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Ten Steps to Develop your Brand Identity
by
dreid
—
last modified
2006-10-29 11:20
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Now that we’ve discussed the why’s and how to’s, let’s review the steps you might want to take in developing your brand identity:
1. Do your homework – collect your strategic plan, mission statement and other key “who you are” documents.
2. Answer any key questions (see Part 2 of this topic) that these documents may have missed.
3. Find out what stakeholders and others think about you. Ask questions, conduct surveys and/or interviews, delve deep.
4. Research other similar or like-minded organizations. Know where you stand in relation to the competition, understand what terminology and images resonate, assess what you like and don’t like about other brands.
5. Brainstorm and play. Get creative and innovative with words, categories, colors, pictures, shapes, ideas.
6. Develop an identifying mark/logo and (optional) slogan for your organization.
7. Document your brand plan and strategy fully. Create guidelines for what you will and will not do in relation to your brand and how the specific mark is represented. Brainstorm all the ways and places you might use your brand and how it support your organization’s goals.
8. Get feedback from internal and external stakeholders as you move forward. Adjust and update accordingly, but always stay true to your mission, goals and character.
9. Consider your brand strategy in all you do – from hiring to fund-raising to marketing to advocacy. Are you consistently representing your organization?
10. And, finally… Don’t be afraid to get help if you need it! Organizations like the Taproot Foundation and other strategic consultancies can help you develop your brand and accompanying materials.
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- Diana L. Reid, Conscious Communications
1. Do your homework – collect your strategic plan, mission statement and other key “who you are” documents.
2. Answer any key questions (see Part 2 of this topic) that these documents may have missed.
3. Find out what stakeholders and others think about you. Ask questions, conduct surveys and/or interviews, delve deep.
4. Research other similar or like-minded organizations. Know where you stand in relation to the competition, understand what terminology and images resonate, assess what you like and don’t like about other brands.
5. Brainstorm and play. Get creative and innovative with words, categories, colors, pictures, shapes, ideas.
6. Develop an identifying mark/logo and (optional) slogan for your organization.
7. Document your brand plan and strategy fully. Create guidelines for what you will and will not do in relation to your brand and how the specific mark is represented. Brainstorm all the ways and places you might use your brand and how it support your organization’s goals.
8. Get feedback from internal and external stakeholders as you move forward. Adjust and update accordingly, but always stay true to your mission, goals and character.
9. Consider your brand strategy in all you do – from hiring to fund-raising to marketing to advocacy. Are you consistently representing your organization?
10. And, finally… Don’t be afraid to get help if you need it! Organizations like the Taproot Foundation and other strategic consultancies can help you develop your brand and accompanying materials.
##
- Diana L. Reid, Conscious Communications
