Visual identity

Q: What is the difference between visual identity and graphic charter?

The visual identity is more the concept: the set of visual elements that define your brand. The graphic charter, on the other hand, is the document that formalises it all with its usage rules: colour codes, typography, logo usage, examples of correct and incorrect applications. The graphic charter is the documentation of the visual identity, not the identity itself.

Q: How do you build a visual identity?

You start from your brand: positioning, values, targets, tone… These elements are translated visually through several creative directions (moodboards), which are then submitted for validation. The chosen direction is then developed into a consistent visual system (logo, palette, typography, icons…).

Q: Can a visual identity be applied to a digital product without adaptation?

That will rarely be possible without adjustments. A visual identity designed for print will not transpose directly to digital. The colours alone will need to be changed and checked between RGB and CMYK. Digital also demands more attention in terms of contrast and accessibility, and there are many rules to follow. Your typefaces will also need to be available for the web, and your logo may need to be adapted so it can work at small sizes. Moving from a print identity to a digital product often requires adaptation work.

Q: How do you maintain the consistency of a visual identity over time?

By taking care to properly document your graphic charter's rules and how it evolves, and by making sure that all your teams and all your providers do have the up-to-date version.

Design deliverable

Setting your product apart with a memorable identity

The visual identity lays down the visual cues that let consumers recognise and follow a brand. The aim is to build an identity that follows the category's visual conventions and reflects the values the brand carries.

The visual identity is a core part of a visual style guide. It lets you stand out from the competition and be recognised by your audience at first glance. To guarantee that recognition, it's crucial to strictly frame how it's used, to avoid materials going completely off-brand and the brand becoming hard to identify. It's therefore essential to detail its construction rules and to illustrate how it adapts across every communication channel: desktop, mobile, email signature, PowerPoint template, and also in print (business cards, posters, roll-up banners, etc.).

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What is a visual identity for?

Embodying your image and values
Conveying a message
Reflecting your field of work
Being recognisable and identifiable quickly
Catching attention

Why build a visual identity?

Building your brand image
Setting yourself apart from your competitors
Bringing all your internal and external documents in line with your guide
Keeping the visuals coherent

Exploring logo directions

This phase has several sub-steps to run properly. First, you'll bring the project team and your clients together to agree on the creative brief: what's expected? What brand values should it carry? What message should the logo convey? After that, you'll explore the sector and the existing competitors to produce a benchmark and a moodboard. The moodboard becomes your inspiration baseline for moving on to sketches and then logo design in the software of your choice. The benchmark and sketch steps shouldn't be treated lightly. The more thorough your research, the broader your inspiration base. That will keep you from getting stuck during design.

Iterating with the project team

Presenting your different directions is the most important step of your sprint. To avoid biasing your client's choice, make sure you present each option in the same order and with the same layout for the various versions: logo composition, its grid, black-and-white version, the chosen colours, and then the logo variations within its colour palette. Remember to clearly explain your choices and ideas, backed up by the moodboard and benchmark.

Adjusting the chosen direction

Once a direction is approved, all that's left is to firm it up with the final elements raised during the iteration. Make sure to deliver the logos in black and white as well as in the various colour variations. Also remember to export the assets in .png and .svg, so that your client can use them across all kinds of formats (digital and print). You can round out your identity with a style guide, the reference document for your visual identity: how to use the logo, what to avoid, how and where to place it depending on the format, and so on. This document lets all future contributors know the usage rules for the identity you've built and avoids unpleasant surprises.

To take you further into the key steps of creating a logo, we’ve written a blog article you can find right here. It goes into each of the steps mentioned above in more detail.

What is the difference between visual identity and graphic charter?

How do you build a visual identity?

Can a visual identity be applied to a digital product without adaptation?

How do you maintain the consistency of a visual identity over time?

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Related methods

Moodboard

A moodboard is a kind of overview of inspiration material, meant to support the artistic choices for the next stages of your project.

Visual style guide

The visual style guide brings together a brand's visual rules: colours, typefaces and logo, along with the permitted or prohibited uses for each.

Colour palette

Brand palette or interface palette, the two are not to be confused. How to build a coherent, legible and accessible colour system.

Typography

Typography defines the fonts, the size scale, the weights and the spacing of an interface. How to choose it and guarantee its readability.

Service design

Service design shapes the whole experience of a service, online and at the counter, beyond its screens. Definition, public sector and examples.

Experience design

Experience design (UX design) shapes what the user encounters beyond the interface: journeys, emotions, contexts.

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