Identity: Who Are You?

Without consistent identity elements in your arsenal, you won't have the foundation for solid brand building. Your brand's "genetic code" is made up of your identity elements.

Before the brand, comes the identity. For those of you who think branding is a superficial exercise unworthy of any capital investment, think again. Your brand is perhaps your most important business asset. And before you can start building your brand equity, you need to develop your identity. So who are you from a brand identity perspective? And what do you want to communicate to your different audiences? These essential questions will help define the elements of your identity, i.e. the sum of the elements that ultimately create your brand.

Here are some additional key questions you should ask yourself. Call it your brand identity checklist: Logotype, wordmark or both to represent your brand? Are semiotic codes embedded in your brand DNA? News Gothic, Trebuchet MS or a long list of others? · Original photography, stock footage or both? But, your identity is still not a brand. Fonts and visual language are key elements of your brand's "look & feel," but they are not your brand. A logo is not your brand.

So what is a brand? What is your definition?