The importance of an impressive corporate image Pt 1 of 3

Importance of Logo design

Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can

A corporate image is a term thrown around amongst marketing mad hatters, but their not all mad, so why is it so important? A Corporate Image is the look and feel of your business aimed to potential customers, it is how your business appears from the outside.

New business owners or start up companies are unfortunately primary focused at looking at their business from the inside out. If customers are not walking through the day, your corporate image maybe the culprit!

Your corporate image positions you amongst your competitors, it explains what you do and most importantly it tells the story of your business.

In the next few parts we’ll explore the psychology associated with corporate imaging – some colours have meaning, words evoke feelings, symbolism and font expressions. We will also define what a good corporate image is and how to build your corporate identity.

1 What story is your business name telling?

It probably the hardest decision you will make, choosing the right name for your business. Before we delve into choosing a business name, lets briefly touch on changing an existing business name.

If you stick with it, overtime your business will mature, evolve and transform. You’ll learn more about your values and business philosophy and your original business name may not be applicable anymore. thinkLuke for example has evolved over the past 2 years and it is no long just a single freelance website designer. But like many business owners I am hesitate to change the business name and update the branding and logo design. However changing your business name never has a negative affect infact customers like to see your business is evolving and it shows you business must be progressive. Take for example large corporation – they are often re-inventing their image and updating their branding.

Don’t be afraid to update your existing logo design and branding as your business evolves

Changing you name doesn’t mean a total polar switch, it may just be a subtle word replacement or yes maybe a total name change. It is a matter of choosing functional over interesting; a functional name will represent almost exactly what you do, a interesting name will not represent what you do via the name, but reflect your services via the branding and marketing material. Take nike for example, it is a interesting logo, the swoosh is not a show but it is interesting. Ideally you want something in the middle, a pun or wordplay is a good choice and semi-reflects your services.

2 Is your logo design the right one? Do you even have a logo!?

A logo is a graphical representation of your business and it is often the first point of contact a customer will have with your business. Logo’s come in all shapes and forms, from a symbolic image to simply stylized font of your business name. The logo is the building block of your brand and starts the unique theme through your business which is essential for a good corporate image.

A distinctive and unique logo is essential for a good business, the message needs to be memorable and leave a impact on your business and customers. One of my biggest concerns I see with start up businesses working on a shoe string is their lack of appreciation for a quality logo. Often smaller businesses are happy to slap something together in the backyard photoshop and the results look exactly like that, backyard slop, imagine what your customers think when they see that? If you are starting a new business allocate a budget to developing a good logo, it doesn’t have to be a crazy amount of money but it should be a consideration as part of an investment to the new business.

Winning businesses have good logos and awesome corporate images – because they know how important they are.

Thinking about the logos of companies you deal with day to day, look to larger companies and organisations and you will soon notice how important branding is to these companies, it should be important to a new business as well.

thinkLuke offers logo design on the Sunshine Coast and to any client national or international, we love it and we love branding new start up businesses.  When choosing a graphic designer or even website designer, take a look through their online portfolios and choose the companies whose work you like the most. Try to find the style you like and ideally show the designer logos you already like, negotiate a price upfront and make sure you are aware of the terms and conditions, then your off and running!

Here is the evolution of the thinkLuke logo design:

The Evolution of the thinkLuke logo design over 4 years
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What you can do today?

Don’t have a logo? Get out there now and get one! If you current logo is lacking, get started on sourcing a new one!
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3 Get a tagline!

Make a brief statement about your business with a few simple words. A ideal tag line should answer a basic question most of your customer’s are asking “Why should I use your business?” 

Tag lines can also change with your business and like choosing a name, it isn’t a easy task. Think about your philosophy and approach to business, but remember your logo and tag line should go hand in hand.

4 Consistency and branding

Branding is a word that gets thrown around quite a lot, but what exactly is branding? Most people assume branding is exclusive for large corporations and that it isn’t important for small businesses, this mindset couldn’t be any further from the truth.

Any business can build a brand that is good enough that when a customer see your company name and logo design they instantly have a positive perception towards your business. A franchise generally already has an established brand and that is why it is often such an appealing purchase for a new business owner.

The main concern with branding is keeping the message consistent via all mediums. For example we can develop a strategy to send a consistent message through advertising, corporate image, physical business, email signature, business card and so on. All these medium’s are a contact point for your customer and is where your business interacts with consumers.

Brand consistency is controlled by a style guide – or more simple a set of systems or mechanisms in place to insure all messages are consistent from the starting point. A style guide is a great way to outline your brand message, logo colours, logo usage, advertising style, font selection and corporate image in general.

Consistency in all aspects of the business from corporate image to customer interaction needs to be driven from the top down.

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What you can do today?

Take a look around your business and everything that is involved in your business – example your voice mail message, your business cards, email signature and even your invoicing. What areas could you become more consistent in your branding? Make a list and get started on updating these things.

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Stay tuned for Part 2, were I will discuss consistency and branding, colours and corporate image.

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