It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that sometimes, the tastes and the opinions we cultivate are not necessarily going to appeal to everyone. Perhaps you like eating kiwi fruits with the skin on, or maybe you have a taste for Mongolian throat singing as your main music consumption. All of this is fine of course, but not everyone is going to share those opinions..
Yet when we’re running a business, it’s important to cater to as many people as we can, at least if we’re not purposefully serving a particular niche alone. Even then, we have to commercialize ourselves or be certain that our approach will appeal to as many people within that space as possible.
After all, while the “cafe with waitresses that insults people” business is quaint at this point, it’s an out-there idea that has found a worthwhile audience because of the market it serves. They still attempt to present and explain their idea, and brands appropriately.
So, sometimes it’s worth asking if the taste in your branding, while perfectly designed to your own taste (and perhaps even greater for it) is really helping your wider commercial and marketing ambition, and not falling afoul of hard-learned advertising principles.
In this post, we’ll use some metrics you can rely on to determine that:
Objective Web Design Principles
A staggering statistic suggests that about 86.3% of Squarespace websites have oversized images that take forever to load. Why? Because someone probably thought bigger pictures would look more impressive, or they’re more concerned with initial aesthetics than functionality.
This isn’t too hard to understand, as it’s fun to showcase visual material and not so fun to lay it out perfectly. But most of your visitors just want to find what they’re looking for without waiting around.
You don’t need to make everything super plain, of course, but maybe ask yourself if that fancy sliding menu is actually helping anyone, or if it’s just there because it looked cool in the demo.
Sometimes, a simple list does the job better than all the more refined alternatives you may have in mind, and so first consider the objective design principles you’re trying to meet, and use that to add parameters to your creativity. Sometimes boundaries like that make us more, not less creative.
Clarity & Consistency In Messaging
Messages need to make sense across everything you do, really. Whale having the same logo everywhere is a decent start, making sure your entire approach stays somewhat recognizable based on the general branding characteristics you’ve developed is wise.
A good example is how some companies try to be super professional on their website but then post memes on social media, especially on platforms like TikTok. That disconnect just feels odd to most people looking in from the outside.
Of course, different platforms need different approaches, that’s true. But the core of what you’re trying to say should stay pretty much the same. Think about how the big brands do this, for example Apple tries to keep their create-focused minimalist approach so you can instantly recognize the brand by its copywriting discipline alone, no matter if you’re on their website or in their store. They’ve figured out how to keep that consistency without being boring about it.
Less Is More Discipline
It’s pretty desirable, especially as a new business owner, to throw everything you’ve got at your branding. After all, you want to show people all the great stuff you do, and to make people feel as excited as you are about your own business.
Yet that often backfires if you’re not disciplined. Most successful brands actually keep things pretty simple, at least on the surface. They know that trying to say everything usually means saying nothing very well.
This doesn’t mean you have to be boring about it all, of course. But maybe you don’t need five different fonts, or to tell your entire company history on the homepage. Most people just want to know what you do and why they should care. The rest can come later, when they’re actually interested enough to look deeper into your business.
Focus Groups & Impartial Reviews
Getting honest feedback isn’t always fun, but it’s necessary. The trouble is, most of us end up asking friends or family what they think, and they’ll usually just tell us everything looks great, especially when we’re just starting out. If they have no experience in this field, why would they point to small criticisms? That’s nice for the ego, but it doesn’t help much with actual improvements. Don’t worry, absolutely everyone can fall victim ot this, so you’re not alone in that respect.
What works better is finding people who match your target audience and getting their honest thoughts. They might tell you things you don’t want to hear, but that’s actually more valuable than praise. These are the people you’re trying to appeal to with your branding after all, so if they tell you that your brand name and product names reminds them of a dentist service, when you’re trying to sell clothing, that might suggest a different approach.
Authenticity & Sustainable History
It’s nice to have honest character. It’s a reason why old-school restaurants keep their dated-looking signs because customers associate them with good memories and reliably good food. That’s not to say trends are always bad, though as spmetimes they catch on because they actually work well. But building something authentic means thinking about what makes sense for your specific situation, not just copying what everyone else is doing.
To use an example here, maybe your family business has been using the same basic logo since 1975. It might not be the most modern design, but it probably carries more meaning than some trendy rebrand would, or maybe you just want to evoke a certain era, and aren’t above replicating the style they had. If you can be as honest to yourself as possible, it’s less a matter of taste than it is a matter of objectivity, and that in itself has its own virtue. Lightly updating your visual isn’t a bad idea of course, but before you remove or completely rebrand, have absolutely essential reasons for doing so.
How Characteristics Speak To Principles
Sometimes, brands lean too much into zany or unique aesthetics that seem right at the time, especially if the owner has a relatively expressive personality, and while that’s not inherently bad, it should still communicate something. If a law firm uses comic sans and cartoon mascots, that’s going to send the wrong message, but it would be fine for a local cafe, for instance.
Every design choice matters then, and that includes colors and logos to fonts. They should should connect with what the brand actually represents and at best, actually speak to principles.
There’s a reason why you can likely think of what a law website and logo looks like without much prompting because practicality, knowledge, experience, and professionalism are all they ever want to showcase. That’s for a good reason.
Now, a playful, casual business can afford some fun branding. A serious, high-end service might need to keep things sleek and professional. Of course, there’s room between this spectrum, but if you start there, you can then think about how your principles guide your branding, and how that affects the aesthetic decisions you make, the result will be more precise.
Name & Functioning Availability
This one often gets ignored until it’s too late, only to have to retrofit your branding around it. You might have the perfect name in mind, but if someone else is already using it, or if it’s impossible to find online because it’s too generic, that’s going to cause problems.
The same applies to design elements that might use those names, as sometimes what looks great in theory just doesn’t work well in practice. There are many tech firms out there trying to replicate Apple, for example, and sometimes it just doesn’t wash.
For instance, if you can’t find an appropriate domain extension that works for SEO, you might think of taking another and adjusting your name to match. It’s worth checking if your chosen name works as a web address, if it’s available on social media, and if it’s easy to remember and spell. Often, the cleverer you try to be with naming, the harder you make it for people to actually find you, or the more you might even point to a competitor (not great). That’s why it’s good to test these things out before getting too attached to any particular idea.
With this advice, we hope you can remain objective about your branding.