A company’s corporate identity is the cornerstone of all visual communications. We are experts at creating visual guidelines, product branding or simply a unique logo, helping our clients to establish brand recognition and communicate their brand personality. Especially for businesses operating in a mass market, where the competition seems to never sleep, having a strong corporate identity is vital.
The different steps of creating a corporate identity
With over 15 years of experience in branding and design, Reactive Graphics has a strategic approach to creating a corporate identity within a competitive environment such as London. Not only are the designs aesthetically pleasing, but they are developed with a critical eye on what each design aims to communicate. Who is the target audience? What is the company culture, and how is this integrated into the design? A good corporate identity should be clear and effective in its design, be unique and have personality.
We follow different steps to create the perfect identity for each of our clients.
1. Conducting research
This point might seem obvious, but it is the basis for any high-quality corporate identity. Understanding the market in which your business is operating in and knowing how potential consumers behave is the key to creating an effective, tailored identity. Understanding what the competition is doing and how to differentiate the client from their rivals will help to establish a strong position within the marketplace.
2. Establishing a unique value proposition and communicating it
The visual language of any brand needs to communicate the message the business is sending directly to the target audience. Is your business young, modern and innovative? Or traditional and conservative? Quirky or conventional? Visualising your values or attitudes will help attract the right audience, and ideally create an interest in your brand.
3. Developing the creative elements
Once the strategic part of the corporate identity has been developed, the creative elements need to be created. The brand will need a certain look & feel and tone of voice to convey the correct message, which can be carried through all marketing channels. In this creative process, the designer develops a colour system, chooses a font, creates a logo and other visual elements that can be used for different sectors of the client’s business.
4. Having a plan for the future
When the corporate identity has been approved by the client and finalised by the designer, the branding process is not finished. Although the brand identity is defined by the design, it is established through following a long-term plan. Building a brand takes time, needs planning and requires patience. Advertising your brand and making sure the right audience is made aware your company exists is vital. Through time, awareness for your brand will grow, and ultimately it will strengthen your brand and its position in the market. Using social media or other channels to directly target a specific group of people on a more personal level can be very rewarding for certain brands. More traditional advertising can be more appropriate for others. The key is to make a plan that helps your business to advance and your brand identity to stabilise.
Why is having a corporate identity important?
1. Makes company look professional & bigger
A well-designed corporate identity will give the consumer an impression of sophistication. Your audience will know that the company is operating on a professional level and has the resources to provide a reliable and high-quality service or product. Especially if the business is young and lacking experience, it is essential to “punch above your weight”. Consumers will make assumptions based on presentation, and if the presentation lacks quality, this will affect the business directly. A consistent brand identity represents an organised and ambitious company ready to provide an equally qualitative service to its customers.
2. Builds loyalty and trust
Another reason a great brand identity is important is that it helps to establish an emotional connection between business and client. The personal and unique design of the visual language will communicate the brand’s values – and ideally create a feeling of trust by the consumer. This will enable the brand to be recognised and even advertised by clients through word of mouth.
3. Conveys stability
Having a strong corporate identity can also create a feeling of stability and brand history. As mentioned above, this is especially important for young companies. A brand that has successfully existed for a while is more likely to be perceived as having greater credibility.
4. Shows commitment and sophistication
A sophisticated corporate identity also communicates the business’ commitment to its objectives. A company that invests into a professional brand design shows that it has the ambition to exist long-term and is aiming to create a happy and satisfied customer base. The business seems to be important to its directors and worth a polished presentation.
Examples of our branding
Phoenix Spree Deutschland
We created the brand identity for Phoenix Spree Deutschland. Phoenix Spree is a long-term investor in the mid-market segment of the German residential property market. Although Phoenix Spree is based on Berlin, the company has an international outlook. Sustainability lies at the core of their business model and, through a targeted programme of significant reinvestment into their properties, the company seeks to improve the standard of accommodation available to their customers. When Phoenix Spree approached Reactive to develop a brand identity that fits their brand, we developed a timeless and classic, yet modern visual language, which can be integrated into various sectors of the business.
You can find out more about the branding for Phoenix Spree here.
Funeral Directory
Established in 1905, the National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) represents the interests of the entire spectrum of funeral directing businesses. It includes over 4,000 UK funeral homes, providing a high quality of service to give peace of mind at a distressing time. We designed a brand identity to visualise both professionalism and compassion. Throughout the process of developing this brand identity, our main objective was to create a personal and warm design. As the organisation of a funeral is often an emotional and demanding time for the bereaved, we avoided using dark and heavy colours and fonts.
You can find out more about the branding for Funeral Directory here.
To conclude on corporate identity
Creating a professional corporate identity might be a complex process, but in most cases, it is worth the effort. Not only does sophisticated branding look good, it creates a connection between your business and potential consumers. It also communicates the company’s personality and helps position your business within the market it operates in. Branding allows consumers to recognise a business and it creates a sense of familiarity. It is essential for any brand that aims to exist long-term and wants to operate on a professional level.
View the corporate identities we have created for other businesses.
