How to Create More Eye-Catching Brand Imagery

Visual content holds a lot of power in making your brand memorable. A study has shown that people remember 65% of a piece of content with pictures, in contrast to only 10% if it only contains plain text.

This is likely because pictures are processed by our brains in a different way than words. When we see images, the information goes straight to our visual cortex, bypassing the language-processing areas.

Because of this, pictures and imagery are a great way to connect with your audience and make a lasting impression.

What Is Brand Imagery?

Brand imagery is the collection of images that are associated with your brand. This can include product photos, logos, illustrations, and even people.

Brand imagery is an essential part of your marketing strategy because it helps your audience connect with your brand on a more emotional level. Creating strong brand imagery can be the difference between a customer forgetting your brand exists or becoming a lifelong advocate.

Brand Imagery vs. Brand Image vs. Brand Identity

Before we delve into our tips about brand imagery, it’s important to delineate between “brand imagery,” “brand image,” and “brand identity.”

Brand image is how your audience perceives your brand. It’s the sum of all the interactions they’ve had with your brand, including (but not limited to) advertising, customer service, and product quality.

Brand identity, on the other hand, is the intentional creation of a brand image. It’s what you as the business owner want your audience to think of when they see your brand. Brand identity consists of elements like your brand name, logo, tagline, and color scheme.

Brand identity and brand image are different from brand imagery because brand imagery is only one part of your brand identity. As we mentioned, brand imagery is the collection of pictures that you use to represent your brand.

What Are the Different Types of Brand Imagery?

The beauty of brand imagery is that you have many different options to choose from. Some of these include:

• Photographs: Photographs are the most common type of brand imagery. They can be used to show off your products, as well as your company culture. Some examples include product photos, headshots, lifestyle shots, etc.
• People: On a related note, showing people in your brand imagery is a great way to connect with your audience on a more personal level. This can include shots of your team, customers, or even just people in general.
• Graphics: Graphics refer to any visuals that are not photographed. This can include illustrations, icons, and logos.
• Videos: Videos are a great way to show off your products and company culture in an engaging way. They can also be used for advertising and promotion.

When deciding what type of imagery to use, consider what message you want to communicate and what will resonate best with your audience.

7 Tips for Creating Effective Brand Imagery

Creating eye-catching brand imagery is key to making your brand memorable. Here are a few tips to get you started:

1. Keep It Consistent

When it comes to brand imagery, consistency is key. Your visuals should be in line with your brand identity so that your audience can easily recognize and remember your brand.

It helps to have a brand style guide that outlines the do’s and don’ts of your brand imagery. This will ensure that everyone on your team is on the same page and using visuals that are in line with your brand identity.

2. Use High-Quality Images

The quality of your images is just as important as their consistency. Low-quality images can make your brand look unprofessional and could turn customers away.

When selecting images, be sure to choose those that are high resolution and have a clean, polished look. If you’re not a professional photographer, it pays to invest in professional brand photography with an agency like Ilfusion. With a professional photographer, you get access to high-quality equipment and editing software that results in beautiful, high-resolution images.

Bonus tip: Try not to use stock photography as much as possible. While this can help you save money, it can also make your brand look generic and unoriginal.

3. Tell a Story

A great way to make your brand imagery more eye-catching and effective is to tell a story with your visuals. This can be done by creating a series of images that not only shows off your products but also tells a narrative.

Your story doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be as simple as showing how your product is made or highlighting the people behind your brand. Whatever story you choose to tell, make sure it’s in line with your brand identity and resonates with your audience.

4. Be Bold and Creative

When it comes to brand imagery, there are no rules. So don’t be afraid to experiment with your brand imagery and try something new. With so many different types of visuals to choose from, the sky’s the limit when it comes to creativity.

If you’re not sure where to start, try looking at other brands for inspiration. See what they’re doing that’s working and find opportunities to put your own spin on things.

5. Use Negative Space

Negative space is the area around your subject matter. And while it might seem counterintuitive, incorporating negative space into your brand imagery can actually make your visuals more effective.

Negative space can help to focus the viewer’s attention on your subject matter and make your visuals more impactful. So don’t be afraid to experiment with negative space in your brand imagery and see how it can help your visuals to pop.

6. Test Your Brand Imagery

As with anything in marketing, it’s important to test your brand imagery to see what works best. This can be done by A/B testing different visuals or using heat mapping tools to see how viewers interact with your imagery.

By testing your brand imagery, you can get valuable insights into what works and what doesn’t. This information can then be used to fine-tune your approach and create even more effective brand imagery.

7. Keep It Fresh

Finally, it’s important to keep your brand imagery fresh. This doesn’t mean you need to overhaul your visuals every month. But it does mean that you should regularly update your imagery to keep things looking current.

One way to do this is to create a library of visuals that you can use on an as-needed basis. This way, you always have fresh, high-quality images to work with and your brand imagery never gets stale.

Make Your Brand Stand Out with Effective Brand Imagery

Creating effective brand imagery is vital to the success of any business. While there are no hard-and-fast rules on imagery and art, the tips above can help you create visuals that are eye-catching, impactful, and in line with your brand identity.

For more branding, design, and digital marketing tips, visit our blog at https://www.ilfusion.com/blog.