Building a Brand-Centric & Compelling Website
One of the key points that I think consumers are confused about is thinking that a website is their branding and that’s not true. Yes, it’s important to have a branded website, but your website is not your branding.
Your branding comes first and your website would be a piece of brand collateral. Your website is a marketing tool or a landing page for people to come and take action to interact with you. Ideally your website branding will align with your overall brand. But it’s still only one piece of the puzzle.
Before we talk in depth about what it takes to build a branded website, let’s just level-set real quickly: we will be talking about a piece of brand collateral today called your website. And there are some really amazing kinds of guidelines that should be followed when it comes to building out your website that like you said, is very brand centric and compels the audience that you're interested in targeting.
Typically, I work with a client on branding and the next thing we do is their website design. The two are very closely aligned. I actually offer a complete branding and website design package because they go hand-in-hand.
That’s also why I'm talking about this branded website focus today - because your website is such an important branding tool.
Understanding the Role of a Branded Website
We all need to have a home on the internet that is owned by our business. Instagram is not owned by you. It's owned by Instagram. Facebook is owned by Facebook, but your website is yours. Your email list is yours.
And so if you're pouring your heart and soul in some of these platforms that aren't yours, I would like to just encourage you to think of ways that you can simply shift some of those assets into owned assets instead of rented assets.
Of course, before you can focus on creating a really compelling branded website, the number one place you need to start is... you guessed it: your branding. It has to be rock solid.
Remember - your branding isn't just a logo or a brand color palette. It’s not just graphic design, either. There's strategy that comes into play. There's a deeper level of understanding regarding the marketplace, how you're connecting with your core clientele, the demographic you want to talk to and how you're talking to that demographic.
All of those components inform a brand identity designer as to what needs to be created to bring your brand vision to life through brand collateral like logos, submarks, typography and - of course - a branded website.
If you don't have a foundation of epic branding, nothing you build is going to be as effective as it potentially could be.
So, now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, I’ll step down from my branding soapbox and dive into the strategy behind website branding design.
How to Create A Branded Website for Your Business
As I mentioned just a moment ago, the key to figuring out how to create a branded website for your business is to start with really good branding. So now let’s touch on what good branding is.
You already know it's not just an amazing logo, color palette, font pairings, patterns and graphic elements. It's also really great brand imagery and a clear brand message. These are both especially important pieces of branding for website design.
The Key to Good Branding Photography for a Website
If you're investing in really good branding, I also encourage you to either work with your branding designer or find a photographer that you love who aligns with the brand you're building. Make sure that you've got really fantastic brand imagery, because something as image-centric as a website is really going to suffer without it. Even if you have the most beautiful brand assets, if you're missing beautiful photos you’ll struggle to create a branded website.
If you're a service-based business, most of your brand photos are going to have to feature Y-O-U. You have to be the face of your marketing materials because you are a key part of your overall brand.
Even product-based businesses can often benefit from some photography focused on the business owner behind the products being sold. People like to know their makers, especially people that support small business owners.
Don’t Forget Your Brand Messaging
The other key piece of a branded website is to ensure that your messaging - the way that you’re communicating with your website visitors - is aligned with your overall brand personality.
Consider your website’s calls to action. What is the one action you want website visitors to take when they come to your website? Do you want them to book a call? Do you want them to schedule a Zoom meeting? Are they clicking through to actually purchase something from you? Or are they buying time with you or are they buying a product?
Whatever your calls to action are, they need to be very crystal clear to your audience. When you’re working on a branded website, these calls to action are often highlighted with key buttons or large links that almost make it foolproof for your website visitors. You want to essentially spoon-feed them the action that you want them to take.
How Visuals and Messaging Come Together on a Branded Website
At this point, we’ve talked about the visual side of a branded website and your brand messaging. But the real secret to website branding that attracts your dreamy clients is the conjunction of these two pieces.
I like to think of it this way. You need your consumers to close their eyes and hear your message and then cover their ears and see your message. In both cases, they have to get the same message. If they do, then you’ve laid a rock-solid brand foundation.
Unfortunately, this is often where DIY branding goes off the rails a bit. Most business owners are not experts in graphic design or marketing - and definitely not experts in both!
Yes, it’s easier now than ever before to work on branding yourself. And I think that's fantastic. I love online tools like Canva. I think Squarespace is a fantastic tool (most of my client builds are on Squarespace!). I love that there are so many ways for new businesses to build a website and start getting in front of their dreamy clients.
But if you’re committed to creating a branded website that truly speaks to your ideal audience, it might be time to consider outsourcing your branding and web design.
Get Started with Website Branding for Your Business
Now that you understand what it takes to create a branded website, you’re probably feeling a little overwhelmed about actually doing it. After all, it’s not as simple as using the right colors and fonts and adding some pretty pictures to the page.
There’s a lot of strategy and design that goes into creating a branded website design that truly speaks to your ideal audience and compels them to take action (you know, like decide to work with you!).
Ready to take your website design to the next level? Contact Sara Schultz Co. today to learn more about our branding and website design services for small businesses.
