When launching a new business there is one important factor that helps to make or break the way your company is perceived by the public and that is your branding. Branding incorporates various elements but the key aspect is the visual identity you create. This identity helps you to communicate who your company is and what it does.

Your brand identity will probably be the first interaction that potential customers have with your company, so designing an appropriate and well crafted identity is a crucial part of the branding process.

There are many areas where design has to be considered when establishing your identity. This includes your physical products, stationery, packaging, signage, advertising as well as your online presence, company website or App. It’s imperative to create a style that works across all channels.

So what are the key design assets every startup should know about?

1. Logo

Logos are imperative for a young company because they communicate purpose and personality and become a recognisable emblem for the brand. Logos help the company look professional, trustworthy and appropriate. A logo can appear printed, embroidered, in digital format and exist in colour as well as in black and white as these variations need to be considered from the outset.

2. Branding Assets

A logo is just one component of a brand identity. Startups can streamline their identity by incorporating elements into their products and within communication pieces they send. Branding assets include logos, icons, images, fonts, style sheets, templates and colour palettes - all of which help to create a company’s brand / identity and help you to be remembered.

3. Website Templates

A website is your window to the world. Accessible 24/7 allowing you to communicate your company’s personality to visitors. There are many ways to develop a website but as a startup you might wish to consider using a theme or template. Templates are collections of pre-designed pages that anyone can use to allow basic customisation of the way your site looks. Building sites this way can drastically reduce the cost of a bespoke build, however sites run the risk of looking the same as others if not done correctly.

4. Email Marketing Templates

When you are reaching out to a customer it is important to portray your company as established, professional and experienced and to ensure that you are communicating in a consistent style and method. Email marketing templates help to achieve this - and save you time. Email spam filters are now incredibly sophisticated so its important to design your emails in a format that can bypass fire wall filters so that you maximise your ‘open rate’ and don’t end up in junk. As with websites your emails are likely to be viewed on a whole host of devices & screen resolutions. Using a template means this is all taken care of and everyone will be able to view your marketing material as it was designed.

5. Smart Colour Combinations

Colours have a psychological effect on consumers and choosing the right colour palette can be a science. The colours you choose to associate with your brand directly affects your company’s image. The right colour choice for your industry and colour combinations paint a particular impression of your business that consumers buy into. Your colour needs to look cohesive, integrated and considered. They can also help you appear trustworthy. Its worth looking at what colours your competitors use and what colours are prevalent within your industry so you can understand their strengths but also look to stand out from the crowd.

Files your designer should send

Once designs have been agreed designers can supply these to you in different file options. Its worth understanding these options and knowing which are best for use in channels/scenarios.

You may appreciate the importance of good design when building a brand, but as a startup it is entirely possible, indeed likely, that you will be lacking resources - finances, manpower & time to get the custom designed desired. If you would like to pick our brains then please don’t hesitate to call! We all started somewhere!