If you haven’t yet read my first post in this series, Your Brand Identity: Introduction, I briefly discussed the five things I believe make up a complete brand. So today we’re going to talk about the first thing: keywords. Whenever I’m in the very beginning phases of helping a client create a brand, I always ask the same thing: what keywords would you use to describe your business?
Let’s use my business, Mocasa Design Studio, as an example. I want to make sure that my clients feel happy and safe when they’re working with me. I want them to believe they can come to me and ask me questions, no matter how silly they think the questions are. And I want them to feel comfortable sharing their passion with me, so I can return it into my work. So, when developing my brand, I came up with these keywords:
Friendly, helpful, happy and energetic.
These were the ones I chose – but there are so many that work for all different types of business. Check the graphic below and see if your brand matches any of these keywords:
Let’s Do Some Examples!
Let’s say you own a high end spa. Which keywords would you want to match your brand? I’m thinking Calm, Zen, Luxurious, and Elegant would be great. These words will help a designer which direction to go in into make sure your customers know what type of experience to expect.
Now what if, instead of a high end spa, it was a more nature-inspired spa? We can still use Calm, Zen. But instead of luxurious and elegant, choosing the words Peaceful and Natural can bring a completely different vibe. Now, instead of a sleek, high class look, the designer can go into a direction focusing on a more earthy, organic look.
Now, Let’s Put It Into Practice.
Here is a visualization of these two spas, and what different keywords can mean.
Two businesses that sell the same thing can be wildly different, just by your brand! It’s a very powerful tool, and choosing the correct keywords is the perfect way to start before moving on to the other parts of your brand.