Great Brand Design Is Much More About Business Than Art

Thursday 14 July, 2005

(Author Credits)

Great brand design has to make sense. Don't waste your time with multiple options of sameness or averageness, jargon, nor art. Keep it simple, zero in on the important stuff — the stuff that will make the difference. There is power in the simple ideas, not me—too ideas. This is a brand design process which delivers measurable bottom line results with innovative rather than me—too design solutions — the 7 steps to grow a brand and get it right.

Blueprint

1. The catalyst
   
   Do you have a new product to get off the ground or a brand in need of some TLC? Perhaps a new competitor is changing the face of your category, or you have discovered a new growth channel for your brand— whatever the reason, there is always a catalyst — the very reason why you need a brand expert to help reshape your brand.
   
2. The brief
   
   The brief is a critical part of the project as it pins down the key information that will guide the whole process from start to finish. A good brief is critical because it helps get the design right. Design companies have various tools to iron out any grey areas and give clarity before proceeding. Your design partner shouldn’t just accept the brief and say thanks but we ask Why? Why? Why? making sure the catalyst and the expectations are understood.
   
3. Knowing it
   
   It's a jungle out there. There's a flood of innovative new products, choices galore, tempting price fighters, and aggressive marketing vying for your consumer, who is making 70—80% of their purchase decisions spontaneously at point of purchase (AC Neilsen ‘Packs At Work’ Seminar May 2003). Your brand needs to be working incredibly hard to stand out as believable and beneficial.
   To be able to take your brand to the next level, your design agency must spend time forming a rounded understanding of the products/services, markets, and customers. Gleaning information and getting to know the competition stylistically and strategically is critical. Visiting where it is being sold; watching how people shop and interact with it, thinking about how it will be seen and handled once bought. Taking photographs and critiquing the competition, surfing the net, referring to international product libraries and scanning the media gives them the full picture.
   Often a fresh pair of eyes on a category uncovers questions and opportunities that are missed due to a client’s closeness to their market and brand. Great design comes from taking the time to explore and objectively observe categories.
   ‘Knowing it’ is invaluable in helping form a picture of how you make your brand desirable and give it the best chance of success.
   
4. Nailing it
   
   Having critiqued your main competitors (important as you need to know what you have to stand out from) and critiqued you this is where you zero in on what will make the difference and nail it.
   Zero in on the heart of the brand and uncover the meaningful features that will make it stand out and be successful. With a defined point of differentiation you then can use it as a sounding board throughout the project to keep everyone focused on what is absolutely right for the brand. Pegging a position that others don’t have steers the creative in the right direction. Without a difference you risk being like everyone else and no one can afford to be ordinary — stand out, or bow out.
   
5. Creating it
   
   Once you have pinned down the key things about your brand and its world (and not before), it can be bought to life. The first phase of ‘creating it’ is the design platform. This is where a multitude of ideas are thrown around, things are turned inside out and upside down. Designers explore the best way to communicate the brand and make it stand out in its market.
   The creative process is a complex beast with many facets. Ideally work with a creative team built across the design spectrum with skills in the different areas of the creative bank — brand innovation, brand refresher, typographical crafters etc— coupled with these various skill sets you also want a broad knowledge of markets, trends and brands, which comes with experience. Both are important to create successful results.
   If you believe in results, and want the process to be objective measure the creative. Check the design links back to the personality and difference identified in step 4 — check that the design is working and stacks up. Check that the right creative decisions have been made with regard to colour, image, shape, tone of copy, fonts etc. and that it is right for your brand. The best design companies will do this test and present only 1—2 creative concepts that have passed this test.
   Great brand design is about doing it once, getting it right. “I’ve never had such great stuff from an agency on the first draft — it’s brilliant.” This is the type of reaction you should have to great creative.
   If you are getting multiple options it suggests your design partners aren’t assessing what is best for your brand or the market, they are short cutting steps 1—4, designing for designs sake or just having a stab at it.
   Following the concept presentation and your feedback/research, the next step is to complete the balance of the project, refining and crafting the design and extending it through the full brief, i.e. full pack, range, brochure, stationary etc. Commissioning other specialists, such as photographers, writers and illustrators happens at this stage of the process.
   
6. Producing it
   
   An equally crucial step is producing it. As part of the mix, you want a highly skilled production team who are trained and set up with the latest software and technology, have a keen eye for detail, technical knowledge and patience. A pre—production meeting is recommended to liaise with you, your filmhouse, printer and the team on any production issues throughout the artwork, laser approval, proofing and print stage. This ensures that the design files are rebuilt and press ready digital artwork is created that will achieve the best possible end results for your brand. Great artwork has no hitches at the printers.
   
7. The result
   
   The project is obviously not finished until after your project is launched. A great design partner will follow up to see how things are going and to check how your brand is performing (market share, volume etc), checking expectations have been met and tangible benefits delivered to you and your brand.
   In the end the proof is in the pudding. The bottom line is your business results. Great brand design will add measurable value to your business. And for the design company, they get great pleasure in working with companies who understand the value of this investment.
   

Conclusion

Choosing to work with companies that understand the business of design and have a proven record of creating brands that get noticed and packaging that sells is rewarding. Good brand designers, are really in the business of what are you? Who are you? What do you look like? What makes you special? And how you behave so that people see what makes you special. Brand design nails all of that and that’s a speciality both in terms of skills and process.

Source:ceoonline.com