5 questions clients have asked this year
At Soley Creative, we are lucky enough to work with a variety of wonderful businesses across several different specialisms including fashion, lifestyle, hospitality, jewellery, beauty and many more! From working closely with these brands we have noticed a few questions that have been asked on repeat, so we thought we would share some answers in the hope it might answer some of your questions!
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How should I shoot my brand images?
Shooting brand images is a creative and exciting process which should result in being able to share the feel of the brand instantly with your customers, after all they say a picture speaks a thousand words! For this reason, it's important to approach a shoot day strategically to ensure that the images accurately represent your brand and appeal to your target audience, all whilst giving you assets that are usable for the foreseeable future because shoots can be an investment! Here are some tips to consider when shooting your brand images to get you started:
Define your brand's visual identity: Before you start shooting, it's important to define your brand's visual identity, including your brand's colour scheme, typography, and overall aesthetic. This will ensure that your images are consistent with your brand's overall look and feel. It’s helpful to share these with photographers, models, agencies and anyone else helping with the shoot.
Determine your target audience: Knowing your target audience is crucial to ensure that your images resonate with them. Consider their age, gender, interests, and values, and ensure that your images appeal to their preferences. Basically, you should have done your brand strategy before even thinking about a shoot!
Plan your shoot: Plan your shoot in advance, considering factors such as location, lighting, props, poses, outfits and models. Make sure everything is in line with your brand's visual identity and target audience.
Consider your image composition: Pay attention to image composition, such as framing, angles, and focus. Consider using a mix of close-up and wide shots, and experiment with different angles to create interest and visual variety. It is also important to shoot landscape shots to ensure you’re covering assets suitable for for all outcomes such as website banners, print collateral and social ads. Shooting in just portrait could cause cropping problems later down the line.
Pro tip: Shoot a ‘plate’ of the set before putting any props or models into the frame as these can be used for image extension, creating gifs and as a on-theme background.
2. Should I have more than one logo?
In short, the answer is yes! Having a logo suite allows a brand to maintain consistency and professionalism across all of its marketing materials. By having a range of logo variations available, the brand can ensure that the logo always looks its best, no matter where it is being used.
A logo suite is a collection of different versions of a logo, each optimised for use in different applications and formats. It typically includes variations of the logo in different sizes, colours, and orientations, as well as versions for use on different backgrounds and in different media. We like to consider this suite a ‘family’ where they all share the same ‘genetics’ but present themselves in slightly different ways.
For example, a brand might use a simplified, single-colour version of its logo for use on small items like business cards or promotional products, while using a full-colour, more detailed version of the logo for larger items like signage or billboards. Additionally, having different versions of the logo for use on light or dark backgrounds ensures that the logo remains legible and impactful regardless of the background colour. It’s important for maintaining brand consistency and professionalism, and ensuring that the logo looks its best in all applications and formats.
3. How can I use my design retainer best?
A design retainer is an agreement between us and a business that allows for a set amount of design work to be completed over a period of time. The design retainer can be customised to meet the specific needs of your business, and it can cover a wide range of design services, such as email design, social media design, design to support events or PR and lots of ad-hoc tasks like light retouching.
We like to set up a workspace between us and the client that empowers your team and ours to manage any type of project, workflow and track tasks. This helps to keep everything in the same place, to make communication easier.
4. Why do I need branding icons?
Visual identity often include icon design. These are a helpful component of any brand's visual identity as they prompt the viewer’s understanding of service, feature, benefits and values by being easily recognisable symbols or graphics. This helps create a visual connection between your brand and your target audience.
Icons are great to use across various marketing channels, such as social media, email, and website, helping to improve brand awareness, and also allowing you to communicate your brand’s message more efficiently than a lengthy description of explanation. Bespoke icons are designed specifically for you with your brand strategy in mind, making them unique to you and helping to create a visually strong brand.
5. Do I need lots of brand images all the time?
The short answer is surprisingly, no! A well planned shoot (see question 1!) will provide imagery that can be cropped in various ways and reused on repeat. Remember as the brand we see our images everyday and get bored much faster than our customer. Big brands often have two campaign shoots a year and ‘top up’ their image bank with mini shoots, UGC (user generated content or ‘as seen on’) which is an ‘on demand’ approach to content.
While having a variety of brand images can be helpful, it's more important to focus on creating a cohesive visual identity that aligns with your brand's goals and resonates with your target audience. Having consistent branding throughout your marketing will help to create loyal customers, who love the brand for the brand.
We really hope those few q&a’s were helpful and maybe answered a few of your own questions, however if you have something else on your mind, please don’t hesitate in getting in touch! We’d love to hear from you and grab a virtual coffee ☕️
