Design plays a significant role in the entire customer experience. It is what captures your brand and gives it life, movement and context. Without professional graphic design, creativity or artistic input, your brand will most likely lack the depth and visual language that comes with experience, knowledge and understanding of strategic design.
Selection of colours, shapes, typography, graphics and layout come together to create your unique branding footprint and, if done correctly, will create a lasting impression for your audience.
There are so many DIY online tools where anyone from beginner to advanced can create designs, but if you want to create brand assets that formulate a story, are aesthetically engaging, and communicate the right impression of your brand, it is worth investing in an experienced graphic designer.
So what makes good design, and what should you be looking for?
1. Space
Do you want to create balance or chaos? Negative space and even distribution between elements will create a sense of calm, sophistication and simplicity. The lack of this will create the opposite.
2. Colour
Arguably the best way to create the instant feel of a brand. Colour can speak a thousand words, just as a photograph can. It’s a great way to convey emotion without words. If you want to create vibrant, striking and playful you could use bold, bright colours. If you want your audience to feel calm and relaxed you might select pastel tones. Each colour conveys a different meaning and should be considered when creating your brand.
3. Typography
Typography is the art of type layout. It plays an important role in how your brand or message is communicated. Selecting different fonts, weight, spacing, height and shape can create a drastically different look and feel. This can really differentiate good design. Your brand’s use of typography can convey different messages. Font pairing and hierarchy also help define your brand and messaging. Find font families that work well together and give flexibility in terms of weights
4. Shape
Everything creates a shape, so it is important to think about how each element of your design interacts together. This includes the negative/blank space.
5. Size
This is a useful way to make certain elements stand out. What do you want people to see first and where do you want their eyes to travel
6. Texture in print collaterall
Textures help create depth and perspective and are important when it comes to tangible printed collateral. There are lots of considerations when it comes to print which will impact the quality of your design, for example, the type of paper stock (coated or uncoated) and its weight and thickness (anything from around 100gsm to 350 gsm depending on the piece). The use of UV coating can dramatically change the look and tactile feel of printed material whereas varnish can be used to protect an item or be used to highlight a certain aspect.
It is important to remember that each of these elements do not work in isolation, it’s only when the various aspects are considered in unison that a strong and consistent brand emerges. If you need help putting your ideas together, please contact us for a free scoping session to learn how we can help.