Maintaining a Strong Visual Brand on Social Media

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Here’s a question you may not ask yourself every day…

Do you have a strong visual brand on social media?

If not, you’re wasting a perfect opportunity to inspire and engage your audience. Plus, you’re missing out on the chance to solidify your position as a business your customers can easily identify and trust.

Some business owners still think that just being on social media is enough. But any marketer worth his or her salt will tell you that’s totally false.

The fact is that if you don’t create a strong visual brand, you’re not doing everything you can to extend your reach on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or whatever platform your target audience is using…

By now you may be thinking, “I’m not a creative person whatsoever. Building a visual brand on social media definitely sounds like something outside my wheelhouse!”

Don’t worry. When it comes to creating graphics and logos, that’s what in-house and outsourced graphic designers are for. What you should be focusing on is being consistent, unique, and active in your social media approach.

If this still sounds like an intimidating task, have no fear. We’ve compiled a short list of ways to develop and solidify your visual brand.

How to Create and Maintain an A+ Visual Brand on Social Media

1)      Be Consistent

You know how you can quickly spot content from major companies such as Starbucks and Nike? That’s because these industry powerhouses have put a lot of time and effort into building consistent, eye-catching, and easily recognizable brand images.

Source

Source

Additionally, you’ll notice their visual branding is the same across all channels, not just social. Just take a gander at their print ads, websites, newsletters, and more.

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Source

See a pattern?

They’re all nearly identical in terms of font, color scheme, and imagery.

Now, that’s not to say you have to post the exact same thing everywhere (that can actually get quite boring for people who follow you on multiple platforms). However, the visual elements you (or your graphic design team) choose should be similar enough that your audience could determine where a post originally came from before even glancing at the company name.

TIP: Want to make it even easier to ensure consistency in what you post? Consider utilizing templates for your social media content. Knowing what a post should look like with regard to color, logo placement, font, and overall layout can speed up the design process and optimize your visual branding efforts. Just enlist your team’s help to create a template for each platform you use, as factors such as image dimensions vary from one platform to the next.

2)      Be Unique

Think about just how many businesses are on social media at this point in time.

A lot, right?

With so much content to wade through, users give very little time to each post they see. In fact, the average human attention span is a mere 8 seconds.

You read that right—8 seconds.

That’s why it’s so crucial to stop them in their tracks and encourage them to pay closer attention to who you are and what you have to offer.

And how do you accomplish such a feat? By being unique and setting yourself apart from the crowd.

Easier said than done—sure. But given that humans are such visual creatures, a great way to increase your chances of attracting attention from your target audience is by incorporating colorful, relevant, and one-of-a-kind images into your visual brand.

Remember… Graphics can make or break a post. Choose a boring or completely unrelated stock image and your audience will blow by it faster than you can say “lost revenue.”

However, by taking the time to build up your visual brand on social media, selecting graphics that hit home in regard to a problem or desire, you can position your business as one that really gets it.

Have your team personalize the visual elements you share on social media. And don’t forget to distance yourself from competitors by developing a unique color scheme, logo, and font choice.

3)      Be Active

What’s the quickest and most effective way to ensure your brand is solidified in your audience’s mind?

Making sure they see it over and over and over again.

Posting on a regular basis is key to your social media marketing efforts, and it can help in making your visual brand really stick.

Of course, you want to avoid posting just for posting’s sake. Otherwise, you run the risk of people unfollowing you and viewing you as a spammer.

Here are some ideas you should be rotating in your posting schedule:

Such posts will demonstrate value to your audience and show that you’re an active participant in social media.

Plus, by consistently posting about things that are actually of interest to your audience, you can increase the likelihood of them stopping every time they see a new post from your business.

Takeaway

Creating and maintaining a strong visual brand on social media takes work. You’ll likely need to enlist the services of some talented graphic designers and social media experts.

And there’s always a chance that you won’t hit it out of the park on your first try. (Just look at how many major companies have changed their look and approach over the years.)

But by putting in the time and effort, you can better connect, engage, and resonate with members of your target audience whom you hope to eventually turn into customers.

So if you look at your social media presence and find that it could use some improvement, consider implementing new ways to optimize your visual brand. If you’re not getting a lot of likes, follows, shares, etc., one possible explanation may be that you haven’t made a big enough impression yet, which can be solved by presenting your business in a positive and memorable way.

And if you need help along the way, don’t be afraid to reach out!

 


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Filed Under: Social Media

About Jon Maday

Jon recently graduated from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh with a degree in marketing and economics. He grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and loves his Chicago sports teams. Jon found his passion for marketing while in college and decided to pursue a career in the digital side of marketing. He is an eager learner and started with Viral Solutions as an intern before accepting a position upon graduation. Outside of work, Jon enjoys hanging out with friends and watching sporting events.