“Products are made in the factory but brands are created in the mind.”

In busy supermarkets and online stores, customers make decisions in seconds. They compare labels, prices, colours, and messages before placing a product in their basket. 

That is why choosing the right Food Branding Agency is not simply about design. It is about shaping perception, building trust, and creating long-term growth for your food or drink brand.

Selecting the right partner requires careful thought. Branding affects how customers see your product, how retailers respond, and how confidently you scale.

Below are the key factors to guide your decision.

The Importance of Branding in Food and Beverage Businesses

Before choosing an agency, it helps to understand the impact of branding.

Ipsos research shows that 72 % of consumers base their purchasing choices on packaging design. In crowded categories like snacks, beverages, and supplements, shelf presence can determine success.

The aspect of trust holds significance for customers. 

According to the Edelman Trust Barometer, 81% of consumers need to establish trust in a brand before making a purchase. Branding establishes trust through its power to create a positive perception of a business. 

Your packaging design, logo, tone of voice and messaging create a unified brand identity. The brand identity becomes consistent through the combination of these elements. Customers develop trust in their decision when all these elements align.

Define Your Brand Goals Clearly

Start with clarity.

Are you launching a new product? Refreshing your current look? Entering new retailers? Expanding into FMCG markets?

Clear objectives help you choose an agency with the right expertise.

If you are a start-up, you may need naming, positioning, and full packaging design.
If you are scaling, you may need brand guidelines and consistent roll-out across multiple SKUs.

A professional Food Branding Agency should ask detailed questions about your goals before offering solutions. Strategy always comes before visuals.

Look for Proven Food and Drink Experience

Food branding is different from other industries. It involves:

• Legal labelling requirements
• Ingredient listings
• Sustainability considerations
• Retail compliance
• Print production knowledge

An experienced packaging design agency understands these challenges.

Review case studies carefully. Have they worked with bakeries, breweries, dairy-free brands, restaurants, or health supplements? Do their projects show versatility?

Strong agencies demonstrate not only creativity but also commercial understanding.

Assess Their Strategic Approach

Design without strategy is decoration.

A reliable agency will begin with research and planning. They should explore:

• Target audience behaviour
• Competitor positioning
• Price point
• Retail environment
• Brand personality

Mintel’s UK food and drink research highlights how fast consumer trends shift in areas like plant-based products and functional beverages. Strategy ensures your brand remains relevant.

Ask about their process. Do they conduct workshops? Do they create brand positioning statements? Or they provide brand guidelines?

Clear strategy leads to strong and consistent packaging design.

Evaluate Their Packaging Design Expertise

Packaging is often your first point of contact with customers.

A skilled agency should offer:

Bespoke Structural Design

Unique die cuts and formats improve visibility and differentiation.

Label and Carton Design

Clear hierarchy, readable typography, and balanced layouts improve shelf impact.

3D Packaging Visualisation

Mock-ups allow you to test and refine designs before printing.

Production Knowledge

Understanding materials, finishes, and sustainability options prevents costly mistakes.

Packaging News frequently reports on how innovation in sustainable packaging is shaping buying behaviour. Your agency should understand these trends.

Effective packaging design combines beauty with practicality.

Examine Their Storytelling Skills

Food is emotional. It connects with memory, culture, and lifestyle.

Your agency should help you define:

• Your brand story
• Tone of voice
• Visual personality
• Photography style

Storytelling builds loyalty. It explains your ingredients, sourcing, and values. It creates connection beyond price.

Review their previous work. Does each brand feel unique? Or do projects look similar?

Authenticity matters. Customers quickly recognise generic branding.

Review Their Portfolio Depth

A strong portfolio shows consistency and variety.

Look for work across:

• Food packaging
• Beverage branding
• Restaurant identity
• Supplement design
• FMCG product ranges

Effective rebrands often combine updated visuals with clearer messaging.

Pay attention to detail. Does the design reflect quality? Does the brand identity remain consistent across touchpoints?

Strong execution builds credibility.

Consider Communication and Project Management

A smooth process saves time and stress.

Ask about:

• Timelines
• Feedback stages
• Budget control
• Production support
• Ongoing guidance

Clear communication reduces misunderstandings. It ensures your packaging design launches on time.

Choose a team that values collaboration. Branding works best when agency and client work closely together.

Look for Integrated Services

Branding does not stop at packaging.

You may also need:

• Website design
• E-commerce support
• Product photography
• Signage and promotional materials
• Copywriting
• Digital campaigns

Integrated services maintain consistency. They strengthen your brand identity across physical and digital spaces.

When all elements align, your message becomes clear and memorable.

Balance Budget with Long-Term Value

Cost is important. Value is essential.

Cheap design often leads to future redesign costs. Weak branding can limit retail opportunities.

Strong branding helps smaller brands compete with established players.

View branding as a long-term investment. Strong strategy and packaging design can support growth for years.

Ask for transparent pricing and clear deliverables. Make sure the proposal aligns with your business goals.

Choose Passion and Attention to Detail

Finally, look for passion.

Food and drink branding requires precision. Small details influence perception:

• Colour choices
• Texture and finishes
• Typography
• Imagery
• Messaging

An agency that cares about craftsmanship delivers better results. Enthusiasm leads to stronger collaboration and creativity.

Trust your instincts. Choose a partner who listens carefully and understands your vision.

To Sum Up

The correct Food Branding Agency selection determines your brand’s future development.It influences how customers see you, how retailers respond, and how confidently you grow.

Research shows packaging strongly affects buying decisions. Trust drives loyalty. Strategy ensures relevance. When these elements combine together products become established brands.

Contact ClearBrand to start building your distinctive brand identity through improved packaging design and successful market positioning of your food or drink product.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What does a Food Branding Agency do?

It develops brand identity, packaging design, messaging, and strategy to help food products attract customers and grow.

2. How long does a branding project take?

Most projects take six to twelve weeks, depending on packaging complexity and number of products.

3. Why is packaging design important?

Packaging influences buying decisions, builds trust, and shapes how customers perceive quality and value.

4. Can small food brands hire an agency?

Yes. Many agencies support start-ups and growing businesses with scalable branding solutions.

5. Is branding worth the investment?

Strong branding builds trust, improves visibility, and supports long-term growth in competitive food markets.

The post How to Choose the Right Food Branding Agency for Your Business appeared first on ClearBrand.

For technology businesses, a website is not simply an online presence. It is a sales tool, a trust signal, and a growth platform. Visitors expect clarity, speed and confidence from the first click. This is where tech company web design makes a real difference. 

A well designed website helps explain complex products, supports user journeys and strengthens credibility. At ClearBrand, we design technology websites that do more than look good. We create digital platforms that enable business expansion and grow together with your company while providing you with measurable outcomes.

Why Tech Company Web Design Is Critical for Growth

Technology businesses move fast. Your website must keep up. A poorly designed site creates confusion and doubt. A strong one builds trust and momentum.

Tech company web design plays a key role in:

• Communicating complex ideas clearly
• Supporting long sales cycles
• Building confidence with users and partners

In just 0.05 seconds, users decide whether a site feels trustworthy or not. The combination of clean layouts with clear messaging and intuitive navigation enables users to maintain their engagement. Your website transforms into a strong asset for business growth when it operates effectively.

Designing Websites for Technology-Driven Businesses

Web design for tech companies requires a different approach. Technology products are often detailed and technical. Your website must simplify without losing meaning.

Effective web design for tech companies focuses on:

• Clear value propositions
• Structured content
• User-led journeys

At ClearBrand, we start by understanding your product, market, and audience. This allows us to design websites that speak clearly to decision-makers while remaining accessible and easy to use.

Bespoke Web Design for Tech Companies

No two technology businesses are the same. That is why bespoke web design for tech companies delivers better long-term value.

Custom website design allows:

• Flexible page layouts
• Scalable content sections
• Room for future features and growth

Bespoke web design for tech ensures your site evolves alongside your product roadmap. Whether you are launching new services, entering new markets, or refining your messaging, your website remains aligned and adaptable.

UX Design for Tech Companies That Drives Engagement

Good design must feel effortless to the user. UX design for tech companies focuses on how visitors interact with your website at every step.

Strong UX design helps users:

• Find information quickly
• Understand your offering clearly
• Take confident action

ClearBrand bases its UX decisions on research, psychology and real user behaviour. Our design process creates user journeys that eliminate obstacles while increasing user engagement. The website design creates an intuitive user experience which enables visitors to convert without feeling any pressure.

Core Elements of Effective Technology Company Website Design

Clear Messaging and Structure

Technology company website design must prioritise clarity. Visitors should understand what you do within seconds.

We focus on:

• Simple language
• Strong headings
• Logical content flow

This approach helps users absorb information without feeling overwhelmed.

Scalable and Future-Proof Design

Technology businesses grow and change. Your website should do the same.

Our technology company website design process includes:

• Modular page components
• Easy-to-manage CMS systems
• Flexible layouts for future updates

This makes it easy to add new content, features, or integrations as your business expands.

Performance and Speed

Fast websites perform better. Speed affects user experience, SEO, and credibility.

Our tech company web design solutions include:

• Speed-tested builds
• Optimised images and code
• Performance checks before launch

A fast website keeps users engaged and supports long-term growth.

Security and Reliability

Security is essential for technology brands. Users expect safe and reliable platforms.

Our web design for tech companies includes:

• Secure development practices
• Ongoing support and maintenance options
• Scalable hosting advice

This builds trust with users and stakeholders.

SEO-Ready Design for Better Visibility

Design and SEO should work together. Search engines value structure, speed, and usability.

SEO-friendly tech company web design includes:

• Clean code and URLs
• Clear heading hierarchy
• Mobile-first layouts

We build websites that support organic growth while keeping the user experience front and centre.

Content That Supports Technology Growth

Content plays a major role in explaining technology products. ClearBrand helps structure content that informs and converts.

Strong technology company website design includes:

• Product and service pages
• Case studies and success stories
• Clear calls to action

Our content-led approach ensures your website speaks clearly to different audiences, from technical users to business decision-makers.

Responsive Design Across All Devices

Users access websites from desktops, tablets, and mobiles. Responsive design is no longer optional.

Our web design for tech companies ensures:

• Consistent experience across devices
• Easy navigation on smaller screens
• Strong performance everywhere

This improves usability, engagement, and search visibility.

Aligning Branding With Web Design

Your website should reflect your brand clearly and consistently. Visual identity, tone, and messaging must work together.

At ClearBrand, we align:

• Branding and digital design
• Visual storytelling and usability
• Online and offline brand assets

This creates a cohesive experience that strengthens recognition and trust.

Measuring Success and Improving Over Time

A website should evolve with your business. We design platforms that support ongoing improvement.

We help technology brands:

• Track performance and engagement
• Identify improvement opportunities
• Refine UX and content over time

This ensures your website continues to support growth long after launch.

Why Work With ClearBrand for Tech Company Web Design

ClearBrand is a specialist technology design agency based in Reading, Berkshire working with technology businesses across the UK and internationally. We create websites that are clear, engaging and built to scale, combining tech company web design with complementary creative services.

Our services include:

• Website design & development – bespoke, scalable platforms
• UX & UI design – for applications, dashboards, and digital tools
• Branding & visual identity – logos, guidelines, and stationery
• Print & marketing materials – brochures, folders, packaging, and vehicle livery
• Digital strategy & eMarketing – social media, infographics, and campaigns
• Photography, video & exhibition design – product storytelling and impactful displays

This full-service approach ensures technology companies deliver user-focused, cohesive, and growth-ready digital experiences.

ClearBrand’s Website Design Process for Tech Company

Why This Process Matters

The structured approach guarantees that all tech company web design projects will meet business requirements and user requirements and their upcoming development needs. The process provides technology firms with better risk management and clearer project understanding and standardized outcomes throughout their organizational development.

Wrapping Up

Great tech company web design works to establish trust with users which leads to increased user engagement and sustained business development. Your website operates as an effective business asset when your strategy and user experience design and brand identity work together.

 If you are looking for a technology focused design partner that understands usability, scalability and performance, ClearBrand is ready to support your next stage of growth.

The post Tech Company Web Design: Best Practices for Growth appeared first on ClearBrand.

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Branding is a crucial aspect of any organisation, influencing how a company is perceived, how it operates, and its overall success. Here are 10 facts highlighting the importance of branding:

1. First Impressions: Branding creates the first impression of your business. A strong brand identity, including a memorable logo and consistent visual elements, immediately communicates your values and professionalism to potential customers.
2. Recognition and Differentiation: A well-established brand helps your organization stand out from competitors. It ensures that your products or services are easily recognized in a crowded marketplace, giving you a competitive edge.
3. Customer Loyalty: Consistent branding builds trust with customers, leading to higher customer loyalty. When customers feel connected to your brand, they are more likely to return for repeat purchases and recommend your products or services to others.
4. Perceived Value: Strong branding increases the perceived value of your products or services. Customers are often willing to pay more for a brand they trust and recognize, leading to higher profit margins.
5. Brand Equity: Over time, effective branding builds brand equity, which is the added value your brand brings to your organization. This can result in increased market share, customer loyalty, and a stronger position in the market.
6. Emotional Connection: Branding helps create an emotional connection with your audience. People often choose brands that resonate with their personal values and emotions, leading to deeper and more meaningful customer relationships.
7. Employee Motivation and Pride: A strong brand can inspire employees, making them feel proud to be associated with the company. This can lead to higher levels of motivation, productivity, and loyalty among the workforce.
8. Marketing Consistency: Branding ensures consistency across all marketing channels, from social media to advertising campaigns. This consistency helps reinforce your message and makes your brand more recognizable and reliable.
9. Attracting Talent: A reputable brand can attract top talent to your organization. Prospective employees are more likely to seek out and choose to work for companies with strong, positive brand identities.
10. Business Growth and Expansion: A strong brand lays the foundation for business growth and expansion. Whether entering new markets, launching new products, or forming partnerships, a well-established brand provides credibility and trustworthiness that can accelerate growth.

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Effective branding is essential for building a strong, sustainable business that resonates with both customers and employees.

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The article was written by ClearBrand, September 2024.
To get in contact about working with ClearBrand on a project,
please call +44 (0)118 405 0255 or email info@clearbrand.co.uk.

The post The power of branding appeared first on ClearBrand.

Why is Healthcare branding so important? Branding is a marketing practice used to make a company easily identifiable to consumers. Not only is branding important for making your business memorable to a customer, it also tells them what they can expect from you!

Here are 5 starting points for Healthcare Branding:

Brand Identity

What is brand identity? Brand identity is the visual element of your brand that allows your customer to instantly recognise your business.

Visual elements might include:

✓ Email signatures

✓ Letterheads

✓ Logo

✓ Product Packaging

✓ Signage

✓ Website

Why is Brand Identity so important? Your brand identity communicates your company’s personality to both current and potential customers and is intended as a promise to the customer as a relationship is forged.

It is important to be consistent with your identity through your brand to create a strong brand identity whilst building brand awareness and loyalty.

Content

What is the content? Content is the creation and distribution of value, relevant and consistent content, that attracts and retains customer attention.

Content can be created in many forms, including:

✓ Videos

✓ Patients’ Stories

✓ Tips in the form of a blog

✓ Infographics

✓ Webpages

✓ Podcasts

✓ Q&A

Why is content so important? Producing relevant, engaging, educational content is key to reassure your customers that you are a leader in the healthcare industry. It also boosts your search engine ranking, making your site a trustworthy source of information.

Brand Positioning

What is brand positioning? Brand positioning is the action of positioning your healthcare brand in front of your target customer’s mind. This is probably the most fundamental aspects of healthcare branding.

How to create a strong brand positioning strategy:

✓ Identify your current brand positioning

✓ Determine your competitors

✓ Research how your competitors have positioned their brand

✓ Identify your unique selling point (USP)

✓ Develop your positioning statement

✓ Test your brand positioning statement

Why is brand positioning so important? No matter if you haven’t created a brand position, your brand will be perceived by customers in a certain way. Taking control and redefining your brand position provides you with an opportunity to differentiate your brand compared to your competitors.

Digital Marketing

What is Digital Marketing? Digital marketing uses the internet, mobile device, social media, search engines and other digital channels to reach out to potential customers.

Digital marketing methods are made up of:

✓ Content Marketing

✓ Social Media

✓ Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

✓ Email Marketing

✓ Inbound Marketing

✓ Pay Per Click (PPC)

✓ Affiliate Marketing

Why is Digital marketing so important? Over the last week, there have been 8012 thousand (Google Trends) searches for ‘Healthcare’ in the UK. This makes digital marketing a valuable way for healthcare brands to engage with their customers and reach a larger audience.

Digital Marketing offers the ability to engage with customers in real-time. It also offers the ability to track current digital marketing efforts and adjust them according to results.

Healthcare customer experience

What is a healthcare customer experience? Healthcare customer experience is any and all touchpoints that a customer is in contact with your brand, before, during and after service/purchase.

Touchpoints encompass:

✓ Website

✓ Personalised emails and text messages

✓ Mobile app experience

✓ Online chats

✓ Social Media

✓ Any form of communications

Why is healthcare customer experience so important? The ultimate judge of your brands’ success is aligned with your customers’ experience. This means your brand experience needs to be consistent across all touchpoints.

Customers are the top priority when it comes to healthcare, there is nothing more important than a happy patient that trusts you and your brand. Customers relate and trust people over services/products. Having a humanized brand that offers personalised experience encourages trust and builds a relationship.

I hope this article has given you a start to Healthcare branding. ClearBrand have worked with multiple healthcare companies in Berkshire, allowing us to thrive as a marketing and healthcare design agency specialist. To see some healthcare brand examples and to get in touch visit us Here.

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Article written by ClearBrand, January 2021. 
To get in contact about working with ClearBrand on a healthcare project,
please call +44 (0)118 959 9284 or email info@clearbrand.co.uk.

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Non-profit branding is essential in helping build support and to direct focus on the non-profits mission. Also, a brand’s identity can gain more interest as well as commitment from donors and volunteers. A strong brand helps present clear messages, create new opportunities and optimise outreach.

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Brand messages resonate 

Charities can differentiate themselves against others through non-profit branding. They can also find an audience who mutually believe in the cause.  The brand can be used to communicate messages to their audience. These messages generate an emotional response, and create further awareness and outreach. Therefore having a brand behind the messages makes it easier for people to resonate with the brand. In addition, having a recognisable brand helps audiences connect and understand messages. Audiences remember messages that are attached with a brand logo, name, colours and slogan.

Non-profit branding creates solidarity

While internally the brand shows the identity of the organisation, the mission, values and activities. And externally the brand reflects the image in stakeholder’s minds about the organisation. The non-profits brand identity acts as a bridge. This closes the communication gap between the organisation’s goals, donors, volunteers, government and beneficiaries.

Non-profit brands gain opportunities

A brand gives an organisation a reputation, responsibilities and opportunities. These opportunities include being able to connect with people on social media. This helps the brand reach wider audiences all over the world to share their message. In addition, there could the opportunity to have a branding launch or event for a branding campaign. These events help raise awareness and increase support for a non-profit organisation and help their cause. Also, if a brand has a strong, positive reputation, this increases trust as well as donations. 

Brands have consistency

Brands link experience and strategy together. They create experiences for audiences to actively engage with. A brand helps the non-profits to continue to express why they matter and gives meaning. It helps the organisation to remain relevant, gain attention and recognition. Also, by having an understanding of their audience’s motivations, brands can adapt their strategy and messaging. This helps to gain trust and loyalty. As well as, having consistent brand guidelines across communication channels builds trust.

Non-profit branding helps fundraising

Brands use messages, logos, colours and images to create an emotional response. These features can help brands connect on an emotional level with their audiences. Connecting on this level can positively impact on their fundraising efforts and raise more money.

The role of branding is important, especially in the non-profit sector. Branding could be seen as more important for them because they call for people to invest their time and money in a less tangible cause.

Examples of our non-profit branding work:

• Our new charity partner is Launchpad. Launchpad is Reading’s leading homelessness prevention charity, ClearBrand is working on their monthly marketing –  Launchpad
• Hafen Kirche is a church in the heart of Frankfurt. They approached ClearBrand for branding and website design – HafenKirche

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Further Reading on Non-profit branding:

• The Role of Brand in the Non-profit sector 
• 5 key benefits of designing a consistent non-profit brand
• The Role of Brand in the Non-profit sector

Details: 

Article written by ClearBrand, July 2020. 
To get in contact about working with ClearBrand on a project,
please call +44 (0)118 959 9284 or email info@clearbrand.co.uk.

The post What is the role of non-profit branding in the charity sector?  appeared first on ClearBrand.

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There have been numerous trends so far in 2020 in the business and marketing world. Below are the top 5 branding trends that we think are here to stay beyond 2020. So, brands take notes!
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1. Using Immersive Technology

To engage customers, brands have been using artificial intelligence (AI). They have been able to guide their users throughout the buyer journey, by using lives chats at all times. This immersive technology also enhances shopping experiences, navigation around websites and customer service experiences.  It assures customers that the brand is there for them, to answer their questions any time. The live chat feature is convenient, as it connects them directly to an agent, who answers the query in real time. Immersive technology has been described as a competitive advantage for brands, because it increases sales, saves time and creates a sustainable customer base.

2. Having a social conscience

It has become more apparent that brands need to care about the same causes their consumers do. Demonstrating sustainability can increase trust and loyalty. In addition, by having a social conscience the brand and business could use renewable energy and other sustainable resources. Also a strong code of ethics, diversity and equality help a brand be socially conscious.  Consumers want to feel connected on a social and political level with brands that they invest their time and money in.  Brands can show their social conscience through donations, as well as encouraging others to take the steps to support causes.  Furthermore, a social conscience is a way for a brand to show the responsibility they have to their customers and the wider world.

3. Investing in mobile websites

Brands have been investing in mobile websites to increase mobile user interaction. This can be increased through mobile website design, speed, and simplicity of content. The increased usage of screen time on mobile devices highlights that mobile devices are more powerful than desktops, and because consumers can access information anytime, anywhere. Having mobile websites are important because they increase a brands creditability while making them feel modern and relevant. It is valuable to have a website that is compatible with any device, especially as research found that mobile websites are the preferred way for consumers to assess content online.  It is not only consumers who prefer mobile websites, google prioritises mobile friendly websites.

Examples from our portfolio:

• Daily Poppins
• Soho Grey

4. Using influencers

Content creators increase brand awareness on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. The use of these websites similarly highlights the importance of mobile sites. These people are paid to promote a brand’s message, as well as the brand’s products or services. They also often have a large following and so influence the buying decisions of a lot of people. Influencers drive organic traffic to a brand’s website, they also improve SEO rankings and generate sales with direct links to the brands website. In addition, their content is creative and acts like user-generated content.  Their view is deemed unbiased, and due to this they establish trust and loyalty on social media. This trust and loyalty is a valuable asset for the brand.

5. Creating educational content

This is valuable content which educates consumers, who are looking to brands for more than just products and services, such as: lifestyle suggestions, how to do, procedures, resources and accountability. Educational content on interesting topics drives brand engagement, because of providing the answers to what consumers want to know. Brands can spend more time creating content and educational resources for consumers while establishing their expertise against competitors. Also educational content builds trust between consumers and brands. While brands seem more reliable, the consumers develop an understanding of how the brands products and services will benefit them.

Those are the top 5 branding trends we have identified for 2020. Unlike some trends throughout the years, these 5 trends could be long lasting and be essential for current and future brands to implement.

Further Reading:

• What is immersive technology?
• Why are mobile friendly websites and content important?
• Mobile website design: What customers want to see on their phones
• Educational content marketing: Why and How you should implement it for your B2B brand
• 6 reasons to use Influencer Marketing
• Top Branding Trends businesses should follow in 2020
• Why brands need a social conscience
• How to use Educational Content to drive Brand Engagement
• 17 Branding Trends for 2020/2021: Latest predictions to watch out for
• 5 Brands Successfully Using Education to Engage

Details: 

Article written by ClearBrand, July 2020. 
To get in contact about working with ClearBrand on a project,
please call +44 (0)118 959 9284 or email info@clearbrand.co.uk.

The post Top 5 Branding Trends 2020 appeared first on ClearBrand.

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Rebranding could enable your business to attract core customers while clarifying your business’ personality, promises and position in the market.  The starting point is knowing when to rebrand. 

Is it time for you to rebrand?

Identifying the signs that it is time to rebrand is the first step to building your brand back up and implementing change for success.

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Signs 

1. Your brand name no longer reflects your brand vision and goals.
If your brand name doesn’t connect with your vision and goals, potential customers could be confused and not understand your brand. Rebranding can change this.

2. You’re failing to differentiate your brand against your competition.
If you subconsciously adopt your competitors characteristics, you are undifferentiated against them. If by trying to compete against them you become too similar to them then it is time to change, in order to stand out and be original.

3. You’ve changed your business model or strategy which no longer connects to your brand name.
By changing your business model or strategy you might be seeking new audiences or changing direction but feel restricted by your brand that no longer compliments the changes you made.

4. It has been 5 years since you last rebranded or made any tweaks to your brand.
Companies tend to rebrand every 5 years, often to match the business plan. This may not be a full rebrand but could be used to make tweaks to reflect and redefine the brand to push it into the next level and stand-out against competitors in local and international markets

5. The business has recently undergone a change.
This could be due to takeovers, new management, a change of ownership. It is helpful to distinguish away from the previous structure and highlight the change in the business through a rebrand.

6. You have outgrown your brand.
If the quality of your branding and the quality of the business no longer match, a rebrand can help align these aspects of your business once again. You want to be able to compete with competitors on a higher level and need your brand to be recognised as higher tier.

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Solutions 

1. Get your customers feedback, what can you improve?
Your customers could highlight key features of your brand that could be improved. Such as, that the customer gets confused between you and another brand, either by logo, colours or other traits.  You can find out what your customers think, feel and expect in regard to your brand.

2. Identify what is going wrong, why are you not connecting with your target audience?
Rebranding involves different areas, which rebranding service will suit you best?

3. Take it back to basics – clarify your vision, strategy, goals and values.
You want your vision, strategy, goals and values to align and for your brand to reflect this.

4.  Always support and promote your brand – show your passion.
If you have lost faith in your brand, then this will filter down to your customers who could disconnect with your brand too. Because showing your passion translates into your brand, you want your brand to be a living presence in the market.

5. Research your brand, customers and competitors.
Understanding these key areas will help make your strategy stronger and make your rebranding more effective. You want to be able to understand and communicate your brand identity.

6. Be consistent and persistent.
You have to put in the time and effort to push your brand to where you want and believe it should be. Once you have rebranded, you want everyone to know and understand it.

In order to better your brand, check out:

• The Value of Rebranding – 5 reasons your business will benefit from a rebrand – here
• The Branding Process – How to rebrand your company in 5 Stages  – here
• The Ultimate Guide to Successfully Rebranding in 2020 – here 

At ClearBrand we often take part in rebranding projects for clients, from start-ups to SMEs to national brands. Get in touch for a free consultation on how our rebranding services can give your business the edge on your competitors.

>How we can help you rebrand

>Get in touch

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It doesn’t take much to notice a gradual shift in trend over recent years. Many of the biggest companies and brands are smart enough to stay up to date and sometimes even set the current trend. Whether it be a change as visually simple as implementing dark mode into your artwork and identity, or as powerful as a campaign driven by a global issue, keeping your brand fresh and creative using design psychology is a key part in both retaining and attracting your users.

Introduction to how brands utilize design psychology

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Psychology within design isn’t noticed by the majority of customers, however when utilized correctly it can be the key factor in modern-day marketing. This article will explain how to successfully transform subjective design into objective design.

To understand how to implement UI and UX based around psychological factors, it’s important to learn mental models and how a person’s subconscious is affected by clever design. Take Apple, for example (with the hypothesis that the majority have owned an apple product). After you’ve spent a day or two getting to grips with your first Apple device, you have a perceived notion on how to use most of their future products. This is due to their great innovation and simple design that is easily understood across all audiences and naturally intuitive. The take-away from this is: no matter the trend or fashion, straightforward and functional design is always the basis to start your work from.

Having this in mind you can begin to implement factors into your design that not only look great visually, but effectively serve the user and provide a smoother experience. When making choices within design, you must think about the practicality and place yourself in the users’ shoes. When interacting with a product, people generally make a decision to buy within the first two seconds, scanning the product for certain features. Using the Apple iPhone as an example again, their features may include:

• Up to date software
• Compatibility with other owned devices
• Portability
• Size based on personal preference
• Accessibility features for those with disabilities

Using the same scenario in website setting, within the first few seconds of loading in the user will instantly begin to roam for features such as:

• An easy navigation system
• Search bar
• Clear and descriptive wording throughout sections
• High-quality imagery
• Correct grammar and use of punctuation
• Testimonials verifying the legitimacy of the site

These may seem like obvious features, but if not handled well and designed with purpose, the customer will quickly lose interest and move on to a competitor. This further proves the importance of psychological design being implemented to assist in retaining users.

More detail and an in-depth analysis of top website features for 2020 can be found here.

How design psychology works

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An example that explains design psychology in a simple manner is based around button design. When working on a desktop, the user has a full range of flexibility across the screen due to the mouse, allowing buttons of all shapes and sizes in any position on the page to be used. However, when designing on a mobile or tablet you must consider how the button will be interacted with. In order to ease UX, a button that takes up the width of the device can be tapped by both left and right-handed people without the need to stretch or use a second hand. Minor considerations such as these may not seem too important, but in the modern-day in such a competitive field, it is vital to create as smooth an experience as possible to retain as many users as possible.

Above all, no design should ever cloud the message you are trying to convey. Each choice on colour, shape, font and line should ultimately assist in the message you are trying to get across. Simultaneously, designs should be kept fresh and regularly updated to avoid falling behind the trend and becoming uninviting. This must not be confused with simply following what others are doing. It is uniqueness and creativity that powers clicks, bringing us on to the Von Restorff Effect. This is the theory that the ‘odd one out’ is the one that gets remembered. You can use this effect to subconsciously drive the user toward one section of the page that you intend to be targeted, such as sales or a job posting.

There are plenty of decisions within design that can influence a user’s subconscious but above all, the psychology of colour is one of the most influential and powerful tools a designer can use while taking nothing away from the core message. A magnitude of research has amounted over the years to find out which colours people associate with different moods. There are many connections to different colours, but to give an example here are a few of the main associations.

• Blue: calm, trustworthy, caring, secure
  Used by; Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter
• Red: energetic, action, dynamic, passionate
  Used by; YouTube, CocaCola, Tinder
• Green: organic, natural, fresh, growth
  Used by; Whole Foods, Spotify, WhatsApp

Find out how we’ve utilized colour theory through design in our portfolio.

In the same vein as colour, many minimal design choices are made and implemented without much recognition from the user. However, this is the result that these decisions are intended for. Successful design shouldn’t be noticeable and psychological factors are what makes the greatest impact on a person’s mindset. It is said that humans calculate first impressions within the initial few seconds of interaction, therefore it is vital that your design is capable of flooding the mind of the user with subtle pieces of carefully crafted information to maximise the potential of your brand.

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Article written by ClearBrand, June 2020. 
To get in contact about working with ClearBrand
please call +44 (0)118 959 9284 or email info@clearbrand.co.uk.

The post How to understand and harness psychology within design in 2020. appeared first on ClearBrand.

It has been a fantastic year for our branding agency, ClearBrand. 

 

Over the year we have helped build up brands for some of the Thames Valley’s key influencers. ClearBrand have helped create new and exciting brands for local businesses that have gone out and been seen across the UK and internationally. We have been recognised for this by being shortlisted for an Award at the Thames Valley Business & Community Awards.

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At the end of last year we redesigned the website and animated logo for innovative central-Reading based award winning Timetrap escape rooms (See their site here www.timetrapescaperooms.com), who have gone on to win the pride of Reading awards alongside the gold award key from the UK’s leading escape room reviewer.

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Image above: Timetrap’s new website

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We then were asked to rebrand local Newbury based market research agency Vanson Bourne (https://www.vansonbourne.com/) who have been running for over 20 years. We’re really proud of the creative solutions and have prepared a case study outlining our process from our discovery stage to final outcomes here: www.clearbrand.co.uk/works/vansonbourne

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Image above: Brand Guidelines for Vanson Bourne.

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Another highlight of the year was our packaging concept design work for Moo Free, who have had their HQ in Reading up until this year. Moo Free (www.moofreechocolates.com) are a world leading, multi-award winning manufacturer of delicious dairy, gluten and soya free chocolate, that’s also vegan friendly. ClearBrand worked across new products, seasonal ranges, concept designs & exhibitions. Our design work for Moo Free products can be seen nationally across ASDA, Holland & Barrett, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s & Waitrose and internationally from resellers. Moo Free have won 9 industry awards last year including awards from the vegan food awards and independent, which can be seen here. We have put together our case study for last year’s work here: https://www.clearbrand.co.uk/works/moo-free.

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Image above: New Luxury chocolate concept range for Moo Free

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As summer came along we were thrilled to be contacted by world & Paralympic Rowing Champion Lauren Rowles, who lives and trains locally in Reading, to work on her new personal logo and website, which launched over the last few months http://laurenrowles.com/. We’re now working with Lauren on her podcast launching this year.

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Image above: Lauren Rowles new site

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Further rebranding projects included a national cleaning franchise started in Reading. Daily Poppins are a national domestic and professional cleaning franchise, with over 50 sites across the UK. They came to ClearBrand wanting to modernise their brand and website, while improving user experience and brand recognition. You may have seen their bubbly red cars darting around and we’re proud to have added our creative stamp to the franchise. Check our our case study for the brand clean-up here: https://www.clearbrand.co.uk/works/daily-poppins/

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Image above: Daily Poppins car design 

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2019 was also our most successful to date as we won one of our biggest contracts in the company’s short history this year. We are currently rebranding The Business Continuity Institute (www.thebci.org), an international membership organisation with headquarters based in Caversham in Reading. With over 8000 members in more than 100 countries, the BCI truly are the leader in their industry and are a fantastic representation of the reach that the Thames Valley area has. For confidentiality reasons we can’t share too much from this project, but are excited to launch the new brand in early 2020.

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More about ClearBrand. 

 

ClearBrand are a design agency of creative designers, developers and various collaborators, focused on crafting distinctive brands for the long term. We work in partnership with our clients to help them achieve growth. We are focused on fast turnarounds, better work and great value. Delivering high-quality design that is focussed on user engagement is our speciality.

 

We position ourselves and have specialisation as branding experts. We each have prior experience with big brands in London which we can bring to the local area. ClearBrand’s signature design style is precise and uncluttered. ClearBrand help capture the emotive aspects of your audience and build it into a cohesive narrative.

 

Our founder, Josh White, was nominated for business entrepreneur of the year at the Thames Valley Business & Community Awards. Josh has worked as a designer at award winning branding and corporate communications agencies in London, Brighton and Reading before setting up ClearBrand, spotting a gap in the market to build strong local brands for the fantastic local companies in the Thames Valley area. He is now looking for investment into the next stage of that goal with a new start-up helping local new businesses get up and running as soon as possible with a new innovative service.

 

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Details: 

 

Article written by ClearBrand, January 2020. 
To get in contact about working with ClearBrand on a project,
please call +44 (0)118 959 9284 or email info@clearbrand.co.uk.

The post ClearBrand’s Work in Thames Valley appeared first on ClearBrand.