Defining The Brand Of Your Creative Business
As a provider of creative services, you need to take your branding more seriously than most. After all, your clients expect to be able to see your talent, creativity, and particular tastes up front. However, adapting your creative style to something as broad as a business brand isn’t always an easy translation. For that reason, we’re going to look at how you distill what you do into a well-defined brand, helping you connect with your audience, establishing your credibility, and ensuring a lasting impression that reflects what you offer.
Consider Your Target Audience
Almost every business can benefit from taking a more customer-focused approach. How you want your business to be seen should be defined, in part, by who is seeing it. To that end, consider who your average client is, as well as who you want your clients to be. Are you catering to high-end clients who expect luxury and exclusivity, or are you reaching out to young, trend-conscious consumers looking for fresh and innovative ideas? Understanding their needs, preferences, and expectations will help you create a brand that resonates with them. If you have any specific industries that you work with regularly, then don’t be afraid to center them, in part, in your brand communications, or at least make it clear that you have expertise in working with them.
Determine Your Brand Identity
When you have an idea of who you are trying to reach, then it’s all about establishing a brand identity that sets you apart from the others who might be vying for their attention (and money). A good brand identity encompasses your logo, color palette, writing voice, and the personality that you want people to assume. In the creative industry, it should be a reflection of your unique style, as well, so you should lean into it and embrace what makes you distinct. Emotional appeals drive creative businesses, so you should try to hit hard on eliciting a reaction, whether you’re trying to create the impression of an impressively sleek and professional agency, something more playful and whimsical, or something modern, bold, and edgy.
Know How To Reach Them
Once you have the ingredients of a brand identity, it’s all about working out how you expose your potential clients to them. The first impression is often the most important that any creative business can make, so you should work with digital marketing experts who can combine your brand and your creative spirit with the most effective ways of reaching people online, be it through your website, social media, advertisements, email marketing, or otherwise. Digital marketing efforts can further help establish your presence. Leveraging these tools allows you to showcase your work to a larger audience while maintaining a consistent and professional brand image. If you have a great brand but no means for it to be seen, it’s not going to do you a whole lot of good.
Keep It Consistent
One of the biggest mistakes creative entrepreneurs make is being inconsistent with their branding. If your messaging, visuals, or tone change too frequently, your audience may struggle to recognize and remember you. This is where a brand style guide becomes invaluable. Your brand style guide is a guidebook on everything that makes up your brand identity, from the visuals to the fonts you use and the language you do and do not use. It allows you to ensure consistency across all of your marketing and branding efforts, whether you’re handling them yourself or someone out-of-house is working with you. Using it to build consistency is vital because it establishes a level of trust with your audience and, eventually, loyalty, which makes your brand more memorable.
Let Your Work Speak For Itself
At some point, your potential clients are going to want to look beyond the facade of the business and see what it is you can actually do. Let your creative work establish your credibility, and make sure that you have an accessible and well-curated portfolio. You don’t need to put absolutely everything you’ve ever made on it, just your best and most relevant work. Focus on pieces that reflect your brand’s identity and resonate with your target audience. If possible, include client testimonials or case studies to provide social proof of your expertise. Whether you present your portfolio on your website, social media, or through printed materials, it should be a direct representation of your brand. High-quality images, clear descriptions, and an intuitive layout will make it easy for viewers to engage with your work.
A solid brand can do a lot of the heavy lifting of convincing your potential clients that you can do what you say you do. Follow the tips above and make sure that you nail that first impression.
