What Is Brand Identity? How To Create A Strong Brand Identity

Your brand is more than just a logo; it's the story you tell and the connection you make.

Imagine your brand as a person. What would it say? How would it act? A strong brand identity is the personality that defines your business. Figuring out your brand identity is a necessity for any business that hopes to leave its mark on the world. It’s the foundation on which you build a relationship with your customers and encourage them to pay for your goods or services.

For startups and entrepreneurs, it can be difficult to figure out where to start when crafting your brand identity. Making use of branding agencies might be a great way to get started. 

Business isn’t just about selling products and finding the best invoicing financing rates. It’s about building brand recognition with your potential customers.

Many different aspects make up your brand identity, including visual cues (the font and typeface you use, your signature colors, logo, etc.), as well as linguistic and strategic elements (your tone, who you speak to, etc.). All of these different elements come together to create your brand identity.

Why does brand identity matter? 

Brand identity is crucial for businesses of all sizes for several key reasons:

• Differentiation: In a crowded marketplace, a strong brand identity helps your business stand out from the competition. It allows customers to easily recognize and distinguish your brand from others. This differentiation factor will help you stand out from the rest of the players in the market. 
• Customer recognition: A consistent brand identity across all touchpoints (logo, website, social media, etc.) increases brand awareness and recognition.  Customers are more likely to remember and choose a brand they easily recognize. 
• Building trust: An authentic brand identity builds trust with customers. When customers consistently see a brand that sticks to their values, they are more likely to become loyal customers.  
• Customer experience: Brand identity influences the overall customer experience. A strong brand identity creates a positive experience across all touchpoints, from initial interaction to customer support.   
• Employee engagement: A strong brand identity can also boost employee morale. When employees understand and believe in the brand's values, they are more likely to be passionate about their work and deliver exceptional customer service.   
• Increased brand value: A strong brand identity can significantly increase the perceived value of your products or services. Customers are often willing to pay a premium for brands they trust and respect.

In essence, a strong brand identity is an invaluable asset for any business. It helps build customer relationships, drive revenue growth, and create a lasting competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Components of brand identity 

A strong brand identity is made up of several key elements that work together to create a cohesive and memorable impression. Here are the primary components:

• Logo: The visual symbol that represents your brand. It should be memorable, versatile, and relevant to your brand's message.
• Tagline: A short, memorable phrase that captures the essence of your brand. It should be concise, impactful, and easy to remember.
• Color palette: The colors used in your branding. Colors can evoke emotions and convey specific messages.
• Typography: The fonts used in your branding. Fonts can reflect your brand's personality and tone.
• Tone: The way your brand communicates with its audience. Includes language style, vocabulary, and overall tone.
• Brand messaging: The key messages and stories your brand communicates. Should be clear, concise, and relevant to your target audience.

Brand identity vs. brand image 

In simple terms, brand identity is like the carefully crafted blueprint for your house. Whereas, brand image is how the house actually looks and feels to those who live in it and visit it.

How to build a brand identity 

1. Define target market and assess competition

Before you create a lasting brand identity, you need to get back to your overall marketing and brand strategy. You can’t decide how you’re going to present yourself without first defining who you’re going to talk to and taking a good, hard look at the playing field.

Take an in-depth look at the customers that would be interested in your product. How would they want to be spoken to? What’s going to appeal to them beyond the product or service you’re offering. After all, there are likely a few businesses offering the same things as you. How will you set yourself apart from the competition?

Step one is a labor-intensive process that will require a lot of research and discussion. The more work you do during this step, the more effective your brand will be when you launch. 

2. Create mission statement and outline your values

Once you’ve determined who you’re talking to, you need to figure out what you’re going to say. To do this, you have to know what value you’re bringing your customers, and what your business strives to do beyond making money.

Do you want to help aspiring entrepreneurs develop brand identities to help the small business economy grow and flourish? Do you want to help women help themselves through whole person development coaching?

Define what matters to your business and create a mission statement and brand language. From there, you’ll be able to build a bridge to what matters to your customers using your brand identity into brand guidelines for your company.

3. Bring it together visually 

The visual components of your brand often act as the face of the business, used to subtly communicate the ideation outlined in steps one and two.

During this stage, you’ll need to determine what colors, fonts, typefaces, logo design you will use, etc. For this stage, it’s best to outsource and work with a designer.

When you work with a brand designer, they may ask you to conduct a brand audit on your current offering, if applicable. This will highlight any weaknesses with your current visual branding and allow you to work to correct them while maintaining some consistent elements.

If you’re starting from scratch, your designer may ask you to go through some paperwork to outline your target market and mission statement while discussing what your business does and who your customers are.

If you’re building your personal brand identity, you may even go through a quiz to determine how you should convey yourself to bring your personality into your brand.

Once you have all the visual elements brought together to create a cohesive brand, you can move on to step four.

4. Create an implementation strategy 

Once you have a brand, you need to figure out how you’re going to communicate it with the people who matter.

Building a brand identity, like building Rome, takes more than a day.

Your brand implementation strategy can consist of a re-launch, with weeks of hype and mystery leading up to it, building a social media strategy, creating a content strategy that will add weight to your brand, networking events, and more. Basically, whatever you think is appropriate for communicating your brand.

All of the moves taken in step four should directly correlate with your overall marketing strategy. If you’re rebranding, you’ll need to change your marketing plan to reflect that. If you’re starting from scratch, you can build both as you go along.

5. Conduct regular brand audits and evaluate effectiveness 

When your new brand identity has been implemented, your work isn’t done. You need to constantly be evaluating how the brand identity is resonating with your customer base.

What’s working? What isn’t working? What launch protocol was effective, and what wasn’t? Don’t miss out on this opportunity to learn what your customers want and refine your identity to make it so.

Strong brand identity examples 

Here are some common examples of brands that have a strong brand identity and are well-known globally. 

Nike 

The "Just Do It" slogan is powerful and inspiring, motivating individuals to achieve their goals. Nike focuses on empowerment, self-belief, and overcoming challenges. They have also partnered with top athletes such as Michael Jordan, Serena Williams, Cristiano Ronaldo. Nike's "swoosh" logo is instantly recognizable worldwide, simple yet dynamic. 

Source: Nike website

Apple 

The bitten apple is an instantly recognizable logo globally. Apple is known for its sleek design and user-friendly minimal interfaces. Apple has established itself in the market as a cutting-edge technology and a focus on the future. Apple has also established itself as a premium and high-quality product across the tech space. 

Source: Apple website

From logo to legacy

Once you have a strong brand identity, it's essential to maintain consistency across all touchpoints. This includes your website, social media, marketing materials, and customer interactions.

By crafting a compelling and memorable brand, you can connect with your target audience on a deeper level and drive long-lasting loyalty. Learn more about brand awareness and its importance. 

This article was originally published in 2018. It has been updated with new information.