RHEN: What’s up Fish Fans! This is Marcus, I’m Rhen, and you’re watching Marketing Madness: the Blue Fish weekly vlog! Each episode, our aim is to bring you guys pure marketing value. During our day to day at Blue Fish, we find that our clients have questions, or don't understand certain things in the marketing and advertising space. So we do our best to address these common questions here.
MARCUS: This week we are going to cover a previous topic, Branding, in a more detail. This is such a key component to your marketing; it is worth revisiting. Your brand is your voice to the world as a business. Each and every aspect of your business, from business cards to the invoices you send out are all part of your “brand”.
RHEN: As Seth Godin explains, "A brand is the set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships that, taken together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service over another."
Now that’s powerful. For those of you who do not know who Seth Godin is… He is one of the greatest marketing minds of our time. He has written books like Permission Marketing, Tribes, and Small is the New Big. Make sure to look him up, watch his videos, and read his books.
MARCUS: Here at Blue Fish, we feel there are many elements to a brand’s identity. Your logo, packaging, typography, and personality all represent a brand, along with customer service, price, product quality, and corporate responsibility. A brand is also intangible. It is emotional, visual, historical, and human. It’s an experience that separates different products and services in a world where quality is often comparable or the same. So let’s explore what goes into creating a brand on a high level.
RHEN: First you want your brand to have a clear purpose and positioning. Understand your goals and the position you want to take. Your brand’s purpose is the big reason for your existence. Brand positioning is the distinguishing aspects of who your product or service is for, and why you're a better option that competitors. Understanding these will help inform your strategy as you design a logo, select a typeface, color palette, and so on. There is a particular process out there call Purpose, Position, and Personality that is useful for answering these questions. Brand positioning is the process of making our purpose actionable. By understanding and naming your target customer and differentiating yourself from the competition, you lay the groundwork for your brand to accomplish the purpose and some awesome goals.
MARCUS: A brand's purpose and positioning should be informed by market research. It is important to understand the culture of the market in which you will operate. Every market is different and research is crucial. Blue Fish has found that one of the best ways to conduct market research is to simply create conversations. Social media is a good place to do this. Phone interviews can also allow for detailed discussion and place a helpful element on the people. The human element is essential because you want to emotionally appeal to your customers.
RHEN: You always want to think about brand personality. If your brand were a person, what would they be like? Would your target demo want to be friends with this person? This may be a bit out of left field when first hearing this. A brand personality is an important thing to consider. If a personality is not established, then your fan base could get mixed emotions and messages, making it difficult to create a personal connection. And that my friends is where the home run is hit, that personal connection.
MARCUS: What comes first, the chicken or the egg… In branding, is it the logo or the brand? Logos and brands are constantly being refined and adjusted. For example, our logo at Blue Fish has had several revisions to get to where it is today. Brand should come first, then followed by the logo that matches, compliments, and enhances the brand. Your new logo is going to be central to your brand. It’s the asset of your brand identity that people will be exposed to most often. There needs to be linear elements along all other brand assets, as well as the broader emotional appeal of your brand. Your logo needs to be simplistic and recognizable. Imagine if you can some of the most memorable logos out there; Apple, Nike, Disney, Coke, etc etc.. They are simple and to the point. When a logo is simple, it becomes an open canvas customers can fill with positive experiences they have had with the brand.
RHEN: Along with the logo design, color palette is an important choice. This needs to be simple as well. As a general rule, use only 1 to 3 principal colors. Knowing about the psychological effects color plays on emotion should be heavily considered. A lot of color psychology is intuitive, like blue expressing calm and red and yellow expressing passion or energy. Depending on the tint or shade of the color you are using, the emotion can be adjusted. I mentioned earlier that brands should only be made up of a few colors, however, you may also select some complimentary colors to be used alongside your principal choices.
MARCUS: Typography is an important aspect in the creation of a brand. The typeface will greatly express emotion. It needs to be dialed in with your brand and the voice you want to convey. Selecting the correct typeface will put you out in front of your efforts. Fonts are powerful. The Typeface for Blue Fish is Proxima Nova. The most famous fonts are recognizable even when taken out of context. There should be a single primary typeface to lead your brand identity. It should line up well with your logo and color palette. It should also follow suit and carry the same vibe you created with your logo.
RHEN: We live in a multimedia world, the final step in creating a brand identity is an extended visual language, with supporting graphics, icons, and photographs. This is super important for brand consistency. Google does a great job of this with their suite of products. Across all platforms they have a consistent look from Google+, to the G Suite Apps, to Doc, and everything else. You just know it’s a google product. Make sure you have continuity throughout!
MARCUS: One last thing, if you need help with any of this, our team excels in this space. We can help you to develop a brand that will stand out, speak with the proper voice, and help you reach your goals in the market place. You get one shot with your branding. If you are not a professional, whether you use Blue Fish or not… Please seek professional help if you are serious about your business.
RHEN: That’s a wrap for this week Fish Fans. Thank you for your attention. If you have any questions or comments leave them down below. If you want to talk about how Blue Fish can help you dominate your market, CALL ME!