic methods of communication and branding; letterhead, invoices (including emailed), print marketing, business cards, paper coupons. Remember, it’s this attention to detail that displays reliability. You’ll want to use the same colors, font face, logo and profile images in all printed materials.
Your Brand Marketing Campaigns
All your marketing endeavors should have the same look and feel, exclusive to your brand. Whether your email newsletter, Google or Facebook retargeting campaign ads or customer service email signature, every type of ad is an opportunity to increase credibility and confidence in your brand.
We found creating a universal template for our email campaigns and Google Ads saved us considerable time. In most cases, you can click on the template to overlay your brand identity on whatever format you’re using.
"A brand is the set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships that, taken together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service over another."
When To Make A Strategic Exception & Switch Up Your Brand Identity
Of course, consistency is key to brand development, but that doesn’t mean it’s always set in stone. You’ll need to make the occasional exception at times, not often, but always for a good reason and always to continue developing your brand.
Charity & Social Statements
Many brands have jumped on the social statement and solidarity marketing and public relations juggernaut. Some give their logo the rainbow treatment for gay pride. Others add a pink ribbon for breast cancer awareness or the colorful puzzle ribbon for autism spectrum awareness.
Seasonality & Exclusivity
Altering your brand logo for Halloween (no brand has personified altering their logo for holidays and events better than Google) or Easter or Independence Day is a longtime tradition. You’ll want to choose one or two holidays each year that your customers care the most about – and spend the most on your brand, and have a graphic designer add that seasonality to your brand kit. That may mean changing colors in the logo itself or working with a new seasonal color palette.
Next up in my series, we discuss how you can use authenticity as a powerful marketing tool and advantage against your larger competitors.
POSTS IN THIS SERIES
- Intro To Brand Identity In Coaching and Membership Sites Series & Why Should You Listen To Me?
- First You Must Design Your Brand Identity Plus The 3 Questions To Ask A Designer or Best Sites To DIY
- Get Intimate With The Color Wheel To Do Your Own Design Branding And Don't Be Afraid To Crowdsource To Get It Right The First Time
- Be Consistent With Your Brand Identity Everywhere But A Clever Marketer Knows The Power Of An Unexpected Switch Up
- How To Use Authenticity As The Foundation Of Your Long Term Growth Strategy While Staying Genuine
- Delete Those Stock Images If You Want Real Branding And My 5 Tips On Working With A Pro Even When You're Not
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