PHOTOGRAPHER
/fəˈtɒɡrəf/ er.
Noun: A person who takes photographs, especially one who practices photography professionally, producing images that paint a picture, tell a story, or record an event.
Tip for brands:
Photography highlights a brand in all of its hues and colors. Visual communication supports the vision of a brand and helps tell its story, sometimes without saying a word (no copywriter needed)! It can showcase its identity cohesively on social media, strongly correlating to its website and other channels where the brand is most visible.
Great photography – and a great photographer, of course – help elevate your online presence to stand out among the competition and pass with flying colors – the equation is that simple.
After all, if it wasn’t documented, posted or shared, did it really happen?
CREATIVE CONSULTANT
/kriːˈeɪtɪv/ kənˈsʌlt(ə)nt.
Noun: A person who offers advice and expertise to a brand to help them improve their creative performance in terms of visuals, content and digital media, innovative creative ideas and strategy, and other types of art. A Creative Consultant provides the artistic and creative left brain to a brand.
Tip for brands:
What in the world is a creative consultant and why does it sound so serious? Because just like a business consultant, a creative one plays a key role in crafting a tailor-made creative strategy and finding ways to further enhance a brand – whether it’s a person or product. That includes creative marketing plans through analysis of current visual data, communication and trends.
A brand is what its customers believe it to be, which is why it’s crucial to remain consistent and authentic.
Bring in the Creative Consultant now.
WEB DESIGNER
/ˈwɛb – sʌɪt/ /dɪˈzʌɪn/er.
Noun: A person responsible for interrupting the user journey visually on a website/webpage by creating its design and layout. S/he creates a specific user journey and teams up with a web developer to ensure the brand’s professional online presence is reflective of the overall brand image and positioning.
Tip for brands:
15 seconds is the average time spent on a website! That’s not much. You’ve got one chance to make a good impression; you either hit or miss! A well-designed website needs to share a brand’s value proposition quickly and effectively. It doesn’t stop at aesthetically pleasing design though, it also smoothens out the consumer journey, helping clients find the brand easily on search engines [SEO]. It compliments all marketing efforts, both online and offline, getting more customers and increasing sales.
www.IDEA-SOLD.com
RE/BRANDING
re /ˈbrandɪŋ.
Branding
Verb: Creating or designing the corporate image of a person or brand by means of crafting a distinctive design and logo, consistent wording and tone of voice, appealing color palette and well-thought of brand pillars, to be used as an id card. It is the first milestone of a successful marketing strategy, and the first step to marking your presence professionally and bringing your brand to life.
Rebranding
Verb: Applying the above on an already existing brand to reestablish its audience and position in the market upon revising the original marketing. You have to be wise as to when and whether you should go through a rebranding. It’s all about the divine timing!
Tip for brands:
A brand identity is reflective of a brand’s values, tone of voice and how it makes people feel. While branding identity is the process of shaping that impression, good design is ultimately, good business. A consistent brand identity will result in a consistent impression on consumers, translating into rock-solid sales.
A brand should pursue rebranding only when there is a fundamental change in the business, not because it feels cool – abort mission. Branding is the foundation for all other marketing and messaging strategies, so changing it is a decision that is going to affect everything else if wise positively.
It’s not rocket science but I’d say it’s just as important!
ART DIRECTOR
/ɑːt/ dɪˈrɛktə.
Noun: A person responsible for the “design language” in any creative process, be it digital or on set. The Art Director creates the overall look and feel for a project or brand and also directs others who develop artwork or layouts, designing sets, overseeing artists and other team members.
Tip for brands:
Creating an artistic direction and consistent visual language brings clarity and definition to a brand. Art Direction takes on more of a ‘bigger picture’ view, overseeing all elements of the design process to be based not only on what looks good but also serves the brand’s purpose, overall vision and personality, while also keeping in mind the target audience and the effect on visibility or sales. Art direction involves the photography style, visual direction, usage of fonts, color pallets and their homogenous treatment.
Sounds complicated, but most straightforward things aren’t fun.
CONTENT CREATOR
/kənˈtɛnt/ /kriːˈeɪtə.
Noun: A person producing content in multiple formats for various marketing channels, but mostly digital media. Includes entertaining or educational material that caters to the interests and challenges of a brand’s target audience.
tip for brands:
Everything on Social Media is content driven, but the type of content shared should be based on the brand’s personality, mission and vision. When creating content, targeting a specific end-user/audience in specific contexts with useful information also builds a bond between the brand and the consumer which later translates to an impression. If the content is engaging, educational, and valuable, then consumers will start to think the same things about the brand.
Be careful what you wish post.
FILMMAKER
/fɪlm/ˈ/meɪkə.
Noun: A person who is in charge of making, leading, and developing movie productions (film, movie or ad), typically referred to as a filmmaker or director. A filmmaker controls a film’s artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay or script providing a treatment or a visual translation. S/he also guides the technical crew and actors and plays a key role in choosing the cast members, production design and all the creative aspects of filmmaking with the aid of producers and other key players.
tip for brands:
A film does not necessarily mean a 2-hour movie! It could be just up to a few minutes, and still award winning. In fact, that’s exactly what our digital world craves every day. And it’s super effective; films and online videos usually gain more visibility and might even spread like wildfire.
Once the purpose of a film is defined and the message that needs to be communicated is set, that’s when we can talk formats. It could be a 1-minute ad, or a documentary-like-film or something else entirely, somewhere in between. There is no right or wrong answer. Depends on the brand and the communication. Depends on the adventure it’s on today. The possibilities are infinite.
And that’s a wrap, for now.