Developing a new brand can be a deeply personal experience, especially when the owners of the business are involved, but it is also important that the brand reflects the culture of the team too, combining to create a full brand experience, that is both personal yet professional

This is the 5th brand generation that the business has had over the years and without doubt, our new brand has been delivered in the right way that reflects our values, cultures and behaviours perfectly and is both current today and will be for the next decade.

We have all encountered our expectations of a business being met, exceeded and also disappointed with what we initially thought would be. There are 5 factors that determine a brand.

The Promise

What will someone experience when they engage with your brand. This can be physical and perhaps more importantly emotive, It is important for there to be trust and for them to see the potential in your brand.

The Perception

It’s generally the consumer and not the company itself that determines how a brand is perceived. We can lay down the foundation to give your brand the best springboard into steering perception. Ensuring that the first impression is a lasting one.

The Expectation

Based on the promise, consumers build their expectations for your brand. When they interact with your brand they assume their expectation will be met. If it doesn’t, this impacts on perception and them seeking another brand that delivers their expectation. Live up to the name, a trusted look and feel goes a long way in solidifying your brand message.

The Persona

Sometimes it’s beneficial to think of your brand as ‘who’ and not ‘what’. What would that person stand for, what would they be like to interact with? From appearance to personality a consumer will judge a brand and evaluate the ‘persona’ before doing business with you.

The Elements

Your brand is made up of more than just a logo, messaging, packaging, social platforms. It’s all the tangible and intangible things above. These must all have a consistent and coherent message to give your brand the overall power to remain memorable and trusted in a crowded marketplace.

Communicate your brand promise, shape their perception, exceed their expectations, live & breathe the personality and deliver the elements. All of these things combine to give a true brand experience at every moment of consumer engagement.

Its true to say that you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression and as a creative business delivering branding & digital projects for businesses we are always preaching about being consistent when it comes to the presentation of the brand.

With that in mind we always advise that when a new brand is being designed, then refined then unveiled that the staff should be involved in the process and it should be launched internally with the same fanfare and pride that you would launch to the public.

The team that will be living and breathing it need to be heard and similarly, have a want to be a part of it.

So, can you confidently answer the following questions…

• Do you love your brand?
• Do your customers love and engage with your brand?
• Does it reflect where the business is and where you want to to go?
• Does your brand match your business values and behaviours?

If you are interested in working with us to bring your branding vision to life or feel your current brand is in need of a refresh get in touch by filling in the form below.

Chances are someone else did too!

This is the general response any time the idea of arranging a bespoke photo shoot with a client is mentioned. It doesn’t need to be cost prohibitive. You are looking to sell your product/service, why would you not want to show exactly what you are selling/providing? Yes it’s an extra money spent but honestly it’s well spent, think of it as an investment. Your visual representation is the best advert a brand can have. To create the cohesive narrative and say more about a product than you can in words. A picture paint… and all that! Too many times we see websites using the same stock images as other websites trying to sell something completely polar. This dilutes a brands message and creates a confused marketplace and consumer.

Don’t get us wrong stock photography has it’s place. Filler content can be vital for websites and collateral if used thoughtfully but it should NEVER be used as main imagery for your business or brand. You don’t have ownership over them.

The image above was shot for our client, The Torridon, and shows one of the instructors teaching some guests the basics before getting in the water. He is a genuine Torridon instructor working with guests, the person you would physically meet if you were to book lessons. This is the emotive content, the ability to immerse the consumer in YOUR product. Make them feel what it is to be there, to taste it, to experience it. To use a generic Kayak stock shot would remove the USP, to explain an experience not BE the experience.

On Twitter, images accompanying text garner a larger audience with 18% more clicks, 89% more favourites, and 150% more retweets. We live in a visual world. Consumer expectation is key, most preferring to see reality rather than be let down by false pretence. Many times this interaction is the first one with a brand/product long before any tactile or physical experience.

If you hire a photographer remember the photographs will be YOURS (apart from the photographer of course but that’s a discussion for another time…). You won’t see the local chippy using your the image from your restaurant selling their new fish supper or the local pub using images of your product as a special cocktail they make.

You will also get more than enough images that you can use for the rest of time instead of forking out for a single shot each time you want one from a stock site which your competitor can download just like you did.

Now, step away from Stock photography and put some equity into understanding the power of taking ownership of your imagery.