Marketing experts often emphasise that when it comes to brand image, you must be visible. However, just being visible is not enough. Communication must be purposeful, attractive, and memorable, so without design, you definitely won’t get by… A brand image without design is like a book without a cover. It seems the same, but it doesn’t catch the eye.
Why is it worth investing?
Visual communication is the company’s face. And when the face is hardly recognisable, lacking coherence and logic, it creates a corresponding impression about the brand itself. From a business perspective, investing in design is highly important because it provides the company with uniqueness, boosts sales, allows for the proper conveyance of desired messages, and significantly influences consumers’ perception of the company.
Essentially, design is a prism through which the user receives information. According to marketing theory, visual advertising content is much more effective than auditory or textual content. This means that the purpose of graphic design is to evoke emotions and convey easily understandable, structured information, creating certain associations related to the brand (service, product) in the consumer’s mind.
Great design sells. This statement is by no means hyperbolic. Indeed, the decision to purchase many products, from cosmetics to mobile phones, is often influenced by design. The packaging of perfumes, the logo on a wallet, or the arrangement of cameras on the back of the latest phone… All of these are visual communication solutions whispering in the user’s ear, buuuuuy! Therefore, design should be one of the company’s priorities when allocating advertising budgets.
Aesthetics vs. functionality
No, no, good design certainly does not stop beyond the words such as ‘beautiful’ and ‘nice’. Good design can be described as a synthesis of aesthetics and functionality because each element of visual content serves a specific function. Often, functionality outweighs aesthetics, but ideally, there is synergy between them.
A visually presented advertising message is more compelling in terms of both perception and memorability. It is worth emphasising that memorability is the most important condition for brand awareness, therefore exceptional design is a must.
There are certain general design guidelines that help create visual magic:
- The rule of thirds – it is applied in both art and design composition,
- The theory of complementary and contrasting colours,
- The two-font rule.
Applying these components does not make design good on its own, but it can certainly help.
Rebranding and restyling
Both concepts are very closely related, but their meanings differ. Rebranding is a change during which almost all components of the brand are fundamentally altered: the logo, the style of visual communication, the slogan, the mantra, etc. This step is an important part of brand development, but it is not always necessary. Rebranding can become the main tool for positioning the brand when the company’s specifics, activities, or management change. In other words, it can radically change the face of the company.
Restyling, on the other hand, is an update of visual communication. It is a process during which the logo and all visual communication elements are usually updated. Sometimes, during restyling, the tone of communication also changes – for example, from conservative and serious to more cheerful (as in the case of Šiaulių Bankas). Changes in the visual identity are unavoidable when aiming to impress a specific audience or reach new segments. This is an essential part of the brand growth process.
Brands that remain unchanged and do not grow stagnate; their communication does not interest the target segment and fails to reach new consumers. So, to avoid being left in the past, it is necessary to keep up with innovations and not be afraid to update the visual communication of the brand.
As they say… Don’t judge a book by its cover? In marketing, it is precisely the cover that determines a lot. So, to attract the attention of potential consumers, the cover should receive no less attention than the text content of the book (communication).