We’ve talked about a lot of PR tips here on Three Girls Media. While most of today’s PR work is done online – through social media and digital news outlets – there are still things you have to do offline. Connecting with print publications, distributing information about your products or new press releases and various other offline tasks must be done with the same level of care as your online PR activities.
This is where consistent branding comes in handy. By presenting a consistent brand, you will have a much easier time working with other parties in generating a positive brand image. Here are some of the tips you can use to create consistent branding, both online and offline.
A Design Language for All Media
One of the first things you need to do when trying to create consistent branding is to formulate a detailed design language for all media. This means detailing how your logo should appear against different backgrounds, which colors to use and how the brand should be presented.
A detailed design language will help you with a lot of the PR work. When you need to work with companies in creating a set of document folders, letterheads and other items for an event, you don’t have to explain everything from scratch. You can simply send details about the brand’s design language and you’ll get consistent results every time.
A visual style guide is also a handy tool for online publications. The idea here is to avoid having to explain the details about your brand and how it should be presented for a more consistent appearance and branding on different media.
Thorough Brand Integration
Your brand should appear as more than just a logo and tagline. It needs to be integrated with other parts of your PR and marketing efforts. The way press conferences are held, how you present yourself to news outlets, vendors and clients, and of course the way you connect with stakeholders should also represent your brand in a positive way.
Take the voice of your business as an example. Do you want your brand to be friendly? Are you trying to present your company as a formal and professional one? Depending on which goal you’re trying to achieve, you can develop a voice – a way of communicating – for your brand.
Articles for a friendly brand can be written from a very personal perspective. Instead of presenting the brand first, these articles can take the point of view of those behind the brand. The way you answer phone calls or the signature at the end of your emails should represent the same voice. The same goes for the tweets you send or Facebook posts you publish.
An Integrated Effort
Maintaining a consistent brand image online and offline is all about consistency and integrated effort. With a strong brand guideline, a design language to follow and a voice to help direct communications with other parties, maintaining a strong and positive brand image should not be a problem.
Read more: How An Offline Business Gets Online Sales