Brand assets are any collateral that makes your brand stand out from the competition, and that people identify as being “yours”. This could include a long list, right from your logo, font, colors, brand signature tune (jingles), a particular fragrance, or even taste depending on your product.
If you are starting up, there are several questions that you might like answered, so let’s jump right into it.
Which brand assets should I focus on?
Once you have a product/service in mind, here are some key points to keep in mind
→ Name – Setting aside what Shakespeare said about a rose by any other name smelling as sweet, you want to go for a name that people associate with you and only you. You can go unconventional like FCUK, or go simple like Bingo, but pick a name that is easy to recall.
→ Logo – You can go for pretty much anything that appeals to you, but is that going to set your brand apart? Take a look at your competition, and avoid picking a logo that is similar to theirs. Try to settle on a logo that doesn’t need to be explained to the average viewer. Whatever it is that you want to represent should be shouted from the rooftops, so to speak.
→ Font – Keep it simple, keep it classy. What is your target audience? If it’s children, pick a font that’s easy to read, yet appeals to them. Are you targeting senior citizens? Make sure your font is clean and each character of your name is easy to read.
→ Colors – There’s a whole world of color psychology out there which helps you with what people are going to feel about you based on the colors you use. Also remember, take a look at the competition and don’t mirror their colors closely. When you are starting up, you could be mistaken for an already established brand. This could work both ways for you, but in the long run, it could impact your brand negatively.
→ Signature tune – Advertising on TV or radio might not be in your scope right now, but if you play your cards right, it will be someday. Come up with a signature tune that you use consistently through your videos to embed yourselves in the minds of customers. If you want more tips and tricks on how to create a catchy brand tune, check out our studio’s post on Earworms here
→ How you advertise – When you make an entry into the market, you are going to do it with a splash. What sets you apart from the rest? Are you going bold, like Nike? Are you going cute, like Vodafone’s pug ads? Figure out what message you want your brand to convey and use it consistently through your advertisements. If you get a celebrity to endorse your products, try to go for a range of ads rather than a conventional “XYZ uses this, so you should do”. If you make the celebrity part of your story in a more casual, yet meaningful way, you reach people better.
→ Other brand elements – If you have a product, focus on the senses. Depending on what sense your customer will be using to experience you, do your market research. Create a clear distinction for yourself once you have done that, and use that as a talking point in your marketing collateral.
If you have a service, focus on user experience. How do you want a customer to feel about you? Give them something simple, fast, easy to use and solves at least one pain point they are facing with your competition to win them over.
So you have a checklist of brand assets you want to develop – how do you take this forward as your brand grows and expands?
Brand asset management
Your brand assets are like the DNA of your company. You breathe it, live it through every appearance that your brand makes in the market. Here’s how you make sure you make the best use of them.
→ Stay consistent – Whether it’s a face to face meeting, internal communication, hoardings, newspaper articles, social media presence – your brand assets should stay consistent so that people identify you straight off the bat
→ Access – As your company grows, you will have multiple teams working on your products and services at any given point in time. Make sure that there is a common point of access to all of your brand assets for anyone who needs them. Also, once you grow bigger and start getting talked about in the press, it’s great to have a handy press-kit online with your brand assets to maintain the consistency we were just talking about.
→ Feedback – Keep both ears open for feedback from consumers at all times. If you’ve had too many questions about what on earth your logo is meant to represent or several errors about how your tagline is read – you have a problem. Use your customers as a sounding board, and let them know their voices have been heard
→ The Competition – While you need to focus your energies on growing, don’t forget to keep an eagle eye on what the competition is doing. This helps you make sure that you don’t have conflicting or potentially confusing brand assets in the marketing
→ Protection – Once you have your brand assets created, go ahead and apply for a trademark. This helps protect your creative ideas from brand theft, which will be very useful as your company grows.
We hope you are clearer in the mind about what brand assets are and what they can do for your product or service. Stay tuned to hear about branding – how to create a strong brand, why it is important to your products and how to get the most out of branding exercises you do. If you are starting up, and need some help with creating brand assets, our Creative Content and Design team is just a phone call away – on +918123236250
