What is your corporate identity? Your company name? Logo? Color scheme? Tagline? The short answer: All of the above.
Your corporate identity is a combination of words, symbols, and concepts – as well as consistent design and color schemes – to project the philosophy and personality of your business to the world.
The identity of a business starts with its name. The right name for a corporation can boost its appeal, or even aid in promoting its use as a household word (i.e. Band-Aid, Q-Tips). An ill-conceived name for a corporation can slow its adoption into the consumer consciousness, or worse, permanently draw ridicule to the business (i.e. IP Anywhere).
Many corporations start off with a clunky or unmemorable name, such as Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo K.K., and make the move to a more identifiable name (can you say Sony?).
Branding is the core essential of a corporate identity (see What is Branding?). And the logo is the heart of a brand.
Click the image Pepsi/Coke image to see a larger version.
The logotype and the iconography create the memorable symbol for consumers to rally around. The logo design will most often set the tone and color scheme to be used throughout the rest of the corporation’s collateral, such as business cards, stationary, postcards, brochures, print advertising and digital signage. Even a uniform can reinforce the corporate branding.
The corporate identity can enter the psyche of the general public to such a degree that the consumer identifies themselves by the symbol of that corporation. A brilliant example is the Apple symbol, which is free of logotype entirely. How often have you seen their iconic bitten-off apple gracing the back of a car? Another two successful corporate identities, aided by their consumer war, are Coca-Cola and Pepsi. Interestingly, Pepsi has re-branded their company numerous times through their corporate lifetime, but Coca-Cola’s logo has remained virtually unchanged since the early 1900s.
The Color SchemeThe color scheme can bring another important element to the corporate identity. If you think “red and yellow”, what companies come to mind? Chances are, you immediately thought: McDonald’s. Many fast food companies use these primary colors in their logos, such as Burger King, In-N-Out, and Carl’s Jr. Some other possibilities were Shell Oil or perhaps DHL. The point is, specific and consistent colors are strong identifiers in a corporate image.
The corporate tagline – often referred to as the motto or slogan – is another essential element of a successful corporate identity. The tagline can help clearly express the business’ value proposition. It should relay one or more benefits to the consumers, such as trust, a better value, a one-of-a-kind methodology, savings, convenience, or some other valuable information about the company.
Our team here at Saturn Creative understands corporate identity and branding. We understand your company needs to create a memorable and future-proof identity that will last the test of time, while capturing the essence of your business. Your logo – in conjunction with your color scheme and tagline – will represent your corporation to the world. Don’t settle for anything less than world-class, custom corporate identity.
