The keys to a strong brand identity have been drummed into our heads over time, they read the same no matter where you look, but when simplified to its purest form it needs to be:
- Distinct: What makes you unique from your competitors?
- Memorable: Your visual or experiential reference note that will stick with someone.
- Scalable & Flexible: Because the world is changing, and so should your brand.
- Easy to apply: If you define yourself well enough, your brand identity should speak on its own, and easily flow into all your brand assets.
- Cohesive: How does it all speak to each other, and the world around it?
Suffice to say there are many brand identity companies out there that cater to SME, and right up to the ABSA and Open Serves of South Africa. Our interest lies in the adaptation of these brands to clients as to how this translates to digital. What are the stories they tell and most importantly, how does your brand values speak to your customers?
We have all been dreading the rise of the Millennials, but it’s imminent, and they are voting with their wallets. Not sizable wads of cash at this point, but give them some time to climb the corporate ladder (yes to their dismay they did not just ascend straight to CEOs), and soon they will be running your corporations, and brands forged in times past and to this day.
One quality I can credit them on is their strong determination to carry forward the ideals set by earlier generations. Yes, we all wanted to leave a better planet behind us – less corrupt, less poisoned, and less abused – but these guys are really running with it…
Kudos to them and take notice, I’d say to our brands out there. It’s no longer good enough to pay lip service and place your brand on the front page of editorials and TV. You need to take some time and evaluate your positioning in the new market economy.
And what exactly is the new market economy? Authenticity, pure and simple. Values and their execution – it’s the substance behind the print campaign, the shiny signage on the head office building, and the recently refreshed CI.
Where is this more relevant and tangible than ever – social media…
The TGIF’s of yesteryear and the hard sales push of recent, is reaching breaking point. It’s time to dig deeper, understand your brand and company values, and communicate them.
Measurable impact, not vanity metrics, is what’s pushing brands ahead today.
Soon we will emerge from our lockdown after this pandemic has ravaged humanity to be born again. I believe in a different paradigm where behind the brand and company, your customer sees people, just like them, and that’s what matters most. What does your company stand for, what story will you tell, what values will drive you?
Let’s take a step back and evaluate… Let’s do this together.
To paraphrase Dan Muller, the one-half of my two partners at FGX – “Be brave, be fast, let’s be the best we know we can be. Put the past behind and strive for the new tomorrow. The new world requires a new you.”
