As you start to update your brand, you’ll most likely come across an array of terms like logo suites, color palettes, font suites, brand collateral, and more. But what, exactly, are all of these, and are they all important in your business?
As a brand and web design studio, we work day in and day out with businesses to create new brand presences that not only look great but are also based on a personalized strategy for each business.
In this post, we are going to dive into one part of your brand that can make a big difference in your brand presence, but is often overlooked when it comes to a rebrand: brand collateral.
So, what is brand collateral, and why is it such an important aspect of your brand? Let’s jump into it.
What is Brand Collateral?
Let’s start off by answering the most pressing question: What is brand collateral? Brand collateral or brand assets are all of the items outside of your immediate brand elements. Your brand elements will include things like your logos, fonts, colors, and moodboard.
Another way to answer this question is that brand collateral is anything that uses your brand elements to create a new end product. While collateral can sometimes be entirely new elements, like icons or brand patterns, most of the time it involves incorporating your brand elements into a design.
Want to be seen in your best light?
Get The Works—my email list that acts as a ring light for your brand.
Let’s turn the spotlight on you.
Brand collateral items
These collateral items are what you will use to shape your online or in-person presence through your website, social media, print marketing, and more. While there are countless forms these assets can take on, some common ones include:
- Packaging
- Ads
- Billboards
- Presentations
- Email signatures
- Business cards
- One pagers
- Templated email for your email marketing
- E-books
- Guides
- Proposals
- Questionnaires
- Swag
- Videos
Why Does This Collateral Matter?
So you now know what brand collateral includes, but why does it actually matter if you have any of this in your business? The answer is simple: your business isn’t just the product you sell or the service you offer. It is the full experience clients and customers have with you across every touchpoint.
Think about your own habits in your everyday life. Have you ever been walking down the aisle of a grocery store and stopped to look at a product because of its eye-catching packaging? Maybe you even bought it, even though you didn’t actually need it or plan to buy it.
Or, have you ever been scrolling through Instagram and a post catches your attention because of how the design itself stands out on your feed? You probably took a few extra seconds to scroll through the carousel or read the caption to learn more about what stopped you.
These are both examples of the power of these assets and of how they affect potential clients’ views of your brand before they ever interact with you.
Key Brand Asset Items for Online Businesses
Depending on the type of business you have, you may find that some brand collateral items are more important for you than others. If you are an online business, you may not need print collateral (like print ads or even business cards), but you will definitely benefit from other online collateral.
Items such as social media templates, email templates, email signatures, and guides can help create a consistent online presence for your business and make it feel more professional. This is key to building confidence in your brand, especially if people aren’t always interacting directly with you.
That said, there are still times when some print assets can come in handy. If you ship any packages to clients, having custom-designed boxes, tissue paper, stickers, or thank-you cards can give your online business a tangible feel for clients.
Key Brand Asset Items for Physical Businesses
If you have an in-person business, you will most likely want to continue using some of the same items to promote your business online and on social media, but things like business cards, print marketing, and swag are most likely going to play a bigger role for your brand.
You want to ensure that when your clients and customers walk out of your business, there are still physical items that help you continue to stand out and encourage people to keep coming back time and time again.
When Should You Use Brand Collateral
One of the biggest misconceptions about brand collateral is that it is only used to get people in the door. While this is important, these assets can be used throughout the entire purchase cycle that your clients go through.
Ads or social media marketing are a great way to get people’s attention and get them to notice your business for the first time. However, you want to create a consistent experience from start to finish. Let’s look at what this could look like for a copywriter:
A client starts looking for copywriting services and comes across your Instagram. You have a feed filled with curated, consistent content that all feels aligned with your branding. They then click your website, scroll through it, and fill out your contact form to reach out.
After chatting with you, they are ready for a proposal, and you sent over a custom-designed one aligned with your brand fonts and colors. After signing your contract, you get them all set up in your systems, and it’s time for them to start filling out your questionnaires that, again, are completely branded to match your business.
You work on creating the copy, and once everything is finalized and they have had an amazing experience with you, they get a thank-you card in the mail to show your gratitude and include that final tangible bit to your business and their experience with you.
The importance of brand collateral for your marketing
RESULTS THAT SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES
Download our case studies + client experiences to review the impact our website design and brand strategy services have beyond the stunning deliverables you’ll find in our portfolio.
You’ll notice that the use of your brand collateral didn’t start and end with your marketing. Every bit of their experience with you had branded elements and moments to create that consistent experience from start to finish.
And while the only outward-facing marketing element here may be the social media posts, the truth is that every piece of brand collateral is a marketing tool. By having these custom forms, thank-you cards, and maybe even small custom gifts that you send to each client, you are creating an experience they want to tell others about.
When people have a truly great experience with a business, they want to tell other people about it. This may be by leaving a review online, talking to their friends about your business, or even posting on social media about you.
Your brand collateral isn’t always just about the outward marketing efforts. It’s about creating an experience from start to finish that people can’t help but love and one that continues to build confidence in you and your brand throughout the process.
Ready to Create Your Own Brand Collateral?
So, what is brand collateral? It is the key elements that can help not only promote your business, but also give your clients a top-notch experience. Brand collateral is such an important part of your brand presence and something every business can benefit from.
If you are ready to take that next step and create a new brand presence for your business, complete with custom brand collateral, we’d love to help. Click here to learn more about our brand and web design services, or head over here to get in touch!
