Branding certainly not a light topic – whole publications & hundreds of books have been written on the topic, however to put it in a nutshell you could describe a ‘brand’ as an organisation, service or product with a ‘personality’ that is shaped by the perceptions of the audience. On that note, it should also be stated that a designer cannot “make” a brand – only the audience can do this. A designer forms the foundation of the brand.

Many people believe a brand only consists of a few elements – some colours, some fonts, a logo, a slogan and maybe  some music added in too. In reality, it is much more complicated than that. You might say that a brand is a ‘corporate image’.

The fundamental idea and core concept behind having a ‘corporate image’ is that everything a company does, everything it owns and everything it produces should reflect the values and aims of the business as a whole.

It is the consistency of this core idea that makes up the company, driving it, showing what it stands for, what it believes in and why they exist. It is not purely some colours, some typefaces, a logo and a slogan.

Source: http://justcreativedesign.com/2010/04/06/branding-identity-logo-design-explained/

Customers will develop an opinion of your brand within the first few seconds of viewing it. Make it the right impression. Gimmie Graphics can help you find the precise message to clearly speak to who you are as a company. It’s the most important three seconds of your business life.

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” —Leonardo Da Vinci

Simplicity, by definition, is freedom from complexity; the absence of luxury or pretentiousness. Sophistication, on the other hand, often implies a sense of style, cultivated beauty and refinement. So is Da Vinci contradicting himself here?

On the contrary, I believe the ultimate level of sophistication happens when the refining process is so complete that there is truly nothing else to add and nothing else to take away; when the nature of a thing is perfectly represented and understood by its state and appearance. To behold it is to know and understand it.

John Maeda’s First Law of Simplicity states: The simplest way to achieve simplicity is through thoughtful reduction. Refinement that is thoughtful, calculated, and whenever possible and appropriate, based on data is one of the fundamental tools of any designer.

Anyone who occupies themselves with the task of creating truly usable products becomes instantly aware that achieving simplicity is not that simple. For any single feature in a product we must take into account the way it looks, the way it functions, its place in the overall system, affordances to help convey context of how and why it is to be used, as well as taking into account the motivation of the user.

Designers are in a constant process of weighing each decision against previous ones, against common conventions and against the user’s goals in order to create an interface, a product or a service that is clear in all its meaning and function. There is no denying the difficulty in this process. There is a delicate balance between the simplicity of use and the complexity of usefulness. But it is true the product that is clear in its purpose, elegant in its execution and simple in its use will set itself apart from the competition and endear itself to the user.

Designing for simplicity is a process of calculated refinement. 

Gimmie Graphics helps people to tell their brand stories every day. Designers give people a visual language with which to communicate to their audience.

 When a client comes to us for the design, they have, for the most part, already done the groundwork. They know who they are and who their target audience is. Our job is to pull the whole thing together with compelling visuals.


How often do you stop to think about how you are communicating to your audience? Sometimes even the most amazing designers get stuck at communicating their own message. And for good reason, there’s a lot to address.

Where do you start? What’s the story you want your own brand to communicate? Who is your audience? Are they ethical, green, large corporations, government organizations, global brands or tiny bakeries? How will you stand out? Is it better to fit in?



How do you begin framing your own brand story?

I think it’s possible to start by breaking it down into ten steps to consider.



• Mission  

What are you doing right now, today? What happens because you exist?
• Vision  

What are or will be the results and effects of what you do in the future?
• Core Values

  What are the attitudes and beliefs that shape your business culture?
• Unique Selling Point

  What’s your edge, the thing that makes you stand out?
• Emotional selling point  

What’s the intangible or aspiration that you sell? Think feelings not facts. Connection, freedom, ego, belonging.…
• Brand Essence 

The core of what you do, the image it portrays and the signals it sends.
• Tagline  

One line that communicates everything.
• Identity  

How the consumer perceives your brand.
• Name

  The verbal hook on which all of the above hangs and is communicated, the icing on your cake. Comes in all the way down here at number nine.
• Logo

  Last but not least the visual hook that represents your brand, the cherry on the top.




Everyone nods their head when asked how important a user is. “Of course they are,” says the client. “It’s all about the user,” says the agency. Then, they both go into their corners and work. This continues to happen every day in design.

We shouldn’t just design for people, we need to be designing *with* people. Peter Merholz from Adaptive Path talks about his frustration with advertising and marketing agencies that have taken on UX roles on projects. He concludes that the foundation that these agencies are built on and the core of their work is not user-focused.

The initial approach known as “the pitch” is heavily invested in with time and money to win the client through demonstrating that the agency knows the best solution. This process only reinforces the fact that design is seen as a sales tool to sell “the sizzle” and continues to impress the client along the way. A complex problem cannot be solved through such a process, even if they claim something different.

Infographics at Present

Infographics have been utilized for hundreds of years for various purposes, but have taken on a new face in the last few years, with a bit of help from the Internet. Static graphics are by far the most common medium, likely due to the fact that they are the easiest to create and host. This also affects the success of graphic distribution, as an image file that is simple to download, upload, and re-post is more appealing to media outlets and blogs looking for fresh and interesting content to share on the web.

Read More: http://www.fastcodesign.com/1665029/3-trends-that-will-define-the-future-of-infographics

1) Your packaging sells your product—it is the outward appearance of your brand. It is usually the first impression you give off to consumers.

2) Your packaging design is a major point of communication to your customers and—with the limited advertising budgets of most small brands—often the only point of communication.

3) Package design is how consumers identify you. It needs to stand out and be uniquely yours

4) Your packaging should not only appeal to retail customers, but also bring out the "wow" factor to make your brand stand out among the rest.

5) Retail buyers or distribution channels may have specific design, display and production requirements—do you know if your current packaging meets them?

Gimmie Graphics experts will help you navigate through the many critical decisions you face as you launch and grow your brand. Our experience as business owners and brand managers will likely save you thousands of dollars and help you avoid the costly and time consuming pitfalls that await every entrepreneur. Before you hire some local designer to create your package, you owe it to your business, and your brand, to talk with one of our experts.

There you have it...our 20-second elevator speech in just two words. Sure, we could go on about our expertise and our experience. But what you really want to know is how we can help you solve your branding challenge.

So here's what we do. We listen. We ask a lot of questions. We share ideas. And then we create full branding solutions that deliver results.

Here’s some great advice from Howdesign.com: when you feel you don’t have time to sit and think, try using dead time to generate ideas and insights.

• Checkout Lines. Look at people and what’s in their carts. Notice impulse items. Try to understand buying habits.
• Restaurants. Scrutinize menus and displays. Decide how color, lighting and music affect the business.
• Cars. Capture ideas while stuck in traffic with apps like Voice Memos.
• Airports and Parks. Notice how people dress, eat and drink...what they read. Watch how they connect with others.
• Trains and Planes. Use flight time to brainstorm; generate random lists or ideas for projects.