BRANDING AND THE VISUAL RESPONSE How a brand turns into visual identity
PETER SHER
The branding process can be seen as an organic spiral with a definite starting point.
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01
The brand spiral The branding process can be seen as a
The branding phase
spiral. Surely you have seen fast motion
Goal
videos about how plants grow. The brand
An activity is good and useful if it has a
is like this, too: a growing spiral. Plant
purpose, a goal. This applies to brands as
leaves, DNA, swirls and organic growth of-
well: from the very first moment it must
ten evolve in a spiral. And not just in any
have a goal it wants to achieve.
spiral, but spirals based on the Fibonacci sequence and the golden ratio.
Target audience
Like a line segment, the spiral has a start-
Who would you like to sell your products
ing point and an endpoint, but unlike the
or services to? What do your customers
segment, the spiral is curved around the
want, what do they desire? What are the
starting point as it evolves. This is the dis-
pain points they want a solution for? It is
tinct core on which the whole system is
important that you should start your re-
built.
search with the target group, because the
I was thinking along these lines when I
brand speaks to the people, it wants to
started to draw the brand spiral. Brand-
influence them, it wants to create commu-
ing also has a core from which it can grow
nities and tribes.
and develop organically. The core and inner layers of the spiral are
Vision/mission
the fundamentals of the brand, the brand
Without goals there is no development.
core, and as you move towards the outer
Long term goals define communication
layers, the focus is more and more on how
and affect every element of the brand, so
the brand appears visually.
while short term goals are important, here you should also consider your long term
Phases and steps of the brand spiral
goals—what it is you want to achieve in
I divided the spiral into 3 main phases:
the long run. In the brand sprint, for exam-
branding – visual branding/visual lan-
ple, you must outline your 20-year road-
guage – marketing. These are clearly sep-
map.
arated in the figure, but in real life the dividing lines are not this obvious, but rather
Values
blurred. Let’s start from the core an move
Without values, it is difficult to decide how
outwards.
to progress towards your vision and goals. Ideally the values are honest and stem 45
from the brand itself, from the brand’s core and are not just a facade. Personality Brands, of course, have a personality, just like people do. The personality is the sum total of the brand’s characteristics and it speaks to the target audience. You choose
Develop the personality of your brand
your own friends—similarly, you can choose the brands that you feel close to your heart.
Just like in interpersonal relationships, personality is important in the relationship be-
Voice/Tone
tween a brand and the people. Personality
The dominant communication style of the
components:
brand is rooted in its personality. It determines what words are used (specialist terminology or everyday vocabulary), how formal or informal it is and what the overall communication style is like (funny, serious, corporate, etc.). Message The core of communication is to deliver the
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Vision Values Tone of voice Archetype Essence
brand’s message, a short piece of information to the target audience. Communication is a multi-layered activity where every layer plays a role in getting the message across. Value proposition The value proposition is an outgoing message, in which you provide solutions to
I’M A
your target audience’s problems along the
BRAND
values and goals of your brand. Slogan The slogan is the essence of your key message, it is like the logo to the visual identity: it is the tip of the communication iceberg. Brand history, manifesto Everyone has a story that reveals why they do what they do. Of course not every story 46
THE CREATOR
THE CAREGIVER
STABILITY
THE JESTER
THE LOVER
BELONGING SOMEWHERE
THE RULER
THE EVERYMAN
INDEPENDENCE
PROGRESS
THE INNOCENT
THE SAGE
THE HERO
THE EXPLORER
THE MAGICIAN
THE OUTLAW
needs to be told, but if it is inspiring and
Playbook
captivating, please do.
The communication of the brand must be unified and consistent at all times. A play-
Elevator pitch
book with the roots and fundamentals of
Tell your audience who you are and what
the brand is very useful. Nowadays these
you want as briefly as possible. Ideally, you
are in a digital format and the steps de-
can introduce your brand and have an ef-
scribed above are recorded in the various
fect on your audience over the course of a
sections.
30-second elevator ride. 47
The visual branding phase
other consists of digital platforms.
Style guide
The two branches then reach the market-
A style guide is similar to the playbook in-
ing zone, where both the digital and the
asmuch as its aim is to maintain unity and
traditional elements become part of the
consistency, but it records the visual fea-
complex system of marketing— which can
tures of the brand.
be online, where SEO (search engine optimisation) and SEM (search engine market-
Logotype/combination mark
ing) are becoming increasingly important,
This is the king of visual language, the
offline or a combination of the two.
tip of the iceberg, this is what makes the brand unique. It is the most important el- The spiral shows nicely that you must pay ement, yet it isn’t. What is a logo without
attention to the fundamentals. The fun-
a brand? It makes you different, but it
damentals of branding provide answers
doesn’t tell a story. It implies certain values,
to questions that arise later, during visual
but it doesn’t tell them clearly. It reaches
branding and marketing. If you take the
out, but it doesn’t start a conversation. The
time and follow the steps of the spiral with
logo is important, but it is not everything.
your project or brand, you will surely benefit from it.
Colours Colours are another key distinctive element that help you in your communication as well, as they trigger emotions. Some brands appropriate certain colours (e.g. Telekom - magenta), some use only one colour and others want to use them all. Typography You can choose from countless typefaces and new ones become available every day. There is no limit to variety, and even though most people are not consciously aware of this, the letterforms and visual details of the fonts also communicate and convey messages. Marketing phase From this point on, the steps cannot be clearly distinguished, visual identity plays a different role and is used on different platforms with every brand. The spiral branches off, one branch consists of the traditional platforms of visual identity, the 48
Brand Leader Model
Seventy Agency brandguide.click/BLM
The Brand Leader Model was devel-
CHALLENGING
oped by the Swedish Seventy Agency.
THE EXPERIMENTER
It is a tool you can use when position-
THE VISIONARY
ing your brand. It uses two axes and defines 4 personality directions. The
BEFORE
figure on the right shows the devel-
BELIEF-DRIVEN
portions of these, and it changes over time as it develops. For example, the
RESPONSIVE
brand is characterised by the pro-
opment of Facebook: first it was visionary and challenging, later, as it grew, it shifted towards the dedicated, reliable and responsive direction.
NOW THE DEDICATED
THE MASTER RELIABLE
CHALLENGING
CHALLENGING
THE EXPERIMENTER
Visionary brands set bold goals and focus more on where they are heading than what they have achieved. They challenge and redefine industries.
Dedicated brands are responsive to the individual, attentively following, predicting and guiding behavior. They seek to operate as seamlessly as possible.
Master brands have strong longstanding principles and celebrate origin and craft. They are reliable experts in their field and work hard to remain so.
THE DEDICATED
THE MASTER RELIABLE
THE VISIONARY
Quick to spot and jump on the new
(Re) defining industries
Bravely unpredictable
Mobilizing partners and consumers
Open and collaborative
Attentive and precise Natural and seamless Understands and guides individuals
Follows a bold direction
BELIEF-DRIVEN
Experimenter brands have a finger on the pulse, are first to try out the new and willing to operate in beta. They challenge the norms, are open, collaborative and never cease to surprise.
RESPONSIVE
THE VISIONARY
BELIEF-DRIVEN
RESPONSIVE
THE EXPERIMENTER
Skilled experts Stands by principles Eredetiség és jártasság
THE DEDICATED
THE MASTER RELIABLE
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The v respo 50
visual onse 51
‘DESIGN IS THE SILENT AMBASSADOR OF YOUR’ Paul Rand
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02
Basic forms and their meaning in visual design Once you have the brief, it’s important that
In visual branding there is no practical
you can give a proper visual response to it.
need for this break-down process, what
To understand how a brand works visually,
we should consider is the message of the
it’s best to break it down and examine it at
visual details of the building blocks and
atomic level. In UI (user interface) design we
whether the overall image, when these
have been using the Atomic Design method
elements are put together, strengthens or
for quite some time. Here we break down the
weakens this message. Let’s take a look at
UI elements to the smallest units possible: to
a perfect example of this.
absolutely basic parts that have no meaning if deconstructed further, like a text field, a card
Slash in a square
or a button. We build atoms together to form
The Deutsche Bank logo designed by
molecules, which can be developed into or- Anton Stankowsky is one of my favorites. ganisms.
I think a lot of people love its ultimate
A designer is ‘good’ if they can convey the desired emotion and effect to the viewer through visual language.
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simplicity. The form hasn’t changed since
the Hungarian painter János Fajó. Let’s
1974. The only change came in 2010: since
take a look at basic forms and their mean-
then the logo can be used independently,
ing.
without the typography, but the graphic image has been the same for 45(!) years.
Square, quadrilateral
The form is extremely simple, yet it conveys
All sides are of equal length and all angles
meaningful messages—
are equal, and as a result it has a calm,
• the square frame: security, stability and
steady, static, heavy, self-enclosed and
control, • the ‘slash’: consistent growth and development.
boring effect. If you place a square on its vertex, it will be unsteady and it will look as if it is about to fall. Whether on their longer or shorter side,
PAUL RAND If you read it in a brief, it might seem con- rectangles have a steady, yet more active tradictory to combine these two messages
effect than squares. Parallelograms (op-
in one sign, but it works here, with brilliant
posite sides are of equal length, opposite
simplicity. Nothing can be taken from the
angles are equal) have a much more dy-
graphic image, it can’t be made any sim-
namic and active effect.
pler without losing the message. This is a principle you should always keep in mind
Triangle
in the design process, as this is what you
From the basic forms, the triangle is the
need for a design that is timeless and
one that seems the most active. It can be
breaks free from fashion. The meaning
an arrowhead pointing in a direction, but
and effects of basic forms have been ex-
with an obtuse angle it can also have a
plored by many and in many ways, just
calm effect. Other visual messages: active,
think about Kandinsky in the Bauhaus or
dynamic, pointed, hard.
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Circle
some impressions. A graphic image will
A circle has no starting point and has no
work well if it has the intended effect on
end, it is a symbol of infinity. There is much
most recipients.
less tension in it than in a square or a triangle. It doesn’t point in a direction, so
Presenting a study
its message is that it is calm, harmonious,
The results presented here are from a
self-enclosed, infinite, soft and safe.
2005 psychology study and experiment, where 89 people were asked to assess
Line
forms according to their force and activity.
Logos can have all kinds of lines. Lines
The results are presented in a 2D coor-
have a direction. In the western world, we
dinate system, where the horizontal axis
read from left to right, and this is how we
represents activity and the vertical axis
interpret lines as well. A line can have a
represents force.
positive or a negative meaning, depend-
In summary, the figure shows that quad-
ing on whether it has an upward or a
rilateral, pointed and round forms cov-
downward direction, whether it ascends
er different areas in the semantic space.
from left to right or from right to left.
Acute-angled triangles and stars are considered forceful and active, and the five-point-
You see? I see.
ed star has a higher value than the equilater-
These forms express emotions and mes-
al triangle in both dimensions. Quadrilaterals
sages and they have an effect which the
are forceful but passive, oval forms are weak
viewer will either feel eventually or not.
and passive, here the regular circle is the least
This is a two-fold situation: on the one
passive and the least weak. The figure sug-
hand, the designer has some intentions,
gests that the sharpest contrast is between
and, on the other hand, the recipient has
the kidney-shape and the star. 55
Carolin Oelsner and Julia Laub conducted a research at the Hochschule für Gestaltung Schwabisch Gmund, and pointed out the effects the force and the activity of certain forms have on the viewer.
Let’s sum it up
will be easier if you know what messages
In visual branding, it is best if there is a
the specific building blocks convey. I hope
concept behind every detail and every
this chapter was helpful.
graphic solution. If you have a concept,
As they have a great effect on forms, I’ll
if you know what your goal is and what
discuss colours in a later section.
you want to say, you can find the suitable graphic tools and building blocks for it. It
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