6 Most Important Branding Assets in 2021
Branding is no rocket science, but it’s also highly influenced by the set of values from each specific industry. However, during my last couple of years of brand design activity at Paul Co Branding, I managed to identify the most important branding assets that will influence the client’s perspective, and help your business gain social trust.
1. Logo
If you use a bit of abstract thinking you can easily associate a business without a logo with a person without a face. Even though the initial interaction was good, it will be hard to recognize it the second time.
There are multiple logo styles to pick from, but the most important aspect is to be unique while resonating with the character of your brand. In this specific case, the logo follows a minimalist approach based on a negative space technique to combine two distinctive elements: the star, and the arrowhead.
Adaptability is the second most important aspect when it comes to logo design. It won’t always be displayed in the right scale, at the best resolution, so the composition itself is really important while considering the size and color adaptability of the design.
A good logo is also simple, yet effective. The two main purposes of a logo, in general, are to consolidate the entire brand identity, but also to help people associate a product or a service with a brand, basically to become recognizable in the eyes of the customers.
2. Color scheme
For all of us, colors represent values, moods, and personality traits. When it comes to this, brands are no exception, this is why the color scheme is the second most important branding asset from the entire design process.
Similar to the logo’s graphic element, the colors are used to define and complement the brand’s personality while respecting the industry’s values.
During the design process, I always pick the solid colors first using the classic complementary colors model, and based on those I sometimes create custom gradients.
3. Name
A lot of people would’ve placed the name as the number #1 most important branding asset of a business, but in my opinion, even with a more difficult name, you could still develop a strong brand identity.
The most important rule when trying to find a business name is to search for names that are relevant and easy to remember. Easy to remember doesn’t always mean short, especially when there’s not a lot of competition in the industry people will easily remember longer names, as long as they are relevant to the identity of the business.
Out of all the branding assets, the name will be the one that usually doesn’t change so the importance of this element shouldn’t be underestimated.
Domain and social media availability should also be taken into consideration when shortlisting the name options.
4. Font style
Comparable to the color scheme, font styles are highly influencing the brand’s perception and social trust. It’s always easier to identify the font styles that are harmful to the brand’s identity, than fonts that actually add value to it, so the selection process must be carefully operated.
As this visuals displays, each font has a different impact on the perceived value of the brand by communicating different messages.
The main aspect that influences the font style selection process is the character of the brand (modern vs. classic, sharp vs. organic, playful vs. serious, gender-oriented vs. neutral, sophisticated vs. minimalist).
5. Imagery & Assets Variations
Consistency will always separate a strong brand identity from a weak one. The imagery could be considered a “visual management” aspect. Making sure all the aesthetics are consistent on all the virtual and physical materials, is a golden rule of the brand identity creation process. Here’s the stage where branding meets marketing and advertising.
6. Positioning
Even though positioning is not entirely done through graphic design, making sure your brand fits among the other names in that specific industry is absolutely necessary and it could sometimes make the difference between success and failure.
In addition to the set of values from each specific industry that I was mentioning earlier, pricing and work ethics are also important when trying to position a new brand into a market.
More about me & my design work: paulcobranding.com
