Corporate Identity: Explaining Its Definition and Major Elements
Any company, organisation, firm, or corporate identity must be easily recognisable. The task of fulfilling this goal is a challenging one. Sometimes, a company or its logo becomes popular quickly. People start to identify it among its competitors within a short time. For some companies, however, achieving such a level takes much more hard work, dedication, and steady growth. Getting this identity is a significant feat whether it takes a short or long period!
This is where corporate identity comes into discussion. Your corporate identity is how people see you. Join us as we explore the definition and various elements of corporate identity.
What is Corporate Identity?
The term corporate identity refers to the visual representation of your company. It is a combination of your logo, fonts, imagery, tagline, and colour palette you use to represent your brand. It is not just on posters or products; it can be physical representation on package design, stationary, merchandise, uniforms, online marketing or brochures.
Suppose your corporate identity doesn’t accurately mirror your company, or there is a gap between what you represent and what the people consume. In that case, there will be confusion, leading to mistrust in people. As a result, your corporate identity will weaken.
Important of Corporate Identity
A strong corporate identity will have the following benefits!
- It helps you stand out from the competition.
- It earns the company’s trust in the market.
- It conveys the company’s message to the public.
- It enhances the company’s reputation.
- It increases brand loyalty.
- It makes launching of new products or services easier.
Elements of Corporate Identity
When designing a corporate identity, you will come across the following four major elements.
Logo Design
A logo is one of the most important graphic elements. It’s a small symbol or design that identifies a company or brand. It can have words, numbers, images, or any item in different colours or shades that signifies your company or what it does. A catchy logo can enhance the company’s presence and overall image to a great extent.
Fonts and Typography
The typography and fonts can make a huge impact on the corporate identity. It will set the tone. Suppose you are trying to create a friendly and fun image. You will portray your company in the right light if you have cute and warm fonts. However, bold or dramatic typography and font will not be the correct choice for your company.
Imagery
They say, “Every picture tells a story”. Keep this in mind when selecting any type of imagery for your corporate identity. Suppose you are a chocolate brand. You create an animated picture of a cocoa bean with a warm and bubbly vibe, whereas your company is all about presenting luxury chocolate in exclusive packaging. Therefore, even though the picture is a great creation, it is unsuitable for your brand.
Style Guidelines
Detailed style guidelines, corporate identity manuals, or corporate identity design manuals are crucial for creating a perfect corporate identity. These guidelines should mention where and how your corporate identity will include the images, colours, fonts, shapes, and other visual elements. It will help create banners, email signatures, social media posts, business cards, and so on. It further must list the do’s and don’t’s to prevent any misinterpretation of the guide or any of the elements.
Conclusion
People can confuse brand identity with corporate identity. Corporate identity represents what the company is, its design, culture, and values. While it paints an overall image of the company, brand identity is the image the company wants to portray in front of the audience. You must create a strong corporate identity. At the same time, your strategic brand management plan should focus on brand identity as needed.