Entrepreneurs, startups, or organizations are often great at defining their products, target audience, and what their employees and stakeholders think and expect of the brand. But when it comes to crafting their corporate identity, and how they are perceived in the marketplace is where they falter and fall.
Defining your corporate identity design is difficult. Unlike its branding counterpart, it is not a collection of visual and verbal elements, rather, it asks deeper questions like ‘who are you?’ and ‘what do you stand for?’ The final outcome of the exercise may be to create a good impression and favourable impression on the audience but this exercise has more to do with corporate culture, behaviour, and communication.
In this article, we aim to understand the nuances of corporate identity. How is it different from brand identity? What are the different elements that constitute a corporate identity? Let’s start!
What Is Corporate Identity?
A corporate identity is a manner in which a corporation, business, or company expresses and presents itself to the public. In the complex corporate structure and hierarchy, and identity helps streamline values, guidelines, internal and external image. It also involves other elements of marketing such as advertising, design, and public relations.
The word ‘identity and ‘culture’ seems unnecessary, far-fetched, or simply too corporate-y to entrepreneurs and small businesses, especially when you are a small team. Trust us, there are many benefits of having one.
- Effective corporate identity helps you engage meaningfully with investors, stakeholders, employees, and customers.
- It ensures an effective and consistent medium of communication.
- It differentiates you from your competition.
Corporate Identity vs Brand Identity
The process of corporate identity is an evolved version of branding. Though these two terms are often used interchangeably, there are certainly different concepts:
Perception:
Brand identity often refers to a particular product or service that a company provides. Corporate identity on the other hand is responsible for creating a favourable perception of the entire organization.
Relationship:
Branding aims to form an emotional connection between its customers and the business. Whereas, a corporate identity is all about the ‘look and feels’ of the business.
Emotions:
The core requirement for branding is to evoke trust, favourability, and reliability towards their brand. The corporate identity speaks of its organization’s culture, ethics, values to establish individuality
What Are The Elements Of Corporate Identity?
An identity is more than its company’s logo, website, social media, or even employees. It is an amalgamation of design, behaviour, and culture that sums up the values on which your organization was built on. This consistent re-evaluation and awareness regarding your self-image revives goals, strengthens the loyalty in the workforce, and helps them navigate their role in the complex structure.
Creating an identity is a constant process that requires years of experience, and good-will in the industry. However, if you wish to create a good corporate identity, there are three key elements you should focus on:
Corporate Communication
Refers to the language that organizations use to express their corporate culture to their employees, external and internal stakeholders, and even the media. This language outlines a way in which departments communicate among themselves and the public. This language could be formal and authoritative in a traditional structure. In a flat hierarchy, it is informal and friendly. So, what is the structure of your organization, and how do you communicate?
Corporate Behaviour
Remember how the sexual harassment complaint by a Uber employee lead to stocks plummeting, bad publicity, and over-night change of management. Yes, that’s the power of corporate behaviour. In a nutshell, corporate behaviour refers to the essence of your company. It is an essential segment of corporate identity through which an organization highlights its core values, corporate philosophy, and brand promise. Corporate behaviour is the intangible asset that fosters trust among customers and loyalty within the employees.
Corporate Design
Here’s where the boundaries between corporate identity and brand identity start to blur. Corporate design essentials refer to the branding collaterals such as the name of the brand, logo, colour palette, typeface, slogan, and style guide. But, since corporate identity involves an entire organization, elements like business cards, letterheads, Identification cards, and uniforms are also included.
How Can Vowels Help You Create A Great Corporate Identity?
Work On Your Story. Tell It Right!
If you are a small businessman or a budding entrepreneur navigating the industry, your brand story is what sets you apart. So, what did you start your business? What inspires you and your team to work every day? As a brand identity designer, Vowels can help you find your voice, polish your values, create your brand identity and get your brand story right.
Create A Strong Visual Identity
Design is the silent ambassador of a corporate identity. It is the medium through which people recognize you. A solid logo can reinforce your company’s values and beliefs. A bright colour palette similar to Coca-Cola is a nod towards boundless creativity and screams adventure. What does your logo say about the company? Do your branding collaterals do justice to your company’s culture? No idea! Let us help you out!
Also read – Brand Logo vs Identity
Combine Creativity With Brand Strategy
Whether it is promoting a small business or a multi-million dollar company, marketing is not always about planning, managing, analysis, or logistics. It is more about the beautiful marriage of creativity and strategy. When you consult with Vowels, we offer you an array of services related to brand strategy, design, web development, and creative communication.
Set A Template Of Corporate Communication & Behaviour
Corporate identity is just your marketing department’s concern, it influences communication between departments, among employees but most importantly, with the customers. Our team at Vowels can help you create an integrated branding strategy through web development, finessing your brand communication, creating corporate videos, brochures, and packaging.
If you are a startup wishing to build a brand or someone looking for a fresh start, rebrand your own business whether it is a logo design, a website design, tailored messaging, or a complete brand makeover, it’s time you get in touch with professional brand identity designer like Vowels to make your vision come true.
