Transfering Your Brand To The Internet

Do you already have an existing branding system?

Or, you simply have a disparate set of images tied together with a logo? You must determine if any design elements serve as visual clues for the brand from medium to medium. Logo placement, use of tag lines, image types, key colors and typography can all be parts of such a system.


How do you use photographic materials?

Many Web sites are created with the assumption that you must use photos in limited, web-friendly ways. Small images, usually cropped into tidy little rectangles. Web conventions were made to be innovated out of existence. Don’t be afraid to explore more ambitious image use you may have used in your companies print or broadcast work.


What is your company voice?

You can not communicate with someone without assuming a manner of speech or writing style. As a consumer, you know what you think a brand should “sound” like. Honda is witty and informal. Lexus is stately and serious. When you read an advertisement, watch a television commercial, or visit the web site of a brand you’re familiar with. You should be able to get a feeling for whether or not the style fits.

It’s a site’s developer’s job, and yours as a client, to try to ensure that your site speaks with your company’s voice.


What kind of expectations are consumers likely to have?

Perhaps you have a witty, cynical brand on your hands that lends itself to a sarcastic site that spoofs someone else. Or maybe the consumers are already familiar with your company through serious, authoritative TV commercials. Then you may be best served by an elegant but informative Web site with few surprises. Other sites may benefit from a community feel, stories, publications or combinations of those and other ideas.


What kind of typography fits the brand?

Every company has a favorite typeface. Every brand will also have a range of typeface styles that, when used correctly, can help drive a message home. Pay attention to type. The use of headlines and sub-heads as GIF images can help to fight the bland look of traditionally used, web-safe fonts.


In what other mediums will your customers see your brand?

Do you currently advertise on TV or in print? Full color magazines? Black and white newspaper ads? Direct marketing? Banners at trade shows or public events? On the side of a race car?

By understanding how and where customers receive your company’s branding messages, and by trying to put yourself in their shoes, you can make more sound instinctive and strategic decisions concerning the design of your Web site.


What image do consumers currently have of my brand? Is it consistent with our goals?

Web sites, like other mediums, will sometimes be called upon to not only reinforce a brand’s message but also to refute consumer misconceptions. Nearly every company has work to do in this area, and most know it. It is important to identify these problems areas so you can use your web presence effectively to help combat these problems.

Working with existing materials can be both helpful and challenging. The more defined your company’s corporate identity, the easier it can be to focus on fulfilling a certain image. On the other hand, if consumers currently identify the brand with fast-paced television commercials, you may have a harder time translating that style to the Web.

You must address, and sometimes challenge, the audience’s expectations with the visual, structural and editorial design of your Web site.