What's your secret to building and keeping a strong brand identity?

1 Know your purpose

The first step to building a strong brand identity is to define your purpose: why do you exist, what do you stand for, and what do you offer to your customers? Your purpose should be clear, concise, and compelling, and it should guide all your branding decisions. Your purpose should also be aligned with your vision, mission, and goals, and it should reflect your core values and beliefs.

2 Design your visual identity

The second step to building a strong brand identity is to design your visual identity: the elements that represent your brand visually, such as your logo, colors, fonts, images, icons, and style. Your visual identity should be consistent, coherent, and appealing, and it should communicate your purpose, personality, and promise to your target audience. Your visual identity should also be adaptable, scalable, and versatile, so that it can work across different platforms, channels, and formats.

3 Develop your voice and tone

The third step to building a strong brand identity is to develop your voice and tone : the way you express your brand verbally, such as your name, slogan, tagline, copy, and content. Your voice and tone should be consistent, distinctive, and engaging, and they should convey your purpose, personality, and promise to your target audience. Your voice and tone should also be appropriate, relevant, and authentic, so that they can resonate with your customers and build trust and loyalty.

4 Create your brand guidelines

The fourth step to building a strong brand identity is to create your brand guidelines: the document that defines and explains your brand identity, including your purpose, visual identity, voice and tone, and other aspects. Your brand guidelines should be comprehensive, detailed, and easy to understand, and they should provide examples, rules, and best practices for using your brand identity. Your brand guidelines should also be accessible, updated, and enforced, so that they can ensure consistency and quality across all your branding efforts.

5 Communicate your brand identity

The fifth step to building a strong brand identity is to communicate your brand identity : the way you showcase and deliver your brand identity to your target audience, such as your website, social media, email, packaging, and advertising. Your communication should be consistent, coherent, and captivating, and it should reinforce your purpose, visual identity, voice and tone, and promise to your target audience. Your communication should also be strategic, measurable, and feedback-oriented, so that you can optimize your branding performance and impact.

6 Evolve your brand identity

The sixth and final step to building a strong brand identity is to evolve your brand identity: the way you adapt and improve your brand identity over time, based on your market, customer, and business changes. Your evolution should be gradual, intentional, and meaningful, and it should preserve your purpose, personality, and promise to your target audience. Your evolution should also be informed, tested, and communicated, so that you can maintain your relevance, differentiation, and value.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?