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Graphic design is the art and process of combining text and graphics to communicate an effective language in the design of logos, brochures, newsletters, posters and in fact, any type of visual communication. This is achieved by using the elements and principles of graphic design.
Graphic designs can have a positive impact on your business because not only it is able to represent your company in a clear, understandable, and neat format, but also to support the message and branding of your company.
Because they could change the image of the company and attract more and more clients, many small and large companies today outsource their graphic design needs.
What Is Branding?
Brands are not just for big companies; they can also make smaller businesses stand out from the crowd and can play a significant part in helping your business or services become the first choice for customers.
In increasingly competitive markets, it is important to establish a strong company image or brand which will give potential new customers a true idea of what they are buying before they buy it which should make that decision easier to make for them. Existing customers trust strong brands because they know exactly what to expect and they will keep coming back to you.
If you want to build and manage a strong company brand or image you will need to convey a consistent message to your customers in all ways that you communicate with them. Strong branding is achieved by a consistency in your marketing tools of which the following are examples:
Web site, Business name, Names of products or services, Company slogan, Company logo, Style and quality of your business stationery including brochures, business cards, letterheads, flyers, folders, Product packaging.
Do-It-Yourself Graphic Design
Create Your Brand Book
A brand book, or brand style guide is a document that sets specific guidelines for your company’s brand identity in all external and internal communications. The biggest advantage of having a brand guide book is consistent and cohesive messaging. It defines the visual presentation that will be used in advertising, graphic design and communication with your target audience.
The Key Elements of A Brand Book
· About
· Visual Guidelines
· Communication Guidelines
About
In this section, you need to specify your mission, values and target audience. Defining this right from the start gives consistency and context to the other branding decisions you make and everything you plan to do using the brand style guide.
Visual Guidelines
This most commonly includes
· The use of logo
· The use of color
· Fonts
· Photography
· Tone of voice
Your Logo Represents Your Business
Logos are separated into three primary groups – descriptive logos, abstract logos, and typographical logos.
Descriptive logos are an image, web banner design or logo design that suggests the company name or line of work.
Abstract logos have no clear association to the company and rely on uniqueness and exposure to link the company to the logo.
Typographical logos are logos based specifically on the name of the company and attempt to take a well-known name and add a graphical appeal.
Plan Your Colors
Always keep the design and layout of the graphic design as simple and clean as possible, as the more cluttered it is, the more difficult it is for the customer to find the important stuff! When using colors in your graphic design, it is better to use colors from your set of corporate colors. This is because you should present consistency in all your advertisement media, so that people will know how consistent you are! Never use all the colors of the rainbow in one design as this only confuses the customer. Perhaps 2 or 3 colors form your corporate color should be enough for your design!
Be Consistent With Fonts
There are tons of free fonts found in the Internet to incorporate in your graphic design. However, it is not always that you can use all of them. Use a single font for the content of your design, and if required, you could use a different, like a bolder and louder font, for the headings and titles of your graphic design. Using too many fonts only makes the graphic design look messy and proves to confuse the audience.
Supporting Images
It is always beneficial to use images in the design of your brochures, company profiles, menus, etc. This way, you can entice your customers by illustrating your points through the images.
Communication Guidelines
Your communication guidelines focus on your company’s vision, core values, mission, persona and target audience.
Brand Vision and Core Values
To get your team started, considering these questions:
· How big do you want your company to get?
· Do you plan to branch out with products and services not currently offered?
· What kind of legacy do you want your business to leave behind?
Brand Mission
· What is your company’s purpose and reason for being?
· What is the difference it is trying to make?
Once you answer these questions, you will be better able to differentiate yourself from the competition and inspire greater engagement.
Brand Persona
Your company persona or personality is vital for getting the right tone of voice for messaging across all channels. Consistent messaging that stems from a well-defined personal makes it easier for customer to connect and identify with your brand.
Your Target Audience
Knowing your market segment narrows down your focus and allows you to tailer your message to very specific demographics.
· What type of people do you want to use your products?
· Which people would you like to visit your website and subscribe to your list?
· What are your audience’s needs, wants, and values?
Outsourcing Your Graphic Design
Graphic design is a form of communicating visually using text and images to present information or promote a message. A graphic designer works designing print, environmental, or electronic forms of visual information for an advertisement, publication, or website.
Many people consider that if they have Photoshop and know to work on it, they can be an “artist” and create their own graphic design. However, this is not as simple as it looks, because if you really want to have success with your company branding or website, you should create an interesting and unique image of your business to attract more and more customers.
Remember that the longer people stay on your website browsing different pages, the greater is the chance that they will do business with you. Unless there is something compelling to make them explore further, they will leave your website quickly. Therefore, you may need an expert’s help to make it look attractive and interesting.
A graphic designer can help you meet your branding goals, because they are able to decide the most effective way of getting a message across in print, electronic and film media using a variety of methods as color, type, illustration, photography. Graphic designers analyze and create visual solutions to communication problems.
If you have a company, in order to acquire the best knowledge and expertise in the market that is most suitable for a company’s needs, make sure that the objectives and the understanding of your needs are essential as the visual effects of your process, product, website, and the company image can be critical to your company success.
The Impact of Branding
It is important that your advertising materials should be well designed to create the initial visual impact before the user reads the information or explores the website.
Your business logo, banner ads, and other graphic design aspects are key parts to a marketing campaign. It is important for your logo to be unique, recognizable, and to reflect your type of business. Your logo will be representative of everything your company is and will indicate your company by its presence on buildings, letterheads, advertisements, promotional items, as well as company vehicles or uniforms, if applicable to your company.
As the number of companies, products and services increase and consumers attention span decreases, an effective eye-catching design is a critical element for marketing your business. An innovative design strategy will help differentiate your company from the competition and keep your company’s brand consistent and distinctive.
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