“Do what makes you happy” is the best advice I’ve been given for finding myself as an artist. As complex beings, I believe that finding oneself as an artist is one of the most challenging things, since we are constantly looking around, feeling inspired by different artists and discovering who we really are and what we want to do. It took me a few years to finally find myself, my purpose and my voice as an artist. So, for anyone struggling to find themselves, you are not alone, do what resonates and feels right to you. Discover who you are, and the right customers will find you! (with the right branding, of course)
Moreover, brand strategy is the blueprint of what your art is all about; it’s how you want the world to perceive you as. It’s like building your new home; mapping comes first. Same thing goes for branding! Thus, to build an efficient and articulate brand strategy, below are the components to include in your process:
- Brand Purpose
Have you ever had days where you felt too uninspired, to an extent that you feel inspired to do something greater in life? To pave a way in creating something meaningful, something valuable to many people? Well, most of us come to a place in our lives, where we feel the need to find our purpose, to do something that brings light to our darkness, inspiration to the uninspired, solutions to problems. Whatever it is, it’s your calling to do something greater and to fulfill your purpose. Discover what it is that you want to do and why do you want to do it!
This is the first and foremost step in creating a strong brand strategy; it’s defining your purpose. Ask yourself, why do you do what you do? Do you want to inspire? Do you want to leave an impact? Do you want to raise awareness on a certain issue? Do you want to solve a problem? Do you want people to resonate, or do you want them to feel understood and relatable?
Many entrepreneurs tend to prioritize the financial aspect of their business, more than focusing on the value of their products and services. For this reason, many businesses’ and many artists’ success is limited, since they do not have a strong purpose, which they would need to distinguish themselves from their competitors. Moreover, customers are strongly connected to a brand that has a purpose greater than just making a profit.
- Target Audience
Secondly, know who your ideal customers are; who would be interested in buying your art? Why would they choose to purchase your art? What does it mean to them? It is important to break down some more details about your target audience, such as, their demographics, age, occupation, geographic location, etc. Knowing who your clients are, what habits they have, allows you to know how to reach them, how to communicate with them, through which channels, media and social media platforms.
- Consistency
Once you’ve defined your brand purpose and target audience, it’s important to stay consistent with the image of your brand throughout all business activities, ad campaigns, messaging, etc. Your customers should stay in familiarity with your brand. For example, all the content on your social media pages, website, ad campaigns, etc. should carry a cohesive message.
Moreover, it’s not just about your logo branded on everything, but about your whole visual identity and style of language being consistent. This way your customers will always be able to recognize your brand among all others.
A piece of advice I would give as a graphic designer, is to create a small brand guideline book, to always remember and ensure that your guideline is being implemented always. This brand guideline conveys every aspect of your brand identity, such as, your logo, color palette, editorial voice (the voice you use in written content, invitations, etc.).
- Emotion
As human beings, we crave to build relationships, especially with people who resemble us in their values. People value things that they relate to and resonate with; thus, your customers need to feel a connection with what you do, your brand and your work. Once they do, they’ll be willing to keep on purchasing from you. Foster this beautiful community that you’ve created, no matter how big or small; it will grow.
What I also do after every purchase, is I send my customers a pleasant little letter along with the painting(s), to congratulate them on their new painting addition and to thank them for their support. This small gesture really goes a long way!
So, to conclude, finding your purpose is the main force behind everything that comes next.