Design and Art, applied in everyday objects and spaces, have always been a way of representing our character and lifestyle to others. Today, this symbolic and semiotic approach, have become amplified and stronger. People choose based on the dialogues which they want to have with other people.

With that in mind, brands, help people to create these dialogues, by designing products, services and experiences, based on their own philosophy and visions.

At another level, every brand creates a Unique Emotion for its target audience. People will be loyal to a brand as mush as the strengths of that emotion.

And finally, the brand and the name of a company will set the level of customers' expectations about functions, qualities and experiences of their products and services. This expectations level will define customers' willingness to consider a specific amount of costs for products and services of that brand.

"Human Touch" factor

Imagine that someone presents some charts and infographics about "how cool he is"! Will you trust him? It's more likely that you'll laugh at him. So why is that some (so many) companies try to persuade their audiences by such an approach?

It's amazing! to watch so many advertising campaigns, using technical and logical representation of products and services, hoping to communicate with their audience and impress them (check this, next time that you watch TV Ads).

To resolve these problems, it's helpful to ask ourselves: "How do we choose our friends?" and "How do we let them to be a part of our lives?". They have a "position" in our lives by sharing mutual time and experiences, not just superficial and primary traits. If a business wants to have a genuine and long-term presence and position in its audiences' minds and lives, it should invest in mutual experiences with a human-touch approach in a long run.

You should be able to be their "Friend", as a human being.
People trust people more than brands.

Don't fall in "Direct Persuasion" trap. It might work for the moment to hook people; but it won't last long. You can't win their hearts by just enlisting your features in an advertising video.

People should be able to feel you (your brand) as a lively organic being. This is possible through creating a humane relationship based on a genuine story. And this is what Design is supposed to do for your business: CREATING LIFE STORIES FOR PEOPLE. All of branding efforts and programs should amplify your Brand Story.

What is your core belief?

If you want to create a clear image about your brand in your audience's mind, first you should have a clear vision about your corporate identity. Most of what you do is similar to your competitors. Only a small part is unique to you. But being small, it plays a big role in your business. We call that part, your identity, your soul, your unique being. This unique part is the most important and most critical differentiator for your brand in the market.

The first step to get to that unique position is to define "Your Unique Message" for "Your Target Audience". "What" would you say to "What People"? The Design team in collaboration with your organization, defines your positioning, so that all of your communication programs hit the right part of the society.

If you try to persuade and satisfy all people, you'll have a mediocre and colorless business. You should be able to choose a specific part of the market. Prior to any design project, you should have clear messages, values and goals that resonate with a specific type of people. These items will be a starting point to design brand exposures and experiences.

 

How Design can help?

Design represents identity and authenticity of a company and shapes the ultimate user experience of its products or services. Designers render the vision and philosophy of the brand and give a human-touch to every touch point and interaction of the brand to create brand communications and experiences, helping companies to have a long-lasting emotional impact on their audiences.

 

What "Branding" will NOT do for you?

- Branding won't replace quality. You can't sell a bad product by good branding (maybe only once!);

- Branding won't replace Design and Development. You need a consistent story, but your outcomes should stand on the edge;

- Brand won't make you needless of redesigning your organization. Brand needs firm guidelines and structure, but these structures should not become a trap and cage. Rules, Policies, Structures and Brand Standards can create "Predictability Trap"; and

at the end, Branding is not just a project. It's a process of evolution in the ever-changing society and culture. Be totally out there and ...