How the world sees you matters: What is a corporate identity?

What is a Corporate Identity? If you’re looking to build your brand, there are different aspects that you have to consider. This way you will be able to inspire security, either financially or in the loyalty of consumers.

Some of these factors are the post-sale relationship, financial benefits, and corporate identity. These allow the brand to be part of the public’s consumer habits. Thus, when the consumer sees certain symbols, colors, or practices, they will think of a company.

What is a corporate identity?

This is the set of values that takes part in the world’s vision of a company.

This includes elements like its principles, endomarketing actions, the position that it adopts in different situations, and the image it wants to create for itself.

If you want to know what a corporate identity is, you must learn that this is way more than the image of a company.

This has to do with important cultural and organizational matters of the company.

That is why companies of all sizes and sectors think this is essential for their relationships with collaborators and customers.

Plus, it represents what a person is, their values, how they relate to other people, and how they act in different situations.

Now, to answer your question about what is a corporate identity, we will explain its elements.

What is a corporate identity? Brand elements

• Name

You must choose a name that showcases your corporate identity.

We know that this can be a challenge since it has to represent everything that the company is.

Besides, it has to tell its story and what it stands for.

This is the first thing that will make your company stand out from the rest.

You also have the option of adding a slogan after your company name. The results of this can be amazing. This will depend on if your slogan turns out to be catchy and the public likes it.

• What is a Corporate Identity? Brand logo

This is a symbol or image that is created based on the values of the company.

Design specialists say that a logo should be simple and clear.

This way, the general public can easily understand the message it wants to deliver.

This can be in a written format or a drawing.

Remember that no matter which one you choose, it must have meaning.

We recommend creating different versions of the logo. For example, you can create it on a white background, black background, vertical, horizontal, and so on.

We must say that the logo isn’t the name of your business in PowerPoint with a Comic Sans font. Also, the logo can be even more important than the name itself. This is because the human brain remembers images better than words.

A logo is a design in which you can add or replace the company name. It must also meet these terms: Be distinctive, lasting, and sustainable. All of this without leaving out everything the company means.

When creating a logo, it’s very useful to ask yourself the following questions:

• Is my business fun or serious? Depending on the answer, you will need a striking color or quite the opposite.
• Who is it for? An adult audience is not the same as a child, or male or female.
• Is it something exclusive? It can be a design that conveys elegance and high purchasing power.

Most often than not, companies don’t give the logo the importance it has.

This is a big mistake since this is the first impression that a customer has of the business.

• Typography, which represents the personality of the brand

Typography is nothing more than the fonts we can use to create our brand. In general, we recommend sticking to only one font, but remember that before you make a permanent decision, you must first consider if it would look good in print, digital, or different color materials.

Some companies choose up to a second and a third font if the first is not available.

This is key to having an effective image identity. Companies like Apple or Mercedes-Benz are brands that people can easily identify.

This is thanks to their unique and constant typographic style.

Remember, you must have a unique personality, both clear and easy to read.

• What is a Corporate Identity? Colors that can make the company identity stand out

Colors are not just the color of the logo.

They are also the colors and tones that will be used in all the company’s materials, be it graphic material, online, or even in the physical structure of the business.

It’s common for the color palette to include a primary palette of 2 to 4 colors and a secondary palette of 8 to 12 colors. All materials must meet certain specifications.

The aim of this is to have the public only characterize these colors to the visual identity of a brand and not relate it to another.

You should not leave the choice of the color palette to chance either.

Remember that color is used to call out emotions and express personality. Thus, they can affect the emotions that your brand evokes in people.

In turn, it can incite brand relationships and make you stand out faster.

For example, think of a red can, it’s unnecessary to say that it’s Coca-Cola, much less say where it was bought.

Once we see the colors, a specific image will come to mind, no matter if we want it or not.

• Images that can evoke the brand

Using images, whether they are photos, illustrations, or icons.

Is also part of the corporate visual identity of any brand.

For that reason, it must be consistent with the rest of the elements.

• What is a Corporate Identity? Voice and tone

Voice and tone refer to the way the company expresses its messages and addresses its audiences.

Treating the public as you is not the same as treating them as yourself.

Respect is above everything.

Remember that it’s not what you say, but how you say it.

• Website, increase your brand’s experience

Nowadays, a web page tops the list of brand needs. By the due take care of its design, its usability, and its contents.

The website has become the second-best experience of any brand. This is only outdone by the real experience. Besides, most times, this can be more efficient and faster.

Like the website, social platforms have made stories, statements, and opinions more than ever important. Because of this, companies now consider them to be another element of what is a corporate identity.

This has come to the point where users now trust more in companies that have an online presence. Because of this, online reputation is a factor that we must also take care of.

• What is a Corporate Identity? Corporate stationery, which embodies the identity

For every day that passes by, fewer people are using letters and envelopes.

However, companies still use them in the form of business cards, flyers, brochures, and catalogs.

They do this to communicate with their audience.

Thus, we must remind you that there are many opportunities to showcase the personality of your brand in these elements.

• Signage

This identifies the brand in the outside world, and most companies don’t even think about it.

Now, when it comes to business with physical establishments, the decoration, including the facade as well as the sign with the brand’s name, will represent the brand.

That’s why it’s so important to not leave out this detail.

• What is a Corporate Identity? Packaging that make your brand unique

If your brand’s packaging shows honesty, we assure you that the users will, without a doubt, take it home.

We constantly allow the shapes, colors, graphics, and packaging messages of the products we buy to influence us.

Thus, we consider that stores’ shelves can be the most competitive marketing environment there is.

So, we must highlight, once again, the importance of being unique and stand out.

• Message

The message of your brand is one of the last elements that make up what is a corporate identity.

This has to do with the vision, mission, and values of your company.

This element is a must-have if you want to direct action in different areas of the company.

For example, the message can be more formal or informal depending on the company’s profile and image.

What is a corporate identity? Its benefits

A stable and clear corporate identity that is easily identified and long-lasting, has the following benefits.

• Increases brand equity

• Helps to stand out from the competition

• Creates trust in the company and improves its reputation.

• Provides consistency in all communication.

• Allows the company to be easily identified and remembered by consumers

• Improves brand positioning in the minds of consumers

What is the difference between corporate identity and a logo?

When people ask what is a corporate identity, they often think that the answers are that it goes hand in hand with the logo.

Because of this, they think once they do this, the identity of the company is complete.

However, this is just one element among many that makes this up.

We can say that the logo is one aspect that makes up what is a corporate identity, but doesn’t represent the main characteristics of the company. 

On the other hand, the visual aspect of a company is an important factor that allows people to identify it. However, the image of a company’s speech must be put into practice in many ways, and not just as an aesthetic.

What is a corporate identity? Why do I need one?

You already know that a corporate identity represents the essential and visual elements that make up a company.

Now, you must clearly define what your company stands for and what will it defend. This way, your customers, partners, and contributors will know what to expect from it.

In this sense, some companies have a speech, but in reality, all they do is an act. If you do this, you can lose the trust of the public.

To give an example, if a company has a speech about how much they care for the environment and its preservation, and at the same time partners with companies that are known to be polluters, it will send a wrong message.

Thus, once the public knows about this, they will question what the company stands for and think badly of it.

Because of this, corporate identity has become important to build a solid message. The reason for this is that it can help to create strong expectations from the public as well as allow them to know what to expect from you.

Today, new consumer trends have made the relationship between a company and its customers more important than ever.

It also has allowed creating a balance in sales. This is because the fixed base of customers makes up an important part of a company’s finances.

This new relationship makes consumers begin to demand companies to take a stance on different topics. Thus, if someone says “What is a corporate identity?” you can say that it’s a relevant factor to direct these kinds of relationships.

What is a corporate identity? Its subjective characteristics

Once you start to create the corporate identity of your company, you must consider many aspects.

One of them is including the daily practices that already exist in the company.

Thus, this way you will avoid many problems like the lack of synchronization between the proposal and the execution.

Within the subjective factor that has to be present in the identity of a company, the next stand out.

• Differentiation: Within an efficient proposal you must stand out from the competition and grab the attention of the public because of the exclusivity of the performance.
• Coherence: The contradictions between discourse and practice are a huge risk that you must not take. Thus, the identity must maintain the characteristics of the company and the way it works.
• Relevance: The importance of the company to its target audience must include, not only the creation of the brand’s concept but also be compatible with what the public seeks with the company.
• Reputation: Once you create the above three elements, the company will be able to focus on the positive image it wants to deliver to its target audience.

A good reputation won’t just appear the same day you start to create it.

You must build this over time.

So, now that you know what the subjective characteristics of a corporate identity.

We will explain which elements must be present when creating it.

What is a corporate identity? How to create one?

Before you create your corporate identity, you must know the visual identity is not as important as the values that must be had.

Some of these are differentiation, coherence, relevance, and reputation.

Now, we will tell you in more detail how it should be prepared:

What is a Corporate Identity? Brand story:

Each person creates their own identity based on the life history they have.

With companies, this isn’t different. A company can only adopt a certain speech if it goes along with its history.

So, by determining, and not creating, motivations become critical to the brand. Thus, the identity of a company is built step by step, in harmony with the message it wants to deliver.

Visual identity:

As you know, this is a fundamental aspect of the company since this represents the message that the company wants to convey. 

Within the elements that make this up are:

• What is a Corporate Identity? Target audiences:

The identity of a company must take into account the target audience and the buyers it wants to reach.

Both the visual identity and the essence of the message to be transmitted can be different.

For example, if the audience is made up of young people of up to 25 years old or people between 45 and 60 years old.

The approval of the identity to the target audience influences the congruence of the message and the construction of the reputation.

• Language

Last, but not least, is the language that the company will use. We previously said that being respectful is everything.

Remember that this will be the language that you will use not only in advertising but in business relations.

This includes your relationship with the clients and collaborators as well as your marketing choices and more.

Thus, the language must be consistent with the message and the characteristics of the audience.

What sectors of the company it influences?

By creating a corporate identity, you will influence all areas of the company. This can be either directly or indirectly. Now, we will highlight some important aspects of those changes.

Internal communication

Besides adopting this to the visual identity, you must also integrate it into every form of contact.

These can be: with collaborators, with talks, internal reports, notice boards, magazines, and more.

This is something that conveys the values we want by using the correct language.

What is a Corporate Identity? External communication

This is where we impact the target audience, partners, and the general public. We can do this either through press advice, advertising pieces, website, and social media, among others.

Thus, as you can see, the importance of being consistent with the identity of the company is critical.

Some examples of this kind of communication include the manual for the brand’s publications on Facebook.

You must follow this with the same rules of what is a corporate identity. This means that you can do this according to the visual aspects of it or on how to interact with the public.

Customer service and relationship

Let’s start with an example. Let’s imagine that a company wants to convey a message of modern technology but doesn’t use social media to reach its users.

What do you think will happen?

Well, as you can imagine, it will send a conflicting message. This is because of its proposal, and what they really do is different from each other.

Thus, the ways of relating to the clients, the channels of service, the methods, among others.

All are influenced by the stance the company chooses.

What is a Corporate Identity? Organizational culture

Finally, a company that allows its employees to have creative freedom, will see how this affects the organizational culture of the company for the better.

The same will happen to companies that put concepts like teamwork, organization, professional growth, among others, above everything else.

Conclusion

We finish this article by saying that corporate identity has to do with both the aesthetics elements that convey the identity of the company and the values with which it acts.

We hope that we were able to answer your question about what is a corporate identity.

Besides, after explaining everything, we assure you that if you follow all of this, you will be able to transmit the essence of your company to the public.

We can guarantee that you will achieve your objectives within your company, of that, we are sure.

Even if you’re an experienced entrepreneur who knows all the characteristics of your own business, we recommend hiring a team of specialists who will consider all the aspects of the identity guide.

Given the importance of this, you should not take this lightly.

Remember that along with the corporate identity of a company is the branding of the brand itself.

This means that both of these factors are complemented with a strategy of action in the market. 

At BluCactus, we have specialists who can advise you and create a strategic plan for your corporate identity.

This way, you will be able to transmit the essence of your company.

Thus, increasing your sales and gaining more exposure in the market.

Contact us now and request your free quote!