Our brand identity process in 6 key steps

We do a lot of brand identity projects at Fluro and our experience has led to the creation of a process that enables us to get to the heart of our clients’ business and create beautiful things.

A good brand should last a long time, so gaining an understanding of our clients aspirations is key, and we delve into the company to find an emotional connection.

From research to final delivery, here’s our tried and tested brand identity process in six key stages:

Step 1: Brand workshop

We start with an in-depth brand discovery workshop, either in person or digitally through our questionnaire. In a typical workshop, we cover:
Brand foundations – here we find out about a client’s company values, their mission and their vision for the business, as well as identify other brands that they admire.

Nature of the business – we find out about the services our client provides, who their target audience is, who their competitors are and how they stand out from the crowd. These are the sort of things that help us position a brand.

Company personality – energetic, relaxed, cutting edge? It always helps to know how clients sees themselves and it enables us to get an idea of what their working environment is like.

Company positioning and marketing – what is the client’s competitive advantage? What challenges are they facing? These are just some of the things we like to find out about to help us build a picture of where they are now and where they’d like to go.

Step 2: Visual research

The next step is to put together some mood boards based on what we have discovered during the brand workshop. We also take a look at competitor logos and brands that work as well as those that don’t.

It’s now that we can begin to pull together styles and ideas for possible routes to take. Designers and our Creative Director usually sit down together after this phase to discuss which ideas to explore.

Step 3: To the drawing board

This step is all about the logo design. People often mistake a logo for a brand, but it is only one stage in the brand identity process. However, it would be wrong to underestimate the role of logo design – it is, after all, the brand’s most prominent symbol.

At this point, we sketch ideas and explore different marks and typographic characteristics that could potentially work.

Step 4: Taking it to the screen

Once we have agreed which concepts to progress, the logo sketches are developed digitally. We experiment with these and refine them further, and we also begin to explore other visual elements. The secondary elements are what give the brand its unique personality; these can include typography, colour palettes, illustration, patterns and photography style.

Once we have three or four strong concepts we mock them up onto brochures, signage and stationery for the client to see how the brand would work in situ. We collate all the concepts in a bound document ready for presenting.

Step 5: Presentation and feedback

Now it’s time to see which of the brand concepts resonate most with the client, and the ones they feel would work best for their business. It’s always important to have one or two key decision makers in the room, as too many people can make it difficult to settle on a concept. Design is often very subjective and we encourage the client stakeholders to view the concepts objectively.

Once we have the feedback, we incorporate the changes (if any) into the concept and develop it further until the client is happy to give us sign off.

Step 6: Finalising the brand identity

Once our client has agreed the brand identity, it’s on to finalising the deliverables.

We output the new logo design in both screen and print formats, in colour and black and white. Then we finalise and create the artwork files for the business cards, letterheads and other branded products. Any other assets are exported into the required formats.

Then we create brand guidelines that we send to the client for their continued usage and guidance. This is a very important document which ensures that the application of the new brand is always correct and, most importantly, consistent.
And that’s a wrap! The process can seem complex but it’s essential to creating a strong brand identity.

We work with both established names and fast-moving start-ups. If you’re thinking of having a rebrand or are starting a new business, get in touch with one of the team and we can arrange a brand workshop or brand analysis to see how we can help you. Let’s start something together.

Author: Ellie Jones