This is the second installment in a series from Reuben Rink on effective branding.

In the first part of this series, JG went over the importance of brand consistency to building trust, loyalty and recognition. In part two, I’d like to dig deeper into the two terms that often seem interchangeable, when, in fact, they are different elements — brand and branding.

There’s a certain intuitiveness to this, but even experienced marketers can get confused about the distinction between the two. So let’s knock out a quick definition of each.

As designers, we’re always challenged to select imagery that effectively connects a brand with its audience. As part of fostering meaningful relationships with that audience, it’s important to remember that brand trust and authenticity go hand-in-hand. And a big part of this conversation today surrounds inclusivity.

Design can be a powerful tool to convey your brand to your audience. And the first design element your audience typically encounters is your logo. A logo may be small, but it can make a huge impression when done well. So, how can you choose a logo that will make a solid, professional impression of your brand while still representing your company’s personality?

Guest Author – Tim Snider, Deja View Media

At Deja View Media, we’ve been helping clients produce promotional videos and commercials for nearly two decades now. Along the way, we’ve worked with a lot of different brands– each, with their own unique product or service to showcase. The one thing that differentiates successful TV spots from others is that they’ve incorporated the following best practices.

By Christy Spencer, Vice President, JKS Incorporated

At JKS Incorporated our business is helping corporate sponsors create and stage large, interactive displays and promotions, usually at sports venues like NASCAR races, PGA tournaments or football games, but also at street fairs or retail locations or virtually anywhere else. To accomplish this, we’ve got to come up with interesting creative concepts and interactive games that will draw people to these displays and create memorable experiences. Working with large corporations and their marketing agencies to conceive and produce innovative and energizing displays, we need to tap into the technologies that younger people are using, because those are the fans our clients usually want to attract. So, to attract new clients, we need to demonstrate that we know and understand the technology and trends out there and can incorporate them into what we do.

Whether we are developing a new brand identity, updating a website, or laying out an advertisement, color is an integral part of our days. Applying color in a wide array of applications can be challenging and art directors excel at interpretation of color. The art directors at Reuben Rink execute designs for a diverse set of clients every day, and in this blog post we explore the influence color has on their design philosophies.