Our client, Alderton Farming Partnership approached us in need of a brand refresh. They wanted to maintain their leading market position, whilst increasing their clientele locally as well as nationally and widening their target market. We love a project that we can really sink our teeth into, and thought we’d share a little insight into our general processes of a branding project.
The aim of your branding should be to present your business’ identity and key messages in a way that appeals to your target audience as well as having the capability to work across all digital and print mediums. We see the branding project as a creative process to be undertaken between the designer and the business, and our first task is to get to know your business inside and out.
Stage 1: We aim to get to know the principle values of the company, and how these can be presented to the key demographics. This is an understanding which is fundamental as a basis to the branding, and these ideas must run throughout the project to ensure that the desired result is achieved. One way in which this stage is undertaken is through a collaborative workshop in which we determine with your business the visual territory to be explored during the next phase. Using existing imagery and type enables us to work with you to choose the general look and feel which we want to develop.
Stage 2: Once we have established and understood your business’ values and mood, the next thing we need to look at is what’s going on in your sector. We need to see who you’re up against in terms of market competition, where you are placed and where you want to be. Looking at your competitors and seeing what’s working for them is one example of the market research we carry out to help us get you one step ahead of the crowd.
Stage 3: A fundamental stage of the branding process is the designing of the logo, and identification of the fonts and styles which work best for a market and product, bearing in mind where it’s going and who it is meant to appeal to. A font has its own character and stands for a distinct declaration; it makes the brand stand out and reflects the rest of your business as it appears across all marketing materials and touch points. We test a brand name in a huge range of fonts before narrowing it down to a selection which we think are working. A common misconception is that a logo is a symbol to represent a business. However, the logo can just be the brand name words – the whole thing works as the logo. The font choices, layout and lock-up are what come together to create the identity. Time is spent on positioning as the font is crafted, tweaked and fettled to perfection.
Stage 4: Many companies become recognisable by their brand colour. Think Cadbury purple, McDonald’s golden arches, Clear blue. However, these brands would all have been designed and refined to work amazingly in greyscale before any colour would have been added. Colour helps the consumer make their first judgment of your business, which will inform whether or not they choose to purchase from or work with you. Colour, font and how these work together account for the success of a corporate identity.
Stage 5: We create a wide range of concepts based on market research and business values, along with our expert knowledge. This is followed by sitting back, reviewing, refining and developing the preferred ideas. This is a lengthy process and the whole design team get involved in the further development of the brand to ensure it is giving the right message.
Stage 6: We are then in a position to present the initial concepts to the client. Following feedback, a round of refinement including working out how the project can be moved forward takes place until the brand entirely encompasses the brand’s message and feel of the company. Once you are happy, we can apply your new branding to be rolled out across all platforms.
If your branding isn’t quite saying the right thing about your business, get in touch with us for a chat about a branding refresh, rebranding or starting from scratch!
