Where is corporate identity or brand important?
We’ve all read about and have a pretty good idea of what brand and corporate identity is. But it’s useful to point out that corporate identity is concerned with these four main areas of activity, and note that they cover a lot of ground.

• Products/services - what you make or sell.
• Environments - where you make or sell it, the place or physical context, and the electronic/internet context.
• Information - how you describe and publicise what you do.
• Behaviour - how people within your organization behave to each other and to outsiders.

Know your target audiences
You may need communications with a different emphasis or focus for each different target group. It’s important to know the range of communications you will require that will carry your corporate identity. You can make a list of all the different groups and audiences you’ll be communicating with - for instance, not only prospective customers, but perhaps possible strategic partners. Don’t forget your own employees, your bankers, the financial industry if you plan to go public, perhaps your neighbours and possibly mentors.

Applications
Once you’ve looked at the field you’re operating in and the various publics out there that you’ll be addressing, your designer will need a list of the key communications you’ll be using that will hold your corporate identity, as well as all the possible ones. These might include:

• Business cards
• Letterhead/stationery/fax sheet.
• Invoices, receipts, order forms and acknowledgements, etc.
• Company vehicles
• Prospectus and investment package
• Annual report
• Email
• Powerpoint presentations
• Web site
• Literature on your company, products and services
• Reports and industry papers for presentation at trade shows, forums, websites.
• Packaging
• Direct selling tools
• Newsletter, paper and/or electronic

Contributed by: Liz Nash

Should you do your own logo?
Some entrepreneurs get their niece to do a logo and think they’re all set. Others try to design one on their own. Some of our clients are quite capable of creating a logo, but many simply don’t feel qualified or have other things they should concentrate on! We love to involve our clients in the process to whatever degree they are comfortable with. And they are delighted to find, whether they have a creative bent or not, that there is much they can do to reduce the design cost for a new logo or symbol. The cornerstone of a strong visual brand or corporate identity is the right logo or symbol, used consistently throughout your corporate graphics. Having a strong corporate identity or brand can go a long way to contributing to the success of your small business.

Building a design brief and benchmarking
The myriad of design choices can be narrowed down by doing some research, and benchmarking - making comparisons and learning from them, and summing up the results in what we call a design brief. A good design brief narrows the parameters your designer works within, and therefore cuts down the time you are paying for. You can also cut your costs by doing much of the work needed to build this brief. You may well find you can use some of the research you did for your business plan.

Know the playing field of your industry
For instance, you probably researched your competition for your business plan. For the design brief, it’s useful to collect a file of the communications commonly used by your competition. This helps your designer know the playing field in your particular industry. For instance, customers in one industry may be used to seeing very basic print material. Another industry might have the bar set higher; it may be the norm to have costly printed brochures on luxurious paper, or websites with extremely sophisticated e-commerce components.

Know your own likes and dislikes
Besides collecting a file of competitors’ materials, you should also keep a file of pieces that appeal to you, or that contain some aspect that appeals to you. These don’t necessarily have to relate to your industry. Although your image has to appeal to your buyers and other publics, your designer should also be taking into account your taste. If you’re a small business owner you will be living more closely with the result (for many reasons large corporations need a more homogenized solution). It helps inform your designer too if you accumulate examples of what you don’t like.

Word association list helps prepare for identity design
For those of you who are more comfortable dealing with words than pictures, you can make a valuable contribution by building a word association list. What words do you associate with your company’s image that will take you to a successful future? The list will spark ideas and focus on the feel your image should embrace.

Contributed by: Liz Nash

Brand identities aren’t just a luxury of big business like Starbucks and Nike. A brand identity can play a critical role in an entrepreneurial company of any size and at any stage of growth. While a logo is a symbol of what you do, a brand identity defines who you are, what you stand for and where you’re going.

People ultimately decide to business with people. You brand identity is the face of your business - and gives it a persona that your customers, your employees, your suppliers and your competition can all relate to and quickly identify with. A brand identity sets you apart, establishes credibility and opens the door to new opportunities.

The design of your brand identity, including your logo, business card and other marketing materials, work best when they embody your business values, not just your business function. Otherwise, your materials may in fact distort how people perceive both you and your business. Your company may come across as traditional when, in fact, you’re an innovator. You might come across as a local-based business when you’re competing on a global level.

The best approach for uncovering your brand values and creating a brand identity is to have a guide coach you through the process. But at the very least, here’s a quick test can help discover what your brand is saying about you behind your back.

Pass around your business card to colleagues or stakeholders. What are the key words that come to mind when they look at your logo? Are these words what you want people thinking about you and your company? If not, it might be time for a brand makeover.

Remember, regardless of what size your company is, you only have one chance to make a first impression. Your business identity is often times the first introduction to your company - so it’s worth it to make sure you’re putting your best face forward.