For almost seven years, the BREITETIEFE partner KR8 bureau has been developing brands and identities for businesses, projects, products, and start-ups.

During the initial discussions and inquiries, the team has repeatedly found that there is a general consensus: Many are unsure about how and where to start with their brand and which aspects are truly crucial.

This short guide by Florian Kowatz is intended to answer initial questions on the journey to developing a brand, while also providing relevant further thoughts and ideas.

Many initial inquiries we receive already imply a predetermined work process and a prioritized list of requirements: "We need a logo, corporate identity fonts, and colors."

This image generally aligns with what the general public thinks of when it comes to designing a corporate identity. This was the structure of traditional visual identities since the 1960s. But the world has changed significantly since then. New technologies, extended mobility, and a multitude of new markets have emerged. Hence, the concept of brand development has also evolved.

Before focusing on establishing a logo, colors, and fonts, we see many other aspects that need to be clarified. Through this evaluation, we determine whether a traditional approach is still promising for a brand. Because one thing is clear: In the past, we were often contacted by companies that had driven themselves into a strategic cul-de-sac due to pure logo design. These companies then didn't know how to proceed with their new logo.

As previously mentioned, 'logo, font, and color' are an approach to brand design, but they actually raise many more questions about strategy than they provide answers: What is the overarching concept that brings these three elements to life?

This leads us to the question of the branding method. Before we can design the method, we need to develop a comprehensive strategy. This strategy is based on

• a thorough market analysis,
• quantitative and qualitative data,
• and trend analyses.

Additionally, internal surveys within the company are crucial to determine what resources and prerequisites are available to successfully establish a brand.

Branding and design should never be exclusively based on purely visual ideas. After extensive data has been collected, we dedicate ourselves together with our clients to the fundamental conception of the brand in a branding workshop. In doing so, we take on the role of a mediator, aligning the personal visions of our clients, which are often based on individual preferences and familiarity, with current market situations and contemporary developments.

Our goal is to create something unique that reflects the future goals of the company. Something that stimulates dialogue and exchange, creating new value for projects and products.

The results of the workshop flow into the development of the brand method. But what exactly is behind it? A brand method can have various origins, including:

• Design Grid
  It goes far beyond 'logo, colors, fonts' and encompasses an abstracted basic function that runs through all media. These are certain interconnected elements, a play of forms and representations, a kit that creates uniform recognizability.
• Performance
  Similar to visual arts, it all begins with a performance. An installation, an object, a disruptive public relations or marketing action that lays the foundation for an extended dialogue with the brand. From this performance and activity, abstract design emerges, which is later adapted as a flexible grid for the brand.
• Brand Touchpoint
  Through the strategy, we know which touchpoints the brand has - social media, print, distribution, shop, etc. – and which we need to utilize to achieve the desired effect. The question of how we can address target group milieus in a meaningful and innovative way gives us clues as to how the visual implementation should occur.
• Media Impact & Effect
  Sometimes it's enough to cause a stir with an idea. Provocation, omitting certain things, deliberately addressing topics - an artistic or media implementation that hits the nerve. By evaluating the previous analysis, we already get an impression of the direction we need to go to establish ourselves sustainably.
• Product & Positioning
  Often, products and services are also shaped in the context of a brand workshop. From initial ideas, concrete products emerge that we can immediately compare with the analyzed fundamentals. Based on these approaches, we can decide which of the aforementioned measures to take.

So why not just start with the logo and see what happens? That's akin to building a vehicle for a journey without knowing where the journey is going.

In our office practice, we have found that the initial design of the logo often creates more problems than opportunities. Because the entire design ideology is then cast in a symbol, without leaving enough room for the entire design infrastructure. Many entrepreneurs then don't know how to use the logo or what approach to take for designing the further brand touchpoints. Sure, it fits on a business card and on a car. But how should the remaining information be conceived?

What about partner companies, subsidiary brands, or complex information presentations? Those who think they can just design it nicely and it's enough to add the logo haven't fully grasped the difference between brand identity and logo design.

Branding should provide answers to questions about image, information flow, the company's potential, and development. It should provide clear guidelines for texts, images, videos, the basic feel, and production decisions.

Holistic branding serves as a guide that provides employees with answers to everyday business questions, company culture, basic attitude, and work values. On the same basis, it offers consumers the desired experience to sustainably identify with the brand.

There is no shortcut for quick branding, because branding is a continuous and sustainable process. A company grows together with its brand. The brand should ideally be a symbolic world that surrounds the company and iteratively develops further. This world should be felt and perceived by employees, potential applicants, and customers.