Designing for different brand personalities and values is a creative challenge that requires understanding your client's identity, audience, and goals. In this article, you will learn some tips and techniques to help you create effective and consistent visual communication that reflects the essence of the brand.
Brand personality is the set of human characteristics that are attributed to a brand by its customers and stakeholders. It can include traits such as friendly, innovative, elegant, or adventurous. Brand personality helps to differentiate a brand from its competitors and create emotional connections with its target market.
One way to identify brand personality is to use a framework such as the brand personality dimensions by Jennifer Aaker. This model categorizes brand personality into five main dimensions: sincerity, excitement, competence, sophistication, and ruggedness. Each dimension has several sub-dimensions that describe specific aspects of the brand personality. For example, sincerity can include honesty, warmth, and cheerfulness, while excitement can include daring, spirited, and imaginative.
Identifying brand personality should also take into consideration the target audience. There maybe specific traits a brand wants to convey but if those same traits do not ring true through design with target audience then the brand will fall flat. There has to be a solid connection between the brand personality and the personality of the target audience.
To design for brand personality, you need to consider how to use the elements of visual communication, such as color, typography, imagery, and layout, to convey the desired traits and values of the brand. For example, if you want to design for a brand that is sincere and warm, you might use warm colors, rounded fonts, and friendly images. On the other hand, if you want to design for a brand that is sophisticated and elegant, you might use cool colors, serif fonts, and refined images.
? You need to find out the Brand vibe whether it is cheerful, serious or general niche ? In accordance to that you set your fonts, colors and shapes to be used in your Designs ? For e.g. if i am making designs for a brand that is into selling Dry fruits ? I can use a cheerful and happy and bright colors and use the icons and shapes which give happy feel and set the brand tone accordingly ? First figure out the Brand vision and mission along with the fact how the Client wants to do their Brand Positioning ? Accordingly you can plan their Brand Designs
Brand values are the core beliefs and principles that guide the brand's actions and decisions. They reflect what the brand stands for and what it aims to achieve. Brand personality and brand values should be aligned and consistent, as they both influence how the brand is perceived and remembered by its audience. To align brand personality with brand values, you need to understand the brand's mission, vision, and purpose, and how they relate to its personality traits. For example, if a brand's value is to be innovative and disruptive, its personality should be exciting and daring, not boring and conventional.
Designing for brand personality is not a one-time process, but a continuous one that requires testing and refining. You need to gather feedback from your client, your audience, and your peers, and evaluate how well your design communicates the intended personality and values of the brand. You can use tools such as surveys, interviews, focus groups, or online platforms to collect and analyze data on how your design is perceived and received. Based on the results, you can make adjustments and improvements to your design until you achieve the desired outcome.
Maintaining brand personality is crucial for building a strong and consistent brand identity that lasts over time. You need to ensure that your design is applied across all the touchpoints and channels of the brand, such as its website, social media, packaging, or advertising. You also need to follow a set of guidelines and standards that define the dos and don'ts of using the brand's visual elements, such as its logo, colors, fonts, and images. By following these steps, you can create a coherent and memorable brand personality that resonates with your audience.