Have you ever wondered the value of graphics for your small business needs?Often, we get sidetracked by so much on our seemingly never-ending-to-do-lists that we hesitate to hit pause and reflect on why we do certain things. From social media to email marketing to logo design and more, there is a lot that helps to create the brand you work so hard to build every day. Yet too often, business owners – large and small – overlook some of the most valuable and memorable components of a brand’s reputation… which are the visual impression they leave with their customers. Keeping this in mind, how often do you make the visual details of your business a top priority?
Graphics are what define your brand reputation and ultimately help to create brand identity. After all, we live in a visual world where first impressions aren’t given a second chance and most people are too busy to look at anything for an extended period of time. Due to this, your chance to make first impressions memorable and long-lasting customer relationships begin with how they perceive your brand.To help, consider these three tips:
Want to believe logos don’t matter? Think again. Logos are often the first impressions that consumers – including prospective customers and existing clients – have to make an opinion of your brand. Because of this, logos should ideally provide a visual impression that leaves your brand understood as a professional, quality driven company while also clearly explaining what your company does in a clear, concise and attractive manner. In a nutshell, logos should instantly connect your brand and business to consumers without any hesitation or reason for them not to want to work with your business. Logos also become the stepping stone to other brand impressions, most of which can also can be shared via graphics. Speaking of which…
Beyond logos, graphics can help support businesses in their brand identity and understanding in a variety of ways. Using graphics to help explain how products work, for example, is one way this may be done. This is often the case in how-to-guides or instruction manuals. Another example may be using graphics to highlight the benefits of services provided by a company – helping to demonstrate the return an investment in a service may have, therefore leading to more purchases. Social media also craves strong graphics nowadays, opening up a wide variety of graphic opportunities for your business. Your goal when incorporating graphics into any aspect of your business branding is to use them as a way to inform customers, keep consumers engaged in your company and ultimately as a way to help shape your overall brand identify. This leads us to yet another tip in maximizing your efforts when it comes to graphics…
Graphics offer companies – including freelancers – the opportunity to connect themselves among each other as well as their customers. Take Target, for example, who has boldly incorporated the color red into their store logo, graphics, store layout and more. Beyond the color red, the bullseye symbol is widely recognized as the Target logo – even if not the official Target Bullseye. With this in mind, consider how your own logo and graphics complement each other and your entire brand experience. When done effectively, strong graphic design can strengthen your brand – beginning internally and ultimately impacting the customers you reach.
Finally, don’t let the layers and layers of opportunity that graphics can offer your business intimidate you. Fortunately, creating logos and any graphics used for businesses nowadays do not have to claim your entire marketing budget. Instead, you can get savvy logos, smart graphics and super-efficient visual support completed on a dime… or at the very least, five dollars. Ready to re-ignite your business? Begin with graphics. Letting your logo take the lead, visual impressions have never been so impactful or so important to your business.
