Every three months, along with my fellow radio show host Kevin Harrington, one of the original Sharks from Shark Tank, I have the honor of speaking at an Innovator’s Think Tank known as Shark Finds. During this two-day event we offer insights to inventors about their marketing direction, branding, and investor pitch. We see a fair number of beauty lines, including luxurious soaps, candles, creams, and age defying serums.
These products often stand out to me, but not only because they look yummy. They also stand out as lacking in a solid brand identity. While many of these products are worthy of attention, they are not attention grabbing. The creators often pour all of their passion and imagination into the product itself and neglect to place similar enthusiasm and resources into the very first thing prospective clients and investors experience: the brand.
Branding begins with you.
It’s important to know that branding is much more than a logo and tagline. It is your identity as a company, including your company’s image, a unique voice, and a memorable message.
Successful business owners infuse their values and mission into their businesses. Your core message needs to have an emotional and rational side to fully connect with people’s hearts and minds. What is the message that you wish to get out into the world? Is there a solution or cause that you are passionate about? Bring this passion and your most significant values into every aspect of your brand. It should not be overly complex; a simple idea like “Volvo makes cars that are safe” resonates on both levels.
Once you understand your “why,” or core reason for doing what you do, you’ll want the visual representation of it to stand out and deliver your message in an unforgettable style.
Integrate what you stand for into your logo.
The Unilever brand is a great example of a cleverly designed logo that drives the company’s message home. The logo is a “U” filled with what looks like random art—but these icons are anything but random. Unilever is committed to making sustainable living commonplace and they’ve designed their logo to be a visual expression of that commitment. Each icon has a rich meaning and represents some aspect of the company’s mission: to make sustainable living achievable for everyone. You’ll find a lip icon, which they’ve added as a symbol of communication, openness, and transparency. There’s another element representing transformation and positive change, which is their commitment to find new sustainable ways of doing business.
Stick with what works.
Before you offer direction to your graphic designer, study what successful brands are doing. Take a notebook to the mall or scour the internet for brands that represent themselves with elegant, timeless design—or whatever flavor you’re looking for. If you prefer an eco-friendly look for instance, study popular organic brands and note the varying themes in color choice, packaging materials, font choices, and anything else that stands out to you. Use your favorites from this list as a standard for creating your own design.
Follow tried and true design rules.
Whether or not your logo contains hidden messages and meanings, there are some guidelines that I highly recommend. Years of working with business owners has taught me a few things about smart and effective logo design. Follow these tips for creating a logo that will represent your brand proudly and effectively in any environment and for years to come.
You may be drawn to trendy elements, but be sure to avoid any temptation to push your design all the way to the edge. Great design is not inexpensive, nor are packaging, website design, or marketing materials. Imagine a day, only a few years from now, when you realize that your logo is worn and dated. This will lead to an unwelcome expense and loss of time you don’t have. Create today’s logo to remain a thing of beauty for many tomorrows to come.
To creative people a color palette is like candy. Remember that your logo needs to transfer nicely into monotone—and you’ll want signage, packaging labels, and marketing materials that are affordable to print. Also consider that too many colors will prevent you from applying color psychology. Certain colors evoke very specific feelings. Did you know, for instance, that the happiness and friendliness evoked by bright yellows can help to entice a buyer? Why do you think that every fast food drive-thru is lined with yellow daylilies and the golden arches are golden?
Fonts, fonts, fonts—so many to choose from! Scripty, curly, fun, and eclectic. Avoid these tempting little gems at all costs. People do not want to concentrate on deciphering a messy font; they want to read it at a glance and feel connected to your brand. On the other hand, also avoid a font that looks like Microsoft out of a box. A complementary combination of easy-to-read fonts, one for your brand name and one for your tagline, offers an eye-catching balance of expression and interest.
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