You’ve started a new business and you have some great ideas to get it up and running. But have you thought about building your branding pack?
I must admit I was 4 years in before I realised, I had a viable business, but my actual brand was nonexistent.
So, what is branding?
It is the promotion of a particular product or company advertising by using distinctive colours, keywords and logo specific to them.
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that distinguishes one seller’s product or service from those of others.
In a nutshell a branding pack is a set of digital and physical resources developed to establish a brand’s image. A folder of colours, images, and keywords to help make you stand out from your competitors!
So where would you start when you design your own branding pack?
A Pinterest board can help towards your finished result. Save all your favourite colour samples, designs, and materials that you feel connect you to your business.
Once you have decided on these it is hard to change them in the future, so make sure you take the time to decide what projects the best for your business.
To get some ideas on colour scheme you need to think of two things. What you love and what works with your business.
Colours could make or break your branding so choose wisely. Here are just a few examples below.
Neutrals are always a good call; they are classic and don’t date. But they can also blend into the background and don’t stand out.
Blues and greens are calming. Great for mindfulness and projecting outdoors businesses.
Reds, oranges, and yellows are energising. These are active colours would be good for sports, finance, and food products.
Purples and pinks are quite spiritual. Great for yoga and wellbeing practices.
Blacks and golds portray luxury and would be great for jewellery designers and wedding stationary businesses.
If you know your base colour you can seach complementary colours in Coolors here.
Whatever colour you choose, make sure you love it. Hopefully, it’s going to be the shop front of your business for many years to come.
Once you have decided on your branding pack colour scheme you will need a logo design.
If money is tight, you can do this yourself with online software. Or you can choose to use someone to design it for you.
There are plenty of graphic designers out there, but I can highly recommend Kate at Bee More Design who specialises in brand design.
If you are having trouble choosing your brand colours, she can help with this too.
Your logo is what people would see first if they searched you online. Before they look at your product or before they see your face.
So, it needs to show who you are and what you do in a split second. You also need to decide who you are aiming at and what your pricing is compared to your competitors.
As an example, my logo could have had a camera in it to show I am a photographer.
But, after doing my homework and searching photographers online, I decided I wanted to come across as a more upmarket brand to reflect my prices.
I could see that many photographers with cameras in their logo had designed them themselves and had a cheaper pricing structure. Portraying a cheaper market.
A lot of photographers just have a signature logo, they look more professional and had higher prices.
I decided I wanted to aim for a more upmarket clientele. Aiming a people who appreciated my work and understood they need to pay a bit extra for a qualified and award-winning photographer.
So, my logo was designed with all these aspects in mind.
My brand colours are a mix of sage greens for the outdoors family photography.
Calming and natural, green is my favourite colour and makes me think of being outside.
Then blues and teals for my brand photography.
Blues are renowned for making people feel like they can trust you, it’s also a relaxing colour. I want my clients to trust me and feel at ease in front of the camera.
Once you have designed your branding pack, you have your colours, logo and keywords ready. You can build your website, social media platforms and print your marketing materials with confidence.
If you are interested in some fabulous photographs to compliment your brand, please contact me here
Until next time…
