As a freelancer you may find yourself stuck between growing your clients database and developing a side hustle and becoming a solopreneur. This side of your career story involves knowledge in so many marketing areas that altogether they become difficult to handle. However, the first steps of developing a brand – even if it’s personal – involve written and visual marketing.
Video content is now on the rise. Those videos that become viral usually arise emotions in just a few minutes. However, visual marketing doesn’t stop there. Images can evoke emotions through every detail. As a solopreneur brand manager, you will first and foremost need to choose a name and a logo for your project.
Why logo design matters
There’s a tight connection between emotions and visual branding. Look at the most recognizable brands in the world. The public acknowledges them by their names and logos. Most of these logos are simple and use a few intense colors. You can learn from the Marvel logo history that you don’t need complex drawings or a ton of symbols as they only harden the path to awareness and recognition.
You will then face a new choice:
- Make your logo based on a stylized font which only spells your brand name. Like Marvel, Google or Facebook.
- Choose a strong symbol which accompanies the brand’s name and use it with abundance. Like Apple, Nike or Yahoo!
- Find something that is common in the brand’s niche and exploit it or design the opposite. Like Coco Chanel, Louis Vuitton or KFC.
Why emotions matter
According to a study, advertisements trigger positive emotions which appeal differently to separate age groups and influence them. There are two types of emotion categories – you should focus on the first one.
- Positive: Humor, warmth, sex, passion, nostalgia and indulgence.
- Negative: Fear, shock.
If any kind of video content (ad or image) triggers a negative emotion, the visual might become less likeable than desired.
How to use marketing to trigger positive emotions
You will find psychology in many of the elements of visual marketing. Use them to the fullest!
- Find a color palette. There are connections between emotions and colors. Many customers associate yellow with joy and optimism. Green arises calm and health. Consider a palette which makes customers feel familiar with your logo.
- Send a message through your font. Your font reflects the personality of your brand. Choose a main font and a secondary one – if desired. Reflect on what you want to express and complete your message with the font. Serif means authority, while sans-serif shows modern stability. Script is friendly and elegant, while modern is fashionable and intelligent.
- Draw the best shape. Our brain perceives shapes and the message they send. Use them in your favor for best results. Circles are friendly and show unity, while triangles express stability and strength. Horizontal lines are relaxing, while vertical ones are energizing and sometimes they become negative.
- Size matters in marketing. Font size and logo size need to be appropriate so that they can look appealing together and separate. They need to be fit for large outdoor panels, small fliers and social media pictures. If your logo on a picture shows harmony, then you’re on the right path.
- Consider layout. Your logo needs to be applied to your website, social media pages and even email signature. Find the best place for the logo so that it can complete the page instead of making it look full. Create a call to action to tie everything together.
How your visuals should be
- Find elements that people relate to, see in their everyday life, or find occasionally and recognize them.
- Make sure all your visual messages have relevant meaning which people observe immediately.
- Pay attention to details and especially to lights, as they can change and entire picture. Warm and neutral lights influence both indoor and outdoor photos.
- Send authentic visual messages, so that people can define you by them correctly.
- Test your logo and pictures to see if they change on each channel. Social media may resize your photo differently and it might not look appealing right next to the message or quote you want to post.
Wrap Up Words
Your side hustle can become an attractive business with some time and work. You can grow your business with minimal expenses. Beyond budget there is branding, copywriting and design work that you should handle to have a coherent and persuasive brand.
Consider visuals as key elements of your business and you will then find it easy to work with them. Your logo should be there for decades, so only stop your work when it is completed. Feel free to test your visuals and show them to a few friends or collaborators for some honest and raw opinions.