What are the key elements in brand design?

One of the best ways to communicate your brand story and connect with your ideal audience is by using visual elements. This is often referred to as brand identity (aka, the look and feel of your brand). A strong brand identity is one that aligns with your values and builds an authentic relationship with your audience.

Think of the most iconic brands you know. The golden arches of McDonald’s M. The famous Nike tick. The beautiful green siren on your Starbucks coffee cup. 

We’re surrounded by branding in our daily lives, from famous brands to your neighbour’s baking business on Instagram. And yet, brand design is often misunderstood. 

The biggest misconception we hear is that your brand starts with a logo. 

It is in fact, quite the opposite. 

Intentional branding

Branding is the holistic integration of many elements that should resonate and connect with your audience. Think of your brand as an ecosystem that houses the values you stand for, the experience you want to create, and the culture you hope to nurture. 

At Studio Monday, we believe in an intentional branding approach. This means that we look beyond trending colour palettes and aesthetic design to really understand what will make an impact on your audience. 

Before we even get started on designing, we sit down with all our clients to understand their goals, mission and the type of customers they want to speak to. In doing this, we are able to create a brand that truly supports your audience and connects with their desires. A brand that is unique to your speciality, stands the test of time and is one that you’ll be proud to share. 

Key elements of brand design

Primary Logo

While your brand is so much more than a logo, it’s great to have a primary logo to represent your brand identity. This is the main brand logo that you would use most frequently through your website, invoices, business cards and marketing materials, letterheads and more. It’s the identity of your business and helps customers understand what your business does. 

Secondary Logo

Your secondary logo is a variation of your primary logo but rearranged in a different format. If your primary logo is rectangular, your secondary logo should be stacked or circular. This ensures you always have a logo to use, regardless of the medium. For example, a circular logo can be used on your social media platforms while an invoice might require a more narrow, rectangular logo. This helps maintain the consistency of your branding and adds a high quality feel to your brand. 

Brand Mark

A brand mark is a simplified variation of your logo. It could just include your brand initials, a key illustration or simply be your business name. It’s perfect for email signatures, social media or a watermark. 

Brand Colours 

Aka the most fun part! Your brand colours not only influence the way you are perceived but how you want your audience to feel. While it’s tempting to choose something trendy (eg: pastels), it’s important to choose colours that authentically represent your brand and evoke the right response within your audience. We like to use colour psychology when curating your brand palette to create a strong impact and genuine reaction. 

Typography and fonts 

Just like your brand colours, fonts convey different personalities and connotations that can be used strategically to strengthen your visual identity. For example, a skincare brand might opt for a Italicised serif font to convey luxury while a children’s charity might go for a bold type to feel more approachable. Brand fonts can help your audience build brand awareness and subconsciously get a sense of your brand. That’s why maintaining consistency with your fonts is key. We recommend 1 to 2 fonts for optimal use. 

Brand Guidelines

This isn’t a mandatory element, but definitely something we believe every brand should have. A brand guideline is a master document that contains all the relevant info about your brand design along with detailed instructions on where or how to use them. At Studio Monday, our brand guideline includes all the deets on your logos, your brand colours, how you should style your text for consistency and how you can implement them on social media. We love this handy document because it helps keep your brand cohesive and consistent, especially if you’re working with an external contractor or company member. 

Thank you so much for reading this post x