Talia Aukema-Gray

December 4, 2022
3 Minutes

Consistency in your brand’s visual identity is extremely important – it increases brand visibility, engagement, and credibility.

What is a Visual Brand Identity?

It’s a set of characteristics that define how your brand looks and feels across all channels. It includes a logo, colors, typography, and photography. These characteristics are what make your brand unique and recognizable, and it is your opportunity to make a positive first impression on consumers.

Before Creating Your Brand’s Visual Identity…

1. Know your audience
2. Define your brand’s purpose and values
3. Evoke emotion through a brand story

Make a Moodboard

It can be hard to know where to start when developing a visual identity, especially one for your personal brand. To visualize my ideas and find common themes, I created a moodboard using Canva. This is a great way to gather your thoughts and see what works for you! Try to include photos, graphics, and colors in your moodboard, along with notes explaining which ideas the imagery ties into.

Make Your Logo

A logo is essentially the most important part of your visual identity. It is a visual representation of your brand and who you are. The logo should be memorable and stand out from competitors, while conveying what your business does. It’s okay for the logo to evolve as you define your brand’s colors and typeface but creating a first draft is a great place to start.

Choose Your Color Palette

Color plays a huge role is consumer perceptions of your brand. Brand colors provide differentiation, brand recognition, and symbolic meaning. The color palette you choose should fit the emotion and message your brand wants to convey. Start by researching color theory to find out which colors elicit the ‘right’ responses for your brand.

Pick a Font

The font you use can affect the way your brand’s visual identity impacts consumers. Some of the best-known brands use simple typography, so don’t worry too much about choosing a unique font that no one has used before. Instead, focus on the style, the line weight, the curvature, and the spacing. These elements will reflect and define your brand’s personality.

Think about the difference between the fonts used by Google, Instagram, and Nike, for example. What characteristics set them apart? What do they reflect about the brand? Then think about the personality you want your brand’s font to convey. Check out this article for more information about brand fonts.

Define Brand Associations with 5 Senses

To ensure that your brand’s visual identity maintains consistency across channels, describe your brand using five senses. Define your brand’s look, smell, sound, taste, and feel. Include images to further communicate your brand associations.

You should also clearly identify the tone of your brand. This will help you communicate in a unified brand voice that reflects your brand purpose, mission, and values.

Now that you have all the elements of your visual brand identity, you’re ready to create a brand kit, which will be used as a reference for content creation and product development. Here’s mine as an example:

If you’d like to discuss my visual brand identity creation process or my overall brand strategy, please feel free to reach out! You can see the rest of my brand creation process in my Creative Brief under the “Portfolio” tab.