4 Key Elements for a Simple + Cohesive Visual Brand

Jan 8

You might be thinking, “Why do I even need a visual brand?”

Establishing a set of brand elements for your business will help you create consistent marketing collateral to appeal to your ideal clients, allow you to be more easily recognized, and save you time.

Be sure to have a clear outline of your business prior to starting this process. Knowing what you offer, to who, and why is an important part of a cohesive brand and marketing strategy and will lay the foundation for many of the following aspects.

Here are 4 essential elements for a visual brand, along with our favorite free resources:

1. Logo + Variations

Hiring a graphic designer for your logo can cost anywhere from $250 – $2,500. If that’s not in the cards, there are many online resources for creating your logo. Your logo could be as simple as the name of your business in a special font, that you use consistently.

If you want to get a little fancier with design elements, try starting with one of Canva’s free logo templates and customize with your brand’s personality, easily editing the text, colors fonts and more. You’ll likely need multiple formats of your logo. Generally, 250 px (width) x 100 px (height) are the optimal logo dimensions for a web page. You’ll also need a square “icon” version for social media sites, and for your favicon (the little icon in the browser tab). See more logo size formats for different platforms here.

2. Fonts

When it comes to fonts, keep it simple for cohesiveness and consistency. I recommend choosing 2-3 fonts for your brand:

Body

Choose a font that is easy to read, for text on your website and materials. Sans Serif (“without the little tiny feet”), or Serif (classic) fonts general work best here.

Headings

Choose a display typeface to stand out. Display typefaces will often have more eccentric and variable designs than the simple, relatively restrained typefaces generally used for body text.

Accent Font (requires CSS coding in Squarespace)

Find an additional handwriting or display for flair on marketing materials for short amounts of eye catching text.

You’ll also want to consider the size, letter spacing, line height, weight and style of each Font for your

Pinterest is a great place to look for font combinations & ideas.

3. Colors

I recommending choosing five colors for your brand. A great rule of thumb is to have the following color elements represented: Bold, Complimentary, Neutral, Dark & Light. Consider the psychology of color and the different emotions they are known to elicit when choosing the colors for your brand.

Common color associations include:

Blue: Integrity, Trust, Tranquility, Loyalty, Intelligence

Green: Money, Growth, Freshness, Environmental-Friendliness

Yellow: Happiness, Originality, Energy

Purple: Royalty, Spirituality, Luxury

Pink: Femininity, Compassion, Playfulness

Red: Power, Strength, Passion

Orange: Courage, Originality, Success

White: Cleanliness, Purity, Freshness

Black: Elegance, Drama, Strength

Need more inspiration? Try creating a Pinterest board with photos that represent the look and feel you are going for, as a guide to choosing your final five.

Have a photo you love with your desired color scheme in mind? Try this FREE color palette tool from Canva, which generates five Hex Color Codes of colors found in the photo.

Not even sure where to start? This super simple, super fast color scheme generator can help you narrow it down. Lock colors you like and keep the generator going to complete the set. Or, look at their predesigned color palettes for additional inspiration.

4. Photography

We live in a very visual world, so quality photography on your website is a must. But with so many images to choose from, it can feel challenging to decide what images are right for your brand.

Before you even start the search for stock photos or schedule your brand photo shoot, make sure you have clarity on your audience, your brand colors, and your style. Try creating a Pinterest board to help you define your style and mood.

Once you’ve nailed down your colors, style and audience, you can look for stock photos that complement your colors and vibe. Make purposeful choices and remain consistent.

You can browse stock images directly from your Squarespace site, or look for relevant stock photography on sites like Canva and Unsplash. You can also purchase stock photos from sites like Creative Market and iStock.

Brand photography is non-negotiable with all of my clients. Not only is it a great way to create connection with your audience, it helps to create cohesion across all of your marketing channels, which helps with brand recognition and trust.

Find a photographer whose work fits with your style, and helps you feel confident and comfortable. Check out our brand photo guide for more details on how to plan ahead for a successful brand photo shoot.

Now it’s time to get started on your simple visual brand! Remember, authenticity and consistency are key as they help inspire confidence and trust among your audience.

Be sure to check out some of our free resources to help your business thrive.

If you need help with your brand + website, you know where to find me 😉