The Importance of Graphic Design in Branding
in Brand, Design, Corporate Communications
Jul 9th, 08
When I tell someone for the first time that I am a graphic designer, a question I am commonly asked is, “What exactly does that involve?” The answer is that for the most part, we create communication material for businesses.
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Every designed object arises out of a brand, a system of ideas, motivations, objects, actions, events and goals. The thing that gives design its particular power is the fact that it's derived from the motive, mission, strategy, market position, product design, distribution and corporate culture of a company.
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Design is the sole point of contact between a potential customer and a company. Until a person decides to engage with the organisation, design is all they see, all they know, and they have to relate to. And that makes it very important.
Any brand that is serious has a lifestyle, an opinion, a culture, an attitude – or all of these things – associated with it. One of the primary jobs of a designer is to translate that concept into a communicative look and feel. This message may be complicated, however, through a professional designers employment of semiotic language, the message will speak loud and clear to the target audience. An effective piece of branding collateral immediately perceives the core message that embodies the brand simply by seeing the design. Design therefore functions as bridge between a customer and a company. Get the design wrong, and the bridge wont reach the consumers on the other side.
For an individual, brands are a perception. Bonds is a brand. Many people perceive Bonds as providing quality products for affordable prices; others perceive Bonds as iconically Australian. These are just two of the perceptions that make up the Bonds brand.
Visual elements of a brand such as logo, colour, typography, taglines, imagery and packaging are all triggers for these perceptions. When making purchasing decisions, these perceptions come into play. For example if a consumer has the perception that Bonds singlets are good quality and value for money, the Bonds logo and branded appearance of the product act as stimulation in their purchasing decision.
Loyalty to a brand stems from a solid visual style and language consistently implemented across all marketing materials. Consistency with a brand leads to a comfort zone for the consumer. Through familiarity of the brand and the values encapsulated in its visual identity, as well as delivery on these perceptions, trust will grow in the brand.
Neglect to utilise professional designers in your branding strategy could prove detrimental to your businesses success. Think about it - a business that uses inferior graphic tools from cheap online logo generators or clip art logo packages says nothing of the business and its values and subsequently will create the wrong impression in the eyes of the target customer. Visual communication is more often than not the first form of communication. And to successfully connect to the target audience, the brands message needs to be understood effortlessly through the visual language of all of its material.
It can therefore be said that investment in a professional designer can pay high dividends when it comes to design and branding issues.