How Do You Create a Cohesive Brand Identity?
We asked twelve Founders and CEOs how they approach creating a cohesive brand identity and to provide an example of what success looks like. From adapting branding across mediums to emphasizing simplicity and trust, here are their top tips for visual creatives.
- Adapt Branding Across Mediums
- Embrace Sustainable Practices
- Engage All Five Senses
- Reflect Purpose and Values
- Prioritize Visual Consistency
- Align Visuals With Values
- Collaborate With Your Team
- Convey Security and Innovation
- Project Expertise and Trust
- Tell a Visual Brand Story
- Emphasize Simplicity and Trust
- Partner With Local Businesses
Adapt Branding Across Mediums
We start by establishing core branding elements like the logo and brand colors. But it goes beyond that-creating variations for different mediums ensures consistency. Whether it's for an app, website, social media, or printed materials, each application needs its own adaptation while staying true to the brand.
Some of our most cohesive branding work has come from creating these variations across all platforms. When we handle every touchpoint, from digital platforms to physical materials, we ensure the brand identity remains consistent and recognizable no matter where it appears.
Embrace Sustainable Practices
Making a commitment to sustainability is the basis of our brand identity at Superbee. As such, it's something we attempt to convey in every visual and functional aspect of what we do. For instance, we make sure that we utilize only recycled or sustainably sourced materials for our packaging and promotional materials, and we make sure the story of our efforts is told to consumers through tags and labels telling them where and from whom the materials came and what their lifecycle has been.
This was achieved with a campaign for the launch of a new beeswax-wraps product, through a digital brochure featuring the products but also presenting to the consumer information on how plastic waste disruption disrupts the natural environment and the positive environmental impacts that beeswax products bring. This was not a mere product campaign but a campaign for a lifestyle change (for the better). The response was amazing, with customers not only buying the wraps but sharing the digital brochure, which resulted in an increase in our online engagement. We are now recognized as a leader in eco-friendly solutions, which has led to improved loyalty and new business partnerships with other companies focusing on sustainability.
Engage All Five Senses
I like to work in terms of sensory branding. I don't mean that just in terms of the visual, but how we actually create a point of view for a brand through its multi-sensory touchpoints and further its ethos in smaller decisions. Not just what it looks like, but what it sounds like, what it feels like, what it smells like—how we choose every one of those things in order to tell the story of that brand and translate its values through those inflections.
A good example of this was the work we did with a boutique gift shop where we designed a signature product in addition to logos and color palettes, created and provided custom fabrics that could be felt by the clients. With all of these inputs, brand identity became an experience rather than just one that was seen. It was felt, heard, and smelled. Guests routinely remarked that the brand's ambiance was an enveloping and distinctive environment, their stay enriched, and their bond with the brand enhanced. What had been a stay became an experience—and customer loyalty and brand affinity grew significantly.
Reflect Purpose and Values
As the founder of a digital-marketing agency, I know that crafting a cohesive brand identity requires gaining a deep understanding of your business and target audience. For my clients, I focus on choosing visuals and messaging that authentically reflect their purpose and values.
For example, one client was a B2B company struggling to attract enterprise customers. We rebranded them around innovation and thought leadership, with a sleek visual style and content promoting their expertise. Within 6 months, they signed multi-million dollar deals with two major tech companies.
Another client wanted to appear more established to compete with industry leaders. We gave them a traditional brand identity with subtle-luxury cues, along with PR and social campaigns highlighting their experience and prestige. They soon became the dominant player in their region.
The keys are understanding your brand’s essence, choosing visuals and messaging that genuinely convey that, and strict consistency across platforms. An authentic brand identity can become your most powerful tool for forging real connections. For my agency, our brand is built on achieving measurable results through personal service and proven expertise.
Prioritize Visual Consistency
As an online plant-nursery owner, I approach creating a cohesive brand identity by focusing on visual consistency and clear messaging. I start by ensuring that our logo, colors, and fonts reflect the natural beauty of our plants, which helps evoke the connection to nature. Each design element—whether it's for social media, email campaigns, or product packaging—is crafted to reflect the organic, vibrant essence of our nursery.
For example, when we redesigned our website, we unified the color palette with earthy tones, incorporating plant images that represent the diversity of our inventory. This not only improved the visual appeal but also increased customer engagement and brand loyalty. The cohesive design and messaging helped us grow our brand recognition and trust within the plant-loving community.
Align Visuals With Values
I focus on aligning the core values and message of the brand with visual elements that resonate emotionally with the audience. For me, it starts with understanding the brand’s purpose—what it stands for—and the audience it wants to reach. Once I have that foundation, I ensure that every visual component, from colors to typography and imagery, reflects the brand’s essence consistently across all platforms.
For example, when developing the brand identity for the Christian Companion App, I wanted it to feel both modern and timeless, reflecting the connection between ancient scripture and today’s technology. We used soft, inviting colors to evoke a sense of peace and reflection while also incorporating clean, minimalistic fonts that give a contemporary feel. The visual theme is consistent, whether users are on the app, browsing social media, or seeing ads.
A successful outcome of this was the overwhelmingly positive feedback we received from users. Many noted how the app felt approachable yet deeply reverent, which reinforced our goal of making Bible study feel accessible and meaningful. This cohesive brand identity has allowed us to grow a loyal user base, and the visual consistency across all touchpoints has made the app instantly recognizable, helping us stand out in a crowded marketplace.
Collaborate With Your Team
At Lusha, we believe in the power of collaboration when crafting a cohesive brand identity. We often organize interactive workshops that bring together diverse teams to brainstorm and align on our brand vision. This approach not only ensures buy-in from all stakeholders but also taps into the collective creativity of our organization. For instance, during our recent rebrand, these workshops led to the development of a unique visual language that perfectly captures Lusha’s innovative spirit and has since resonated strongly with our target audience.
Convey Security and Innovation
We approached ScoreDetect’s brand identity by focusing on visuals that convey security, innovation, and simplicity. Our logo incorporates a stylized-shield with a checkmark, symbolizing protection and verification, while using a modern, tech-inspired color palette. This cohesive visual language extends across our website, app interfaces, and marketing materials, helping establish ScoreDetect as a trustworthy and cutting-edge solution in the digital content protection space.
Project Expertise and Trust
Creating a cohesive brand identity starts with understanding the values, target audience, and unique selling points of the brand. At Ponce Tree Services, we focus on consistency in our messaging, visuals, and customer experience to reflect professionalism, trust, and expertise. For example, we revamped our logo, website, and uniforms to align with the eco-friendly, customer-centric image we wanted to convey. As a result, we have seen a notable increase in customer loyalty and referrals, solidifying our reputation in the DFW area. Strong and consistent branding has helped us stand out in a competitive market.
Tell a Visual Brand Story
Creating a cohesive brand identity is akin to telling a compelling visual story. At LogicLeap, our approach involves understanding the brand's essence, audience, and market position. Here's how we do it:
Discovery and Research: We start by diving deep into the brand's world. This involves talking to stakeholders, conducting market research, and analyzing competitors. We aim to grasp not just what the brand does, but why it exists and who it speaks to.
Concept Development: Based on our findings, we develop key concepts that capture the brand's personality and values. This includes mood boards, color palettes, and design sketches to create a visual language that resonates with the brand's ethos.
Design Execution: We move into the design phase, creating logos, selecting color schemes, and developing visual assets that remain consistent across all platforms. Consistency ensures every touchpoint reinforces the brand identity.
Feedback and Iteration: Collaboration is crucial. We present designs to the client, gather feedback, and make adjustments. This iterative process ensures alignment with the client's vision.
Implementation and Guidelines: We develop a brand guidelines document, serving as a blueprint for maintaining consistency across future communications.
An example of success was working with a sustainable-product startup in Oxfordshire. They wanted a brand identity that conveyed their environmental commitment and appealed to a modern audience. We crafted a logo with natural elements and earthy tones to evoke sustainability, with clean typography reflecting innovation.
The cohesive identity spanned their website, packaging, and marketing materials. As a result, the brand quickly gained recognition, and their strong visual presence built trust and loyalty. The client saw increased engagement and sales, crediting much of their success to the brand identity we established.
Creating a cohesive brand identity is about more than aesthetics; it's about communicating what a brand stands for in a way that connects with people. At LogicLeap, we pride ourselves on crafting identities that reflect our clients' values and aspirations.
Emphasize Simplicity and Trust
Developing a cohesive brand identity was crucial to convey our commitment to quality and wellness. We focused on simplicity and trust, and chose a calming color palette of blue and white to evoke a sense of tranquility and cleanliness. Our product box features a minimalist design, emphasizing the restful night our customers can expect. The consistency across our brand has helped establish us as a top-notch option in the sleep-health market. Our visual branding supports our product's promise of better sleep and overall well-being.
Partner With Local Businesses
We've found that partnering with local businesses for our spaciously-events actually shapes our brand identity in a unique way. Each small-business owner brings their own personality and passion to the table, which translates into a vibrant, community-driven visual identity that resonates with our customers and reflects our values of supporting local economies.
