Creating a recognizable brand is not easy. It is an amalgamation of multiple strategies. However, it is important to create consistent brand voice which also includes having a consistent visual content strategy. Images and associated visual design elements often create the cue or the sign that helps the brain associate a particular color code, a particular theme or a particular font with a particular brand.
It may seem trivial but is not. Use of certain visual elements consistently in your posts on Instagram is even more important because Instagram is mainly popular for uploading and sharing photos and other visual content. Your connections with the target audience are often created because of the photo or the graphic content that you share. These design cues speak volumes about the experience or the service you want your product to offer. It creates trust, credibility, coherence and creates the impression that you have a lot of conviction. Not having your visual branding strategy sorted out on Instagram would be suicidal.
Visual branding for Instagram
Visual branding allows you to create a relatable personality for your brand. These design elements along with your copy add up to create a brand that everyone likes. The background color, the filter you choose for your photos, the amount of white space you use in your image copy, the fonts or the amount text you infuse in your Instagram image, the design templates that you use, etc point towards a certain visual direction and also create a strong brand differentiation.
Often your audiences perceive you in a certain way and they even moderate their expectations not just based on their past interactions with you but also based on the visual signals that they get from your photos, images and copy on Instagram.
Visual branding tips for your Instagram content
- Use a consistent filter and style of taking photos: Often perceptions change based on the amount of light you use in your photos, the amount of resolution in your photos or videos, the shutter speed and exposure, the kind of subject that you cover and also the kind of filter that you use. Firstly, the subjects or themes for your posts should, in general, match your products or the overall brand mood that you want to create. It should also be in alignment with your overall branding strategy and reinforce other visual design elements.
- Color: Choosing a consistent color palette is very important for your Instagram images. Many colors become instantly recognizable with your product or brand. Use combinations of those same color compositions to create a unique but consistent image. There should be no doubt in the beholder’s mind that this image reinforces your brand statement.
- Templates: Using a consistent template for your images is necessary. Templates are design patterns that allow you to fit your color, font and other design elements into the space and create a unique image while at the same time keeping consistent with your overall strategy and if you are publishing your posts as a series, none would seem to be odd. A consistent template would require to you to your logo, a date at the same place on the post, same fonts and the text will also be placed at the same position on all the images and there will also be a consistency in the color and white space in your image.
- Lines: Lines are one of the most important visual cues in an image which guides the beholder’s eyes to certain places within the image. It tells his eyes where to start, where to stop and which elements to highlight. They help the designer maintain coherence and order within the image. It is important to have a consistent strategy as you use crooked, curved or straight lines.
- Scale: Scale helps you to decide the size of visual elements in your photo or image on Instagram. You may have sharp focus on some elements vis-à-vis others. It is important to maintain the same scale in most of your pictures because it sends a strong signal to the target’s brain that this image belongs to your brand.
Conclusion
Instagram is a very rewarding and fast growing medium. It can create a strong connection between your brand and your audience. Visual branding plays a very important role on Instagram and hence it is important to have a proper plan. Branding allows you to create a persona for your company and products in the minds of your target audience. It is worth every ounce of your effort since the returns are humongous!