How a Graphic Designer Helps Shape Your Brand? Explained.
What role and purpose does a graphic designer play in creating a brand? Find out in this in-depth explanation of graphic design in branding.
Photo by Emily Bernal on Unsplash
What do you imagine when you think of the Golden Arch?
McDonald’s and their yummy fries, right?
What do you think of when someone says “a little blue birdie”?
What do these three lines make you think of?
You know it is Addidas, right?
These are just a few examples of how logos and colors can influence brand recognition.
In fact, using a signature color can improve brand recognition by 80%.
Also, 94% of first impressions about a website depend on its design.
And it is not surprising, given that the human mind processes visuals 60,000 times faster than text.
The figures clearly show that graphic design can help in building recognizable brands. And the actual experiences of hundreds of companies across industry verticals are second to the data.
Gearing to build a brand for your business from scratch? You definitely need a graphic designer.
Why?
What does a graphic designer do?
How exactly does a graphic designer help create the face of your brand?
Find answers to all these questions and more right here. Read on.
What Is Graphic Design?
Before we get to how graphic designers help build your brand image, let’s discuss graphic design.
Graphic design is a multifaceted field. It is the combination of creativity, technical skills, and an understanding of visual elements. And the goal is to effectively communicate messages or ideas.
In other words, it is the art and practice of creating visual content by combining text, images, etc.
Graphic designers create content for various media like print, digital, and social media. And it can be used for various purposes. (Like advertising, marketing, branding, and information design.)
In this article, we will be focusing on the branding prowess of graphic design.
Why Do You Need Graphic Designers for Creating a Brand?
McDonald’s is more than just its golden arches, right? It is the perfectly crispy taste of their fries. It is the warm ambiance of the outlets. It also includes the young and chirpy staff who complete the overall McD experience.
So then why should you focus so much on graphic design for creating the face of your brand?
Can you not just focus on everything else like the product/service, the staff, and the ambiance?
Can you not let design take the backseat?
No.
Why?
Because an important part of your brand’s identity is its overall look and feel. And it includes multiple design elements like logos, typography, color schemes, imagery, etc.
Thus, graphic designers play a crucial role in creating a brand. They work to convert the brand’s values and messages into designs. Thus, contributing towards a cohesive and memorable brand identity.
Graphic designers also create marketing materials. (Website designs, social media graphics, advertisements, and product packaging.) These can help to further establish and promote the brand.
Moreover, graphic designers also help differentiate the brand from competitors. That’s extremely important in the overcrowded markets today.
So let’s take a deep dive into how graphic designers help in creating brands.
3 Ways Graphic Designers Help Create the Face of Your Brand
1. Leaving long-lasting first impressions
Graphic designers have the ability to create long-lasting first impressions about brands in people’s minds. They do that by the use of effective visual branding elements and design techniques.
Some ways in which graphic design contributes to long-lasting first impressions are:
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A strong and memorable logo
A well-designed logo can be a powerful tool for creating a lasting first impression. It should be simple, yet distinctive. And it should effectively represent the brand’s values and identity.
The need for a powerful logo is evident from the fact that 67% of small businesses are willing to pay $500 for logo design. 18% SMBs are willing to go as far as $1,000 per logo design too.
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A cohesive visual identity
Graphic designers can help you finalize a color scheme, typography, and overall aesthetics. Maintaining this consistency can help create a recognizable and memorable brand.
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Effective layouts and designs
The on-screen arrangement of elements significantly impacts the effectiveness of a design. Graphic designers use principles like hierarchy, balance, and contrast to create visually appealing layouts.
Thus, by effectively using visual branding elements and design techniques, graphic designers can create long-lasting first impressions that help to establish a brand’s identity and take it to the audience’s heart.
2. Building a long-term brand image
Building a brand is not a one-time task that you do once and forget about. To build a brand, it is important to maintain the same image for the long term.
And hiring graphic designers can help do that and bolster a brand’s image in the following ways:
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Ensuring consistency across media channels
McDonald’s outlets are predominantly red and yellow-themed, right? Well, guess what, so is their Instagram.
And their website too.
The use of similar graphics and color schemes by expert graphic designers across media channels helps maintain brand consistency and builds a recognizable brand.
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Ensuring brand consistency over time
It is important for a brand to maintain a consistent image over time. Graphic designers can help do that by creating a style guide. Style guides outline the brand’s tone, language, and aesthetic. The guide is then used for all subsequent design creations.
Pepsi’s logo is a great example of over-the-time brand consistency.
The current logo looks nothing like the first one. But the use of the red color and the circular element (used since 1945) ensures brand consistency.
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Evolving the brand image as needed
As a brand grows and evolves over time, it may need an update or the visual branding elements might need to be refreshed. A graphic designer can help identify areas where updates are needed. And they can suggest changes that will help to keep the brand’s image fresh and relevant.
A good example is Instagram’s logo revamp.
The new logo captures the current colorful spirit of Instagram. But it still uses the same basic shape, which ensures consistency.
3. Strengthening brand loyalty
Apple is one of the brands which commands the strongest sense of loyalty from its audience.
Give an Apple fanatic anything with the bitten apple logo and they’d be fishing for their wallets to buy it.
Well, it is not by accident that Apple managed to cultivate such a strong sense of brand loyalty.
Graphic design plays a significant role in strengthening brand loyalty. Graphic designers create compelling and relevant design content and build an emotional connection with the target audience. This is done primarily through persuasive design techniques, such as storytelling and data visualization combined with influential copywriting. Such designs are effective at influencing the attitudes and behaviors of the target audience. This can help to build brand loyalty by encouraging customers to choose the brand over its competitors.
Hiring a graphic designer to create the face of your brand
A study suggested that 49% of small and medium businesses consider graphic design as very important for their success.
So now you’ve seen how graphic designers help create the face of your brand. And you also know your peers are understanding the importance of graphic design. So it is time to hire a graphic designer for your business too.
Don’t wait up. Find the right candidate quickly and easily via a talent connect platform and start building your brand today.
