Keep up the Pattern: A Guide to Brand Consistency
Every company houses a specific brand, but not all brands are created equal. One reason that some companies thrive over others is through successful brand consistency. Simply stated, brand consistency is when a business transmits their goals through what they produce (anything from logos, to websites, products, etc.) and those products reflect the company’s goals without distracting a consumer from the company.
It’s essential to put a lot of thought into brand consistency in order to ensure that a customer is receiving the same experience whenever interacting with a facet of the company. Forbes sites an instance with Starbucks. Whenever someone goes to a Starbucks, they know what to expect from their drink order. If each time a customer went there and the drink was made differently, the trust would be lacking in the experience. Forbes asks, “How many times would you be willing to experience inconsistency before you switched to a different caffeine dealer?” Brand consistency is a way to stand out from other competition because it’s what the customer will recognize and become most comfortable with above all else.
Brand consistency builds trust between customers and a business. Similar to the Starbucks situation, think about your favorite everyday products, such as deodorant or toothpaste. Ask yourself why you continually choose to purchase those specific products time and time again. What establishes loyalty to those brands over others? Loyalty to the product is most likely through the experience (consistency) of the product plus the branding (marketing).
Brand consistency allows customers to associate products or services with a business effortlessly. To achieve this, we’ve compiled some of our favorite practices to create successful brand consistency:
Remain Constant:
This may seem like a trivial point, but it does take a lot of analysis to determine if a company is staying constant across all their platforms. Additionally, it’s easy to confuse consistency with rigidity. According to Forbes, “being consistent doesn’t mean that you can’t change. In fact, consistency gives you a firm foundation for evolving into offering even more options for even more people.” The first step in being consistent is to define yourself. Then there will be room for variation. Business2community references Google as an example. Google’s logo has gone through minimal changes over the years, but when they have made changes, the design and colors have remained similar. When Google commemorates a special day in history on their homepage, they maintain their prominent logo but play around with the surrounding animations. In this sense, Google is being consistent while also being innovative.
Match Everything:
Matching your products, whether tangible or digital, to the company’s brand and mission is another way to attain consistency. While each platform has its own expected level of professionalism, a company’s voice should be consistent across all channels– advertisements, social posts, blogs, website copy, etc.. Venveo provides this advice on matching: “If your social media voice is whimsical and silly but your product packing is sterile and plain, you’re sending mixed signals that will confuse consumers and leave them feeling like your brand can’t be trusted.” A way to practice this is through correlated tonal choices, meaning any physical products developed by the company should match the digital advertising as well.
Use Proper Color Schemes:
Color is an important factor to keep in mind for consistency as well. It can create a mental association to a particular company, and thus the corresponding brand. In our blog post, “Color Theory,” we discovered, “Up to 90% of a person’s assessment on products or services is based on colors.” Additionally, Business2community says that branding needs to be consistent on “design elements such as shape, color, materials, finish, typography, and composition. All of these items together should communicate your company’s values and personality.” The more time spent on color coordinating, the more a brand will seem familiar to a customer.
Listen to Your Customers:
In order to determine if you’re achieving overall brand consistency, we recommend seeking third-parties to review marketing efforts across all platforms (websites, email, social, blog, advertisements, etc.). When assessing brand consistency, ask, “How do I know [insert item] is associated with this company?” Listening to your customers is a great way to answer this question. Analyze which posts, products, or experiences have been most successful with your target audience. This will give your brand consistency a basis for what’s working and what’s not. Furthermore, getting to know your customers and conducting customer surveys is another route to take when determining consistent branding to avoid any confusion.
Why do consumers buy what they buy? It is often because the products are functional and the branding is consistent. When things are consistent, dependability and trust between a company and a customer are established. As that relationship grows, individuals will feel much more comfortable with that specific business. Even if you are part of a newer company just starting off, establishing a brand and maintaining the consistency of that brand is crucial to do early on in order to help build recognition for consumers. Creating and executing a consistent brand is key to cultivating loyalty between a customer and a company, resulting in a win-win for both parties.
