Brand identity represents who you are as an organization, and it’s an excellent way to let consumers perceive you effectively in the marketplace. However, brand identity is not just a logo, business card, and your website. Instead, it is attentive development via a marketing strategy, planning, and determination which is used consistently throughout your comprehensive marketing methods. It can transform the essence of your business through visual identification and providing you with an advantage to stand out from competitors.
In reality, nothing will last forever, including your brand identity. There will be certain situations when your business should contemplate an identity redesign. So, we would like to share the following:
Long-lasting business which has an outdated brand identity
The purchase desire and favorite trends of customers’ are changing all the time. The long-term identification provides a substantiate presence of trustworthiness in the marketplace. However, it doesn’t mean that your outdated brand design should lack innovation. What you should demand is a brand design identity which can effectively evolve, but still retain the original concept of your design. Instead, improve, change and enhance it, to keep up with the marketing tendencies.
For example: When you research the keywords “logo evolution” on the internet, most of the dominant international brands’ identities have been evolved or updated at some point in time. Additionally, they retain the initial concept to be recognized by the loyal customers, and the most influential logic is to maintain, but refresh the look to adapt to the latest trends. Learn more: "Logo evolution with the pace of the times".
Lacking brand story
Your brand story is the essence of your companies identity. When an individual can relate to the personality of your brand, it’s easier for customers to remember it and interact with you. In other words, when your brand identity has spirit, you will be able to stand out and be unique within the marketplace. Accordingly, to establish a presence in the market, you need to tell your customers a sincere story of your brand. By doing this, it ensures that your company receives attention and participation from your target audiences. The objective is to acquire faith and loyalty from your customers.
Learn more: "8 tips to be an excellent brand storyteller".
The current design is inconsistency
As the business expands, the urgency increases to implement more marketing methods: the more arrangement that is involved, the brand design you require will also increase. When the marketing materials are unmanaged, it can cause unrecognition, unorganized, and an unprofessional appearance, and will lead to the consequence of distracting your target customers in the marketplace. Therefore, the solution is to create a visual appeal for persisting identical and sustains consistency and to ensure that it will be memorable. The management of brand identity, helps your marketing materials stay consistent.
A brand identity that can’t accurately represent your business
The brand requires a compelling design that can also be capable of marketing in your category. Thus, by being unique and standing out, should be a major concern and goal for all companies. Like the well-known saying of “think out of the box” is undoubtedly an important concept in marketing. However, you don’t want to think too far outside of the box, as that may cause no one really being able to perceive what your intended point is, or what information you are trying to distribute. It is critical that you continue moving forward right direction, which fits your business, and the perception of creativity actually makes sense.
The marketing plan, strategy, and targeted audience change
Marketing is constantly changing, and the intention of businesses is for a diverse direction. By the process of researching the latest trends, and recreating your brand identity will provide you with a fresh look. The brand new look of your identity, can also match your new marketing approach, and directly represent what your business represents. When the visual appeal reaches the expectations of your target audiences, it ensures they are more likely to trust and choose your brand over the competition.
DIY your own brand identity, or purchasing from template stores
The majority of start-up businesses can obtain an economical design from online template stores, design it yourself, or ask your friend create one for you. It can risk the consequence of looking unprofessional.
When your business starts blooming, you will then realize the emphasis of being unique in the marketplace. Therefore, we encourage you to consider hiring a design team early on and position your brand identity correctly, before the business grows enormously. Additionally, this will be your best investment, as you will gain long-lasting intellectual property.
Can’t compete with your competitors
Many people like engaging, creative and visually appealing designs, which captures their attention. When you are confident in your superior products or services, beyond your competitors, but are you not curious as to why the customers choose theirs, not yours?
Besides the marketing strategy and advertisements, you should consider analyzing if your brand identity is outdated. If so, don’t wait any longer. Along with analysis and the comparison of your competitors’ identity design, it will help to create distinctive visibility in the marketplace. Moreover, it’s the key to standing out in the marketplace.
Similar to other brands
There’re millions of million designs which have already been developed. So, when your brand identity is similar to another business, it can result in difficulties for your position and visibility in the market.
An excellent way to ensure your brand identity is exclusive, by going through the trademark registration process. Although this method takes time, cost with the redesigning, and the procedures with the United States of Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) doing this ensures the trademark laws will secure your intangible assets. To put it simply, no one else can duplicate or imitate your intellectual assets.
Learn more: "The importance of having a registered trademark for your business".
Positioning fuzzy and unclear
Your brand design is what conveys your character and spirit, and performs as the representation of who you really are as a brand. When your marketing materials are not consistently managed and positioned, then your target audience won’t be able to memorize your company. Therefore, it’s essential to establish an identity system, to make sure that your audiences can recognize you in the marketplace.
Your brand identity is too complicated
Simple, meaningful and essential designs are the obvious way to be noticed and remembered. When you have overly complicated elements, it can lead to distraction. Therefore, the concept of your brand identity needs to be intelligible and understandable. To keep your design uncomplicated, it doesn’t mean creating something which is tedious. It should contain meaningful information and profound intention inside, and transforming and evolving the brand spirit in a simple structure.
Your brand identity will be a long-lasting aspect in your business. By developing it accurately, you will be surprised at how frequently customers love your brand identity, sometimes more than the products itself. Ultimately, it will be the greatest intangible assets you have invested in and developed for your business.
Learn more: "3 questions to consider for creating a strong corporate and brand identity".
