When creating a brand for your business, your may hear the term “Brand Identity” thrown out and be wondering — what exactly is a Brand Identity?

Think of this analogy…

When you’re building a house your first have to put down the foundation, framing, walls, etc. to give your house a solid base, In design terms would be the equivalent of a Brand Strategy. Then, once your have your foundation of your home, you can now add some of the aesthetic piece; this could be a style of stairs, the color or the doors, shape of the windows. All these these help to add to the home. These visual elements would be the Brand Identity. Your Brand Identity is the visual manifestation of your Brand’s strategy. It helps to tie visually express the message of your Brand’s Strategy.

When you hear “Brand Identity”, you may think that means just the logo. But, a Brand Identity is so much more than a single logo. Your business’s Brand Identity is made up of so many element created to help get your Brand’s message across.

These elements can include the following…

Brand Aesthetic

Your brand aesthetic, or creative direction, is the overall mood of your business’s brand. The aesthetic should give your audience a visual reference of what to expect when interacting with your brand. This aesthetic is composed of visual inspiration including a range of colors, font styles, imagery, and so much more!

Logo Suite

A logo suite is a curation of variations of your logo. Having a logo suite helps to establish your brand recognition when showcasing your branding. Each logo within the suite should be cohesive in representing your business’s brand while providing you with the flexibility to showcase your brand on different platforms and materials.

Color Palette

A brand color palette is a collection of specific colors representing your business’s brand. The selection of colors should align with the overall aesthetics of your brand. When curating your brand colors, you should always reference the psychology of colors and your ideal audience. Colors play a big part in visuals as they help establish perceptions.

Brand Typeface

Brand typefaces are the overarching styles of lettering. Within brand typefaces, you will also establish your specific brand fonts. Brand fonts are the different sizes, weights, and styles that your typeface can come in. For example, Arial is a typeface, whereas the italic 12pt-size version of Arial is the font. When it comes to your brand, using specific typefaces and fonts can help enhance your brand aesthetic.