What story are you telling?
Yesterday I had a Find Your Style consultancy session with a wonderful lady who has an incredible business making the most beautiful jewellery. She came to us for help with finding the right visual style - she knew that the look of her website isn’t right but wasn’t sure where to start. I love these consultancy sessions; they’re such a good opportunity for business owners to get a quick hit of support and some direction on how to communicate with more impact.
In the case of this business, as with so many, things had evolved significantly since the initial look was created. The visual style was at odds with the message - it was lacking substance and anything to tell the story of the business. As we delved into what her business is all about, we uncovered some incredible things that make what she does so special - yet not a jot of this was being communicated through her current style. What a missed opportunity!
We talked about her aspirations for her business; what she stands for, what’s important to her, and her vision for the future of her business. Then we turned our attention to the story that her website is currently telling. On the face of it, the website was smart enough - but everything was just… haphazard. The colours too bright, the fonts too cold, the shapes too uninspiring. There wasn’t any one thing we could adjust in order to change the tone of the website - it all needed attention.
And that’s why branding is such a comprehensive, all-encompassing thing. It’s not about having a lovely logo, or some beautiful fonts. It’s not about hand illustrated elements, or the incredible photos from that photoshoot you had. No - the magic happens when all of those elements align. That’s when the story becomes richer, and more complete. When every last detail plays a part in telling the same story; when the threads weave together and create something so much more irresistible than they ever could on their own - when they melt together and evoke a response in others which is instinctive, emotive, compelling.
If you’re feeling as though your brand isn’t telling the right story, I recommend taking a step back and looking at every element in isolation. How does your logo make you feel? And your typography? What about the colours? Because sometimes, it is just a tweak that’s needed to align the elements, and by adjusting the mood of one theme, the entire narrative begins to sing in a way you can only imagine.
