Close your eyes, and think about the “golden arches” – what company comes to mind? If you are like most people, you probably thought of fast-food giant McDonald’s. This time, imagine a massive red bullseye and a spotted dog. Target, a popular retail store, should ring a bell for a lot of people – and there’s a reason why that is the case.
McDonald’s and Target have spent an enormous amount of time, effort, and money over the years to train your mind to immediately associate their iconic logos with their brand, all the while making it more likely you would visit their stores and make a purchase. It’s a simple, yet brilliant approach that isn’t easily replicated. Great branding is critically important to any business, especially to those making a name for themselves in the digital world in 2022.
Ideally, social channels will have matching avatars, banners, and other graphics – with the same color, design, etc. Deviations from the theme make it tougher for customers to remember your brand. Consider a simplistic, two-to-three toned color scheme aesthetic that is straight-forward and cements the image in their head quickly. It’s also important to show some brand personality in the artwork for your business if you can, although specifics vary based on the type of business and industry, and “personality” is a rather subjective term. A suggestion may be to create a logo that in some way tells the story, or is an iconic symbol, of your company. In McDonald’s case, the golden arches are symbolic of the first-ever store opened in 1952. For Target, the bullseye logo goes hand in hand with the company’s name and also implies that going to Target for your shopping needs is like “hitting a bullseye.”
With great branding, results should follow suit. Over time, customers who interact with your social channels will find a sense of familiarity and comfort in seeing your brand’s posts on a consistent basis – and hopefully, they’ll become a part of your active community. It’s a relationship that should be nurtured, built upon, and developed, because you never know when exactly these efforts might pay off and convert into a purchase or specific favorable action in the future. Social media platforms are ingrained with various algorithms that differ from platform to platform, but the biggest aspect of each of these AI-controlled algorithms is consistency. Keeping a regular schedule for posts and capitalizing on current trends and content aimed at user engagement is likely the single-most deciding factor the algorithms consider when looking to push your content along to as many people as possible.
While it may seem simple, the kind of branding a company employs on its social channels is of vital importance and could be the difference in a customer giving the brand a chance or not. Just like anything else in life, it’s important to study the history of how things have been done in the past and how modern marketing techniques can assist in continuing or kick-starting the social media success of a particular company. From mottos, to graphics, to overall branding, all aspects should live in harmony – like a well-oiled machine.
