Personalised Branding|Need not cost a fortune

We hear so much about “branding” and “brand identity” and everyone now (regardless of what their business or industry) has to have a logo.  I remember when it was enough for DJ’s to have their name on the line up and poster, now everyone’s all about their logo having to have primo position and placement. One of my pet peeves are festival flyers that are littered in ridiculous artists logos. Tip- worry more about your music than how big your logo is in comparison to someone else’s and where it actually goes.

Brand awareness the extent to which consumers are familiar with the qualities or image of a particular brand of goods or services.  Branding goes way beyond just a logo or graphic element. When you think about your brand, you really want to think about your entire customer experience…everything from your logo, your website, your social media experiences, the way you answer the phone, to the way your customers experience your staff.

When you look at this broad definition of branding, it can be a bit overwhelming to think about what is involved in your brand.  In short, your brand is the way your customer perceives you.  People tend to do business with companies they are familiar with. If your branding is consistent and easy to recognise, it can help people feel more at ease purchasing your products or services.

Advertising is another component of your brand. Both the medium chosen and demographic targeted for advertisements builds a brand. Too narrow an advertising focus, and a company risks being “pigeon holed” and losing their ability to expand into new markets. Too broad a focus, and the company fails to create a definable impression of the company in the minds of would be customers.

Branding enables your company to get referral business. Would it be possible for you to tell a friend about the new shoes you love if you couldn’t remember the brand? A large reason ‘brand’ is the word used for this concept is that the goal is an indelible impression. As the most profitable advertising source, word of mouth referrals are only possible in a situation where your company has delivered a memorable experience with your customer.

The most profitable companies, small and large, have a single thing in common. They have established themselves as a leader in their particular industry by building a strong brand.

Two of the hardest things you will ever do in business is coming up with a name for your business (which is reflective of what you do) but also creating a logo or a brand identity which conveys to your customers and potential clients who you are. It’s not something that comes easy ( I can assure you it took me ages before I decided on a name and I’ve changed my own logo now twice). Whatever you decide on has to resonate with you, and you love to love it!

Think about it long and hard and ask a variety of people what they think about your concept before you settle on something.

Coming up with all this concept is and can be expensive and time consuming. If you don’t know what you want you work with a creative team or designer and remember they charge you by the hour. Things have changed now though, and I’ve a few tips and places on the inter web you can come up with and create your own identities for a fraction of the cost, as well as some pretty awesome products you can create to stand out from the crowd in the market place.

99 Designs
99designs is the world’s largest online graphic design marketplace. For more than seven years they’ve been connecting passionate designers with customers who need quality, affordable design services.  The site is pretty cool in that you come up with a brief on the design you want put together, pick the package and option that you want and then it get’s thrown to the “marketplace” where their designers put together a concept and design for you. They come up with the design, creative and pitch it to you.

You then pick the one you like, pay for it and you’re on your way. The cool thing about this is that you’ve a number of people working on a project to which you can get a variety of ideas and that you pay only for what you need.  They do a large variety of design work, and are perfect if you want a full re do or need a complete identity created.

Canva
I had wondered about whether or not I ought to share this with anyone, but I was fortunate to have someone tell me about it and it revolutionised my life. I’m all for sharing information and resources and this is has been a fucking game changer. If you don’t use it, get onto it! Create your own brand identities, logos, digital and print marketing and so much more. It’s quick, it’s web based and has great templates and elements you pay only for what you use. Seriously, suss it out!

Woodfruff and Co
Founded in December 2015, Woodruff and Co make custom stamps for businesses or creative projects. Users can quickly upload their design, preview live and order rubber stamps or electric branding irons in seconds.Their magical vector converting software means virtually any image file type can be used; from a jpeg photo of a cat, to a complicated Illustrator logo.

The software auto-magically converts raster designs to vector in a format suitable for lossless/scalable stamp production. Within literally 5 minutes you can upload, have a proof, add in your stamp pads and you’re order will be on it’s way.

All stamps are mounted on a sustainably sourced Tasmanian hardwood block, with a jet black wooden handle.
Possible uses:
– Custom packaging for an eBay business
– Swingtags for a retail fashion brand
– Custom gift wrapping or gift cards
– Branded coffee cups
– Business cards

It’s never been easier, or more affordable to customise anything, and they’re a great Australian based small business! Plus how cool is the stamp that they did up for us? (Thanks Rebecca :))
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What I like about the above is that they’re accessible to everyone, cost effective solutions and more so they’re Aussie start ups! Yes we do logos and design and it’s quick and affordable too, but sometimes you need something right then and there and I think the above will certainly help you out!  Check them out and be sure to tell them we sent you!