Choosing The Right Design Style for Your Brand & Business

My dad likes his suits!

He calls me from time to time to get my input on what he should match with a tie he bought or what color shirt he should wear with his tie and handkerchief combo. Ha! It’s always a great conversation because he has to explain to me why he chose a specific color combination. He ALWAYS makes sure he is consistent and coordinated. Everyone who sees him, knows he has his own style!

This is not a question about whether the clothes in your closet are the bomb, but more about if your brand is sporting the correct style for your audience.

So, how do you choose the right design style for your brand & business?

The one thing that you may unconsciously overlook, at times, is a graphic/web designer’s “design style”. When you’re looking to get that logo or website designed, you peruse the portfolios of many designers, and I’m sure they all look great. However, here’s where the rubber meets the road. Just like my dad, you have to think about what design style will fit YOUR brand vision and appeal to YOUR target demographic. Sometimes you know exactly what you want. In this case, you still need the assistance of a brand design expert to help develop that idea into the brand image that fits. Other times, you need someone to walk with you through the entire branding process.

As you begin to think about what direction to take with your brand image, from your logo, to your print collateral, to your website, it’s good to thoughtfully consider design styles and also research other competitors in your particular industry. What colors did they use for their logo? What type of fonts did they use? How did they structure their content visually? Also, (and this is critical) ALWAYS talk through your vision with your brand designer because it helps tremendously in figuring out what brand direction to take.

There are two commonly used, over-arching design styles here in the United States, with a variety of design trends. Let’s look at a few of these, shall we?

Grunge/UrbanThis design style typically uses a grungy, colorful, graffiti, or combination of these elements, with a free flowing approach, to develop brand visuals

 

Corporate/MinimalistThis design style uses a “less is more” approach, but is still a highly creative solution. This design style uses lots of straight lines color and has a clean feel to develop brand visuals

 

Illustrative Graphic DesignThis design style uses illustrations and/or cartoons as a strong base to develop brand visuals

Again, even with these styles, your designer will add their own touch to make sure you have the right combination and approach to make your brand as impactful as possible for your target market. Also, they’ll keep in mind design trends and the do’s and dont’s so that your brand will always be visually consistent!

What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear them!