Brand Architecture
Running your business on the daily can sometimes become a blur when it comes to structure, order, and processes. It is easy to get caught up in taking care of your clients or the next task at hand while putting off the overall brand architecture of your business for later. The danger in this is that you end up with inconsistent messaging, which can misrepresent your intention.
Frank Lloyd Wright called architecture "the mother art," explaining: "Without an architecture of our own, we have no soul of our own civilization."
What do I mean by brand architecture?
If you think of your brand strategy and what falls within the structure of your brand (i.e., your image including your logo, color(s), fonts, type, tagline(s), tone and manner, etc.), brand architecture is the big picture of all of those things combined. Brand architecture is basically how your strategy plays out in the marketplace and looks to consumers.
Who is the architect of your brand?
Whether you hire one or more people/services to assist with building your brand architecture or you do it all yourself, YOU are the overall architect of your brand. Your brand is key to all communications to your clients and/or potential clients, down to a single email. It flows into everything you do from your business card, sales material, website, social media, and even administrative forms. When you consider architects of residential developments, you may notice similarities in the overall design of structures with varying features between floorplans. Then, when you walk inside a home designed by an architect, you begin to notice aspects of the interior of the structure that are consistent with the exterior and so forth. Design and style are what sets these residential architects apart, creating a brand image.
How does your brand architecture look?
If you still have work to do to create a cohesive brand for your business, start by taking a look at other companies and their digital communications (website, social media channels, e-news, etc.) to see what you like and dislike. Narrow down your colors, preferred fonts, images that attract you visually, and your tone and manner (serious, fun, upscale, casual) and create a game plan for your brand.
