If you’re a start-up founder, you’ve probably heard that “branding is everything”. What does that mean, exactly? And where do you start?
It’s not as hard as it sounds. The first step to building a brand for your start-up is understanding who your customers are and what they want. Ask yourself these three questions:
- What problem are they hoping to solve with your product or service?
- How can you help them achieve their goals?
- What’s their biggest struggle right now?
Once you’ve identified these items, it’s time to decide which brand elements should be communicated visually. A logo is essential – but so are colours, fonts, and even how you format text on your website. Think about how each element communicates different things about the brand. For example: if your brand has a very clean look with lots of white space, then maybe using more colour would feel more appropriate than using black-and-white graphics.
Your logo
A logo is the most recognisable aspect of any company’s branding strategy and should be used consistently across all marketing materials (including print advertisements and social media posts). A logo should be simple enough that it doesn’t require much explanation but still conveys an essence of what makes your business unique. This is usually accomplished through colour choices, font types/sizes/styles, etc.
Once all these elements are in place (including any supporting materials like emails or newsletters), think about how they work together as a whole. Will they reinforce each other when someone comes across them all at once? You may have noticed this already when visiting websites or flipping through magazines: many brands have a strong visual identity.
You want your start-up to be the best and a recognisable leader in its field. The best way to get there is by building a brand that people love.
Here’s how:
1. Know Your Audience
You can’t build a brand without knowing who your audience is. Who is your target market? What do they like, dislike, and want? What makes them tick? If you don’t know these things, how can you ensure your branding efforts are effective?
2. Be Unique
You should be unique in some way – and not just for the sake of being unique, but because being different from the competition will give your brand an edge that makes people want to buy from you instead of one of your competitors. If there’s nothing special about your product or service, then why should anyone buy it instead of someone else’s?
3. Be Consistent
Consistency is key when it comes to branding as well. Your logo should look the same on every piece of marketing material; your website should have a distinct look and feel, and every piece of content published should have a similar tone or voice (if possible). It’s important to keep things consistent so customers can easily recognise your brand.
If you are searching for a new logo, why not search through RedCoin IP’s database of ready-made trademarks and give your start-up a head start today?