Great graphic design can really elevate a business and it all comes down to human behaviour. We’ve all seen “junk” flyers in the mail, driven past billboards or vehicles cluttered with words, scrolled past a jarring social post, changed the TV channel, quickly clicked off a webpage... and never gone back or considered those businesses of being worth our time or money. 

What your brand looks and feels like matters!

As humans we need clarity of messaging. We need “white space” to understand what we’re looking at, words that are unambiguous, images that appeal, colours that aren’t jarring – and they all need to be working together. Consistency of a brand builds trust. Trust generates enquiry and builds a customer base, and an increased customer base should improve the bottom line.

It doesn’t matter if you sell a product or service, or whether you’re a tradesperson, fashion designer, medical service provider, or an artist or accountant; as humans, we just need to know you are reputable, trustworthy, easy to work with and professional.

Clarity and consistency of a brand’s visual identity should be something every business owner thinks about. If your business is stagnant, customer retention is dropping, your “funnel of new enquiries/new leads” is trickling off, website “bounce rate” is awful, or you hear people have trouble finding your details, maybe you should take a critical look at your brand and all the ways it’s represented.

A brand is much more than a logo, which is merely a visual representation, so a refresh or full rebrand (alongside some guidance on how to maximise it) can really elevate a business in a competitive marketplace.

Graphic designers aren’t just there to fill your order of 100 business cards but to dig down into what you stand for and what sets you apart from competitors. They utilise that information to create visual elements that best represent who you are.

So it’s worth stepping back to take a critical look at your current brand, logo and other visual elements of your business (offices, uniforms, vehicles, advertising etc). Do they really reflect who you are and what you do? Are they current, speaking to your customers of today? Are they different enough to stand out from your competitors? Or are they cluttered, inconsistent and dated?

Think about this: We return to the memorable, consistent brands that we trust, whether the businesses are large or small.

If you need help, our highly skilled team is happy to assess and refresh your brand, supporting your business to stay strong, valuable and memorable. 

• Contact Sarah Ellem on Sarah.Ellem@bakertillysr.nz.