Now that most businesses that survived the pandemic are back up and running, your brand needs to find ways to remain relevant or to stand out from a host of other brands out there. Good design can help you achieve just that because more than just catching the eye of current and potential customers, it will also help build credibility and a reputation for professionalism. If you and your team are running out of branding strategies and designs for the rest of the year, here are some trendy ideas you can employ for your marketing strategy for the second half of 2021.
Creating a signature look for all your channels
Brand identity is everything that makes up the visible elements of your brand, such as your go-to colors, logo, design, and other visual identities that distinguish your brand from others. If you don’t have one yet, now is the time to create a captivating visual identity that you can use for your other content and publicity materials. This means coming up with a specific look, color grading, and design elements for all your content across all channels like social media, video content, website, published materials, and others.
Sticking to a specific look or branding will make everything convenient for your various teams as well because, for example, if your company is thinking of hiring a third-party business video production agency, you only need to provide them with a portfolio of looks, designs, or mood board for your desired content. They can easily take cues from your requirements and needs.
Adding a face to the brand
No, this is not just about hiring an influencer or a brand ambassador; it’s about putting a literal face to your brand. If there is a compelling story behind your company, like an inspiring, salt-of-the-earth founder who worked hard to build the business from the ground up, or a CEO advocating for something worthwhile or who does a lot of philanthropic work, consider making them the face of the brand. It will help humanize your brand more, especially since post-pandemic marketing is all about humanizing businesses and brands expressing empathy and compassion for consumers.
One obvious example of this strategy is Elon Musk, whose name is associated with his brand Tesla and, thus, with innovation. The company began with a small budget for advertising, and it eventually grew into a massive success as Must also grew in popularity (or notoriety). Consider having your company’s bigwigs be more involved in the marketing side, especially if they have a good reputation and credibility among the masses or your community.
Standing for something important
Closely related to the above strategy is positioning your brand as an institution that cares for something more than just profit. We all know there are so many bad things happening in the world right now, and brands can no longer stay neutral, lest they want to lose younger markets like Millennials and Gen Z, who are known for taking strong and righteous stances on various issues—whether it’s economical, societal, or environmental. And with social media, brands are always one mistake away from being boycotted or canceled.
If you care about having the next generation as your consumers, your brand needs to stand for something meaningful and important. But don’t just do it for the sake of sales and creating more awareness for your brand; sit down with your team and talk amongst each other about what your values are, what you want the world to be, and your hopes and dreams for the world we live in. From these discussions will come an area of advocacy that your brand can take part in.
Making this advocacy a key part of your brand identity will help you establish strategies that echo your stance, and it can influence the rest of your company’s big moves. For example, responding to a climate emergency will help you incorporate environmental imagery and green color palettes into your content. You can also use videos and photos to highlight your activism. However, in your pivot towards activism, make sure that it’s coming from a place of sincerity. Consumers know which brands are sincere about their intentions and just pandering to gain a loyal market base.
Final Thoughts
When creating relevant content and campaigns, paying close attention to the cultural moment is vital. So don’t neglect your research; find out what’s important to your audience by constantly engaging them through social media and feedback collection, and you will surely find ways to create significant content and branding.