advice

Your Identity

Creating a business identity often starts with logo design or a corporate identity.

The difference between the 2 is that a logo is merely a branding of the company or a product or service.

It does not take into consideration future possible uses and applications.

A logo is less complicated to produce and less costly at the outset, but in the long term will cost the company more by its lack of flexibility.

Careful consideration must be given to the design produced, as it will set the look, style and personality for the company.

Too modern will make it date easily. Too formal can make the company look unapproachable.

An agreed brief has to be established, as with any successful commercial design, to define the target audiences so that the design produced will suit the marketing requirement of the company.

Consider how you wish to be thought of by your customers and prospects.

What words and images come to mind when you consider your business objectives and how you want to differentiate yourself from your competitors?

A new identity is not a matter of like or dislike, but one of acceptability in relation to its function to achieve the goals of the marketing and business plan of the company.

Where possible the new identity should have designed within it flexibility to create a recognisable sub-branding.

If this is not required then the graphic created has to allow for its introduction in other designs produced for the company without effecting the function of that design.

Producing such an identity is not the function of just a designer but a marketing design team working with the client to achieve the defined goals of the company.

FUNCTION

A corporate identity must allow for single colour, 2 colour and full colour rendition.

It also has to make sure that its construction takes into consideration design for reduction.

The identity has to allow for its use in all types of promotional and direct marketing literature as well as more formal applications.

A logo element of the identity may be a symbol or graphic that presents an image without words or it may be the name of a company presented in a special type font or presented in a distinctive manner.

Often it is a combination of a graphic image and type.

Designing Powerful Printed Documents

Ask yourself the following questions as you prepare documents to promote your business to customers or communicate important information to others.

What is the objective?
What do you want to communicate?
What does the tone and look need to be?
Do you want to project, bold and powerful or subtle and understated?
Who is the audience?
Will the piece go primarily to people who know about your business?
Will it introduce your company to prospects?
Are you trying to reach specific target groups?

Knowing just who will be reading the material will help you create and communicate the message, look and tone you desire.

For more advice and assistance on understanding the use of a commercial designer to improve your business please contact us to set up an initial free consultation.

Direct mail “don’t follow the crowd”!

Do it differently with more imagination, flair and originality.

Give it life and a chance!

Stop it going to the bin!

By understanding the following rules your mailers will have a chance.

But remember direct mail and direct marketing has to be part of a continued activity, not just a quick fix!

Direct Mail is what you send to gain business or sales leads to follow up
Direct Mail is split into 2 groups, those you follow up and those you don’t
Direct Mail should be sent out weekly on a Friday and followed up on Tuesday. Not Monday or Friday as they are the start and end of the week.
Direct Mail should contain a reason to keep and a reason to respond
Direct Mail should follow our 3/11 second rule, 3 seconds and its to the bin, read for up to 11 seconds and it is usually kept
Direct mail should have its message strong at the top on one side with strong imagery, bold proposition text, and benefit bullet points. On the reverse should be supporting information and contact details
Remember it is the proposition not you that is important so keep your logo at the bottom
Do not send out poor quality print or design as this will reflect on your business being the same quality
The print size should not be less than A4 double sided and never less than 2 colours, and if possible printed on 350 to 450gsm gloss or silkcard so that it is hard to crumple up and throw away. Plus card adds quality to the mailer
Direct mail works, but remember it is a numbers game so do not expect great numbers back. We are still getting calls from 3 years ago from an old mailer
What should I expect? Responses will vary according to the concept and layout, sales copy, the offer, the target market, the mailing list and your type of business
How can it work better?
It should have a strong concept, read well and contain an offer of some kind that makes the reader respond - preferably right away
Direct mail is a science. Experiment until you get the right formula - budget and plan for the long-term
Don’t expect one campaign to fund your retirement! .

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Your Identity

Creating a business identity often starts with logo design or a corporate identity.

The difference between the 2 is that a logo is merely a branding of the company or a product or service.

It does not take into consideration future possible uses and applications.

A logo is less complicated to produce and less costly at the outset, but in the long term will cost the company more by its lack of flexibility.

Careful consideration must be given to the design produced, as it will set the look, style and personality for the company.

Too modern will make it date easily. Too formal can make the company look unapproachable.

An agreed brief has to be established, as with any successful commercial design, to define the target audiences so that the design produced will suit the marketing requirement of the company.

Consider how you wish to be thought of by your customers and prospects.

What words and images come to mind when you consider your business objectives and how you want to differentiate yourself from your competitors?

A new identity is not a matter of like or dislike, but one of acceptability in relation to its function to achieve the goals of the marketing and business plan of the company.

Where possible the new identity should have designed within it flexibility to create a recognisable sub-branding.

If this is not required then the graphic created has to allow for its introduction in other designs produced for the company without effecting the function of that design.

Producing such an identity is not the function of just a designer but a marketing design team working with the client to achieve the defined goals of the company.

FUNCTION

A corporate identity must allow for single colour, 2 colour and full colour rendition.

It also has to make sure that its construction takes into consideration design for reduction.

The identity has to allow for its use in all types of promotional and direct marketing literature as well as more formal applications.

A logo element of the identity may be a symbol or graphic that presents an image without words or it may be the name of a company presented in a special type font or presented in a distinctive manner.

Often it is a combination of a graphic image and type.

Designing Powerful Printed Documents

Ask yourself the following questions as you prepare documents to promote your business to customers or communicate important information to others.

What is the objective?

What do you want to communicate?

What does the tone and look need to be?

Do you want to project, bold and powerful or subtle and understated?

Who is the audience?

Will the piece go primarily to people who know about your business?

Will it introduce your company to prospects?

Are you trying to reach specific target groups?

Knowing just who will be reading the material will help you create and communicate the message, look and tone you desire.

For more advice and assistance on understanding the use of a commercial designer to improve your business please contact us to set up an initial free consultation.

Direct mail “don’t follow the crowd”!

Do it differently with more imagination, flair and originality.

Give it life and a chance!

Stop it going to the bin!

By understanding the following rules your mailers will have a chance.

But remember direct mail and direct marketing has to be part of a continued activity, not just a quick fix!

Direct Mail is what you send to gain business or sales leads to follow up

Direct Mail is split into 2 groups, those you follow up and those you don’t

Direct Mail should be sent out weekly on a Friday and followed up on Tuesday. Not Monday or Friday as they are the start and end of the week.

Direct Mail should contain a reason to keep and a reason to respond

Direct Mail should follow our 3/11 second rule, 3 seconds and its to the bin, read for up to 11 seconds and it is usually kept

Direct mail should have its message strong at the top on one side with strong imagery, bold proposition text, and benefit bullet points. On the reverse should be supporting information and contact details

Remember it is the proposition not you that is important so keep your logo at the bottom

Do not send out poor quality print or design as this will reflect on your business being the same quality

The print size should not be less than A4 double sided and never less than 2 colours, and if possible printed on 350 to 450gsm gloss or silkcard so that it is hard to crumple up and throw away. Plus card adds quality to the mailer

Direct mail works, but remember it is a numbers game so do not expect great numbers back. We are still getting calls from 3 years ago from an old mailer

What should I expect? Responses will vary according to the concept and layout, sales copy, the offer, the target market, the mailing list and your type of business

How can it work better?

It should have a strong concept, read well and contain an offer of some kind that makes the reader respond - preferably right away

Direct mail is a science. Experiment until you get the right formula - budget and plan for the long-term

Don’t expect one campaign to fund your retirement! .