How to master the Blockchain Branding game
Blockchain companies are no strangers to branding strategies. As in other industries, we see major players strive with well-set brand guidelines and visuals, as other companies just fail to conquer their space. Blockchain is in the spotlight right now, and with many competitors fighting for a place, you need to stand out.
That’s why, to master the branding game, all your branding assets have to give off the right impressions. Your brand visuals need to convey your values, mission, vision, and unique qualities. Within the Blockchain industry, it is important to also:
- educate your audience
- make your brand approachable
- build trust
The core of web3 is built on security and privacy, so trust should be an easy trait to portray. However, many companies mistakenly assume considerable experience on the part of users. When people don’t know what a company does, they tend to find them shady. That is why it is so important to present the information about your services and products in a way that would make it easy for the larger audience to understand them.
Design can help you achieve that goal by delivering consistency and guiding the users to a better understanding of what you do, and why you do it. Remember that almost everyone is “new” to Blockchain, so you can be the one guiding them through the process – and everyone is going to remember you for that!
What’s your story?
Why does your brand exist? That’s the first answer you’ll have to provide to any new client.
To understand and convey the story of a brand, some concepts need to be clear:
- Purpose
- Mission, Vision, and Values
- Unique Selling Proposition
Purpose is the brand’s reason for being. It is related to the impact the brand wants to generate in the world and the causes it defends. It is aspirational and inspiring. From that main purpose, derives the mission, vision, and values of a business, which will directly impact on the brand’s visual identity and the content that will be produced, among several other aspects that go way beyond branding.
A company that has an innovative profile will certainly not include “traditional” among its values. The team in charge of building the visual identity of this brand needs to be aware of these values, otherwise, the design will convey a message totally different from what the brand represents.
Along with those, will emerge the Unique Selling Proposition, which is the concise definition of what makes your company unique to your target audience. In other words, what does your business offer to the consumer that cannot be found anywhere else? To answer this question, start with a competitive analysis of the market.
The USP represents the motivation so that, among so many options in a segment, the customer chooses your business instead of your competitors. With a solid USP it becomes easier to determine what your company specializes in, in which aspect it excels, and thus how reliable it is.
Just being a Web3 brand is not enough, you need to show how you differentiate from your competitors. There are many ways to tell your brand story – make sure you are doing it the right way.
Logo
The Blockchain industry relies heavily on its logos, as they are often the first visual contact a stakeholder will have with the brand. Logos are key in the development of any brand. They can convey intrinsic meanings while appealing to semiotic symbols that are rooted deep inside the human mind.
Every day we are approached by a plethora of logos in all the spaces around us, and we can only assimilate and retain information from a few of them. This process must happen in an emotional and subliminal way, making its perception easier. It’s like looking at someone or something for the first time and falling in love. But how do you do that?
A good logo design needs to fit within the cultural aspects of the audience and the brand itself. That is why any branding process framework will always start with research.
After we understand better the “why’s” behind the purpose of the brand, it’s easier to clarify the messages we want to convey and to create a logo that has true meaning and power.
Visual System
Having a brand with a true personality and purpose creates identification with individuals, their stories, and their causes. A strong personality for a brand can only be achieved through visual identity consistency. The most memorable brands develop a complete visual system that permeates the entire brand, across all media.
Sometimes, you can tell a whole story just by glancing at a company’s Twitter account. Can you imagine? A good visual system gives you the opportunity to communicate what you stand for very quickly. Visual identity leads to the recognition and value of a brand: the greater the presence of the elements in someone’s life, the greater the feeling of closeness and even necessity in relation to the products or services offered.
Within the web3 landscape, establishing visual consistency is even more essential, since it is a new concept and people are still learning. Having a logical and dependable user experience allows the users to feel at ease and gives them the perception of trustworthiness. Strong visuals also help to clarify concepts. Using shapes, images, and icons that create associations with familiar elements helps users retain information.
Tone of Voice
The tone of voice of a brand refers to the manner in which the brand talks and communicates with the public. It involves the terms, slang, slogan, and other traits used to express a company’s positioning and values. Terms like DeFi, DAOs, dApps, and much more, are part of the Blockchain tone of voice.
If a company uses a different way of speaking in a certain media, something sounds wrong and people notice it. That kind of communication noise makes it more difficult to generate a connection with the audience. The same tone must be present in all channels and media where the brand is present.
The tone of voice gives personality to the brand and makes it more human and real in people’s perception. Similar to your visual style, your tone should develop from your brand’s purpose and values – its core. Does your story convey emotion? Is it more human or more pragmatic? Those kinds of questions will guide you in finding the right tone of voice that fits your brand persona.
Building the future, one brand at a time
A strong and significant brand is not built overnight. Branding requires patience and consistency to communicate your message to the public in every interaction.
Remember that it is the set of experiences with the brand, over time, that consolidates the brand’s image. Therefore, you should start thinking about branding and your overall marketing strategy from the very first steps to build a strong future for your company and reap the results right from the start.
Is your branding game on point, so you can be one of the leaders of the web3 revolution? Also, don’t forget to check these marketing tools we created specifically for web3 brands.
