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How to build a lasting logo for brand impact

Building a logo is only one part of your brand, but it’s also an incredibly important visual representation of what you do.

That sounds like a lot of pressure, but there are some easy steps you can take to make sure your logo has lasting power and conveys exactly your mission. Check out these tips.

Things to Consider

You may not be able to design this logo in-house if you don’t have the design staff—that’s OK.

You can meet with a design group who develops logos and work with them to determine what you want. Some things to consider include:

• What types of colors are associated with your company currently, and do you want to keep them?
• What types of imagery come to mind when you think of your company?
• Do you want there to be words included with the logo, or just an image?
• What is your company’s tagline, your values and mission?
• What type of feeling do you want this logo to invoke?

Strategize and answer these questions before you dive in will help tremendously with the direction of the logo.

Throw out some words that you associate with your brand and figure out how you can tie them into a logo.

Use a Focus Group

It’s virtually impossible to get everybody on board with one logo. While you can’t please everybody, you can make sure to garner feedback that is constructive and helpful in the process.

Bring in a group of outsiders who aren’t sure what your company is. Then, give them some different options and ask them questions about what they think you do, how the colors and the design make them feel, etc.

Redesign the Outdated

Don’t shy away from tackling a new logo if the times call for it. Often, brands change. The meaning of what you stand for changes with the times.

If you already have a logo but it has been there for years and no longer suits you, it’s time to consider a redesign.

Sure, that’s a large task and it’ll take time to create. Plus, you might have die-hard supporters of the current logo.

Present the logo redesign as an opportunity for growth and give your reasons for why it’s outdated. Somebody will be willing to listen, and you’ll hopefully be on the right track to creating a lasting logo and brand that will boost your marketing efforts.

How to develop a clear marketing message

If you’ve played the game telephone, you know how a message can get mixed up before it reaches its target.

One person whispers a message to the next person, and so on, until it reaches the last person. Most often, that message is nowhere near the starting message.

Marketing can be kind of like that, if you’re not careful.

The single most important aspect of marketing is to make sure that the message you want to convey is the same message that your audience receives.

That means your business needs to develop a clear, concise message that is easily relatable with your marketing efforts. Here’s how to make sure you’re coming in loud and clear.

Craft the Message

Figuring out what you want to say could be the hardest part. Sometimes, marketing messages go out with little thought at all other than the end goal. Determine what you want the end goal to be and then discuss how you can make that happen.

Brainstorming is the first step. Maybe your business determines that you need to get more new customers, and you think you can do that with a special offer.

The returning business from these new customers would far outweigh the money spent on that marketing campaign. This is just one example of an outcome from a brainstorming session. You’ll be able to be much more detailed with a specific case.

Eliminate Jargon

Messy words and muddled messages happen when you overthink the message or assume your audience knows more than they do. Take a look at your message and act as if it were the first time you were hearing of your company or the special offer.

Would you understand it? Does it get the point across? Would you be likely to follow through with whatever you were asking for? You could even ask somebody who isn’t familiar with the marketing campaign if they understand what you’re aiming for.

Use the Right Channel

Sometimes it’s not about the message you’re creating and it’s more about how you’re delivering it. You could have the best copy and it might completely flop because you didn’t get it to your audience in the right way.

For example, if you’re trying to reach an audience of mainly baby boomers, your first choice to reach them probably wouldn’t be snapchat.

However, if you were trying to reach a group of teens with your message, snapchat might be the way to go.

Figure out what makes the most sense. Also, don’t forget that you can tie in different parts of your marketing campaign to different channels.

How to ‘WOW’ customers with direct mail

There’s no denying that we live in a digital world; maybe that’s why there’s still something so unique about receiving snail mail. Sure, mail doesn’t have all of the functionality that a website can provide, or an email—but it does provide a refreshing marketing approach that has stood the test of time.

Check out these tips to make sure your direct mail piece gets noticed and, more importantly, acted on.

A Pop of Color
First impressions are everything. It’s a fact that our eyes are drawn to the unusual. Normal envelopes come in white, but your direct mail piece can be any color under the rainbow. If it sticks out, it has a better chance of being picked up and examined.

But be warned—you should pick your colors with a purpose. Don’t simply choose the most obnoxious color because you can. Pick a color that makes sense, yet also stands out from the crowd.

Not Your Average Size
The wonderful thing about direct mail pieces are that they can come in all different shapes and sizes. Sure, you can send out a normal-sized postcard. There’s a time and place for beautifully executed and timeless mail pieces. But if you’re going for a wow-factor, try a size that sticks out from the rest of the mail, or a cutout shape that makes sense.

Added bonus—if your direct mail piece can double as something with functionality, like a magnet, it’ll have added staying power. That’s just one idea. Be creative!

Copy Tips and Tricks
In the fast-paced world we live in, people don’t take the time to read long blocks of text. That’s why your direct mail piece should use the least amount of words as possible to convey your information. You can always add a URL to get people from your direct mail piece to a page on your website that has more information.

Always include a next-step for your audience somewhere on the direct mail piece. Tell them exactly where to go to make the next-steps happen. Think of your direct mail as a vessel to get your audience to your desired next-step.

Things to Note
Direct mail does cost money to create, print and mail. As with every marketing effort, you should make sure that the return on investment is worth it. Simply put, if you think the direct mail piece will get you more business or provide more worth than it costs to create, keep moving full-steam ahead.