A visual identity is not a nice logo. It is everything your customer sees from you, and it is what lets them recognise you among dozens of competitors before they read your name.
I started my career as a designer, and the most important thing I learned is that good design is a marketing decision before it is an artistic one.
01Identity starts before colours
Answer three questions before opening any design software. The answers choose the colour, the typeface and the style, not the designer's taste.
- What should the customer feel?
Trust, energy, luxury or closeness? Pick one main feeling, not all of them.
- What genuinely sets you apart?
Something you do that your competitor does not, not "high quality and great service".
- Who are you speaking to?
An identity for companies differs from one for young consumers, even for the same product.
02Four elements are enough
03The 60 / 30 / 10 colour rule
A simple rule designers use so colours do not compete. Take this site's colours as an example:
#F7F1EABackgrounds and wide areas. Rests the eye and lets the rest stand out.#1A1A1AText, headings and dark sections.#D42B1EButtons, numbers and whatever the eye should reach first.04Consistency is what leaves a mark
Each designer picks a colour "close" to yours
The colour code is written down and copied
A different typeface in every post
One typeface in two weights everywhere
A logo that gets stretched and recoloured
Fixed logo versions with clear space around them
The invoice and WhatsApp look unlike the ad
The same look from the ad to the invoice
05Write a guide, even two pages
- Colours with their codes and how much of each to use.
- The typeface, its weights and when to use each.
- Logo versions and the clear space around them.
- Examples of what is not allowed: no stretching, no recolouring, no busy backgrounds.
06Test your identity
07The short version
If the logo is the only thing that identifies you, your identity is incomplete. An identity is a system: colours with roles, one typeface and a repeated style. A simple system you stick to beats a lavish identity that changes every day.
I help companies grow through marketing strategies built on results.