What is a brand? (Hint: It's more than a logo).

Hello and welcome to today's webinar session where we will be discussing about what is a brand and as the slide tells you, you'll find out that it's much more than just a logo.

Before we get started today, I thought I'd give you a little bit of an intro about the host of today's webinar, obviously myself. So for those of you who may or may not know me, my name's Elisha and I'm a designer here at GEL Studios and I have been for the last seven years. I'm incredibly lucky to have been the only junior role that GEL has taken on in that time, which has really allowed me to grow and develop my skills here in so many areas of the creative industry and under such an amazing team. With that has also come leaving behind my junior title role and growing and evolving into the designer that I am today.

As you can see by the photo, I work very closely with our creative director, Carly, on a huge range of client work from what we'll be talking about today, forming and crafting brand identities to all manner of design work. Pretty much if it can be designed and printed, I've probably worked on something like it. From website planning and design to working with our marketing team, bringing their creative strategies to life. It's an incredibly varied role, which is why I love it.

It also involves me managing and running our next generation programme, which allows me to inspire and support our next generation of creative, which is just incredible for me to get to do. On a more personal note, as you may see, it's a picture of a lovely dog there. I have recently joined the dog mum club and have become an owner of this crazy pug, Yogi. Please don't ask me as breed, we don't have a clue, or we know he's incredibly mischievous and we love having him in the studio. From a bit more of a personal note, I've always been creative from a young age. I was always the one painting crafting drawing or doodling, which has clearly led me on my journey and where I am today. My most recent craft in journey was my wedding in where I made pretty much everything. It was quite an experience to be working on signage and floral decal. It was it was an incredible learning curve, one I wouldn't take lightly though.

So before we jump straight in, here's a little bit about the job studios, about the studio bringing you this webinar. We are a purpose-led and results-driven creative agency here in Swindon. But what does that actually mean to us? For me, it means that our driving force is impact and being able to create and deliver that impact for our clients and the local community. Great work for our clients allows us to grow and enable us to contribute and give back more to our local community, making that lasting and positive change that we are known for. We're also a B-Corp certified, meaning that we're recognised for our social and environmental standards. It's something that we're incredibly proud of. So to what you've actually been waiting for, let's actually jump into today's topic, branding. What we'll be covering in this session includes exploring some brand terms and understanding and unraveling their meaning, uncovering the complexities and understanding what a brand really is at is cool, and when done well, the impact that it can have on your clients, understanding brand guidelines and what should be included and how they should be used, and also exploring whether your brand may be in need of that little extra flourish to get it connecting with your target audience. Before we start, a little bit of housekeeping.

The questions channel will be opened up at the end of the webinar. You'll know when, because I'll tell you, and you'll be sent everything following the session, including my details, so should you want to reach out, feel free, or to any other member of the team we would love to chat. So let's get started. First up, our brand terminology. It makes sense for you to understand the terms that you may see or hear mentioned throughout the rest of this webinar, so I thought we'd go through those first of all.

So we often encounter a lack of knowledge or confusion around particular terms when it comes to branding. So whilst I have you here, I'd like to just try and clear that up, and so you know moving forward. So if we start with the given branding, this is actually the process and steps that a business will go through to create, shape, form, and grow their brand.

Now, brand strategy, and what I would say is probably one of the biggest and foundational elements of your business existence. This is the who, and I can't confirm, not the rock band, the what, the why, the how, and the when. This is often when experts are brought in to help you get to the very core of why you do what you do and to really understand that at a base level. We happen to know a few experts, should you need any help.

Visual identity. Now, this is, as it says on the tin, this is what we can see. It's your logo, it's your colour pallets, it's your fonts, your visual assets, like your brand patterns or illustrations. It's everything that we can see about your brand. Brand messaging. This is, again, what it says on the tin, what you say as a business, how you say it, and even to the point of when you say it. Our messaging workshops really take a deep dive into this for you to gain a full understanding of your brand's messaging and how it should be used. Brand guidelines, as I've previously mentioned, these are the very raw book that will bring consistency to your visual identity and clarity to your purpose. Something every brand should have. And finally, brand. This encompasses all of the above. The perception, the impression that we leave in our customer or clients' minds after they have interacted with your brand in some way. This is the bag that all of the above are stored in. So next up is understanding the power of their brand.

And like the title of this webinar, understanding that a brand is so much more than just a logo. So the majority of people believe a brand is primarily just what you can see. As I've mentioned before, things like your logo, your colors, your tag lines, the fonts that are used, your website, your social media, etc. How it's visually recognised and stands out against competition in overcrowded marketplaces. Now, if you're one of these people, you're not wrong. You're not wrong at all. But those elements are just one tiny piece of a much larger brand puzzle. And one where not everyone has every single piece to finish. So what a brand really is. And I briefly touched on this during the terminology. It's what people say about your business when you're not in the room.

This quote from the founder of Amazon quite perfectly sums up what a brand is. And with over 300 million customer accounts, he can't be wrong. In essence, a brand represents your company at its very core, your brand story, why you do what you do. It encompasses everything a customer can see, think and feel about your business, from its mission, its vision and values, to its personality and tone of voice. A brand is so much more than what you can see.

This graphic, which is called a branding iceberg graphic, perfectly summarises what we've just discussed. As I said, most people often only consider the tip of the iceberg, the parts of the brand that they can see, the brand name, the print collateral, the logo, the website, the

typeface and fonts, social media, everything that they can see on the surface. And that only equates for 20% of a brand. However, arguably, and we would say, is the most important aspects the foundations of the brand are often things hidden beneath the surface and not always considered by a consumer. Things like your mission, your vision and your values, the core purpose of your brand, the tone of voice that you use, the personality your brand has and the messaging.

Again, what you say and when you say it. It's unique selling points and positioning in the market. These are all things hidden beneath the surface, but things that we would say are arguably the core foundations, the most important aspects of your brand.

So an example and one I always love to talk about, a brand that we would say is nailing it and marketers, absolutely are in awe of most of the time, would be one of my favourites, as you can see, innocent smoothies. So we're all familiar with the dude, as he is known, their brand mark, their visual assets, their bold, their playful, their fun, and they are consistent. Now that phrase now will hear probably quite a bit throughout.

Consistency is one of my favourite words and it's something I probably use day to day. So there's consistency across their socials, their marketing campaigns, their new product launches, their website, even down to quirky, fun features on their product packaging and labels. But the one thing that underpins everything about this brand is that honest approach to business, their humour and storytelling through out their brand with their distinctive tone of voice. Many brands have tried to copy this approach, but have often fallen short. Again, as a consumer and as a buyer of this product, we're familiar with the smoothies and the juices and the products that they sell, but what we really trust and connect with is their brand and the consistency of that brand.

So this is an example of one that has been done exceptionally well. Next, understanding brand guidelines and what they should include. Brand guidelines are your brand's rule book and are essential to maintaining brand consistency. They include your brand foundations, logo variations, colour palettes, typography rules, graphic elements, photography styles, collateral mock-ups and sometimes even tone of voice and messaging guidelines. Without clear and detailed brand guidelines, it can be difficult for teams to maintain a consistent brand image, especially when multiple people or agencies are involved.

Next up, is rebranding. So rebranding can be a scary thought, but it's a necessary one at times, whether due to changes in the market, new company directions or just the need to refresh and modernise. Rebranding can range from a subtle refresh of your visual identity to a complete overhaul, including a new brand name and positioning. The process involves research, strategy development, design, and implementation. A recent example of rebranding that GEL Studios was proud to be involved with was the Museum and Art Swindon. When they moved premises, they took the opportunity to rebrand, and we worked closely with them to develop a new identity that reflected their new vision and mission while respecting their heritage. This involved workshops and deep dives into their story, which informed the design process. If you're considering rebranding, ask yourself if your brand is clearly communicating your values, if it's resonating with your audience, and if it stands out in the marketplace.

Lastly, is it time for a brand refresh? Here are some indicators that your brand might need a refresh or a rebrand: Frequent brand changes without a clear strategy. Lack of clarity or confusion within your team about your brand purpose. Inconsistency across your marketing and communication materials. Absence of clear brand guidelines.

Remember, without strong foundations, even the best visual updates won't last. So to sum up, your brand is much more than your logo. It's everything your customers see, think, and feel about your business. Consistency in your brand builds trust and recognition. Brand guidelines are essential to maintain that consistency, and rebranding should be approached strategically. If you'd like to discuss your brand or need support, the team at GEL Studios are here to help.

Thank you for joining today's webinar. I'm Elisha, and I hope this session has given you some useful insights into branding beyond just the logo. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.