The brand ecosystem

Developing a brand properly can be a huge endeavour, and of course budget can often dictate just how many of the exercises can be undertaken at once.

If can be confusing what to prioritise and the order of the tasks to undertake – and even what’s actually involved in the first place.

To help demystify the process I’ve visualised this into a simple ‘Ecosystem’, a process which, when executed correctly should begin at the core and gradually expand outwards.

👉 Open / download pdf version of the Brand Ecosystem here.

The core (inner)

Ultimately everything stems from purpose and audience. Why you exist in the first place, and who are you doing this for?

Articulating your vision (where you are heading) and your mission (how you will get there) help you to define what success looks like and the top level master plan of how you intend to achieve it.

This inner circle forms the core of you brand, and should remain a constant over the life of the brand – unless of course something drastic requires fundamental change such as a company takeover, change of market or even brand-threatening bad publicity.

This inner circle is the core of your brand and should stay consistent throughout the brand’s existence. Changes should only occur under extreme circumstances, such as a takeover, a change of market, or significant negative publicity that threatens the brand’s survival.

The core (outer) Tone of voice & communication strategy

The next strategic layer is all about how a brand connects with it’s audience, and the promises it makes to them. A brand’s personality comprises the human characteristics that make it relatable to its audience. As with a person, personality feeds into tone of voice, which from a brand’s perspective is how it converses with its audience, the words it uses and the communication style.

The realisation of these aspects underpins a brands messaging strategy and helps formulate an on-brand slogans and tagline that resonate with its audience.

Visual identity

The next layer is where I fit in. This is the visual identity. It’s the visual expression of everything that was identified, clarified and articulated in the proceeding strategy phases.

Application and marketing

This is the brand in the wild, doing what it was strategically designed for in one unified voice.

👉 Feel free to download the pdf version of the Brand Ecosystem here.

What if I don’t have my core brand strategy in place but I want a visual identity?

Fear not! Unsurprisingly I have some great industry contacts to help you delve deep in to who you are and establish that all important tone of voice. Drop me a line and I’ll put you in touch!

I’m a Design Rush partner — read more on Design Rush.