Branding 101: How to Make Your Stationery Look the Business
Whether you’re a freelancer or the boss of a company, branding is absolutely vital to the success of your business. You could have an incredible idea, but without coherent branding your message will be lost. What are we saying? You’re professional businesswomen, you all know this – you’re always on top of your social media presence and are constantly looking for ways to keep your website at the cutting edge of design and user-interactivity. But what about all the smaller – but no less important – tangible things? It’s vital to keep your branding consistent across the board, and that means cards, headed stationery, and even office Christmas party invites that look the business!
Brand recognition is one of the driving forces behind brand loyalty. Research has shown that 52 percent of American millennials prioritise brands they can trust. In SEO, these statistics translate quite literally into branded search terms — and 99.9 percent of the time, your website will rank at the top of the first page of results on any variation of a branded keyword.
With this in mind, it’s time to consider those small, physical ways to curate your personal brand in one specific area — stationery. With so much focus on the world of online content and SEO, printed media can sometimes feel trivial or useless. However, studies have shown that it’s anything but. According to a Pitney Bowes survey, 76 percent of small businesses believe an ideal marketing strategy consists of an intelligent combination of printed and digital communication.
Consider the difference between receiving an email and receiving a letter. A thoughtful letter to a customer, prospect, or supplier on beautiful paper will get opened every time. It will have an impact; because the person has touched it it’ll resonate much more. This scenario speaks to the importance of how the message is communicated. This is where stationery comes into the picture.
If a business takes the time to send a letter, the message becomes more personal. However, without branding, the recipient will be unable to connect that sentiment with the business, and as an entrepreneur you’ll have lost an opportunity to maintain, strengthen or rekindle a relationship with a loyal customer.
Five tips for stunning stationery:
If your message is the picture, branding is its frame. Honey Tree Bespoke offer amazing customisability when it comes to artfully communicating what you want consumers to know. Consider these best practices for perfectly practical, brilliantly beautiful and creatively consistent corporate stationery.
1. Use high-quality paper: a thick, smooth cardstock or premium paper is optimal. Recipients will be able to see and feel your tangible investment, which communicates that you care about your relationship to them.
2. Branding is key: the visuals on your stationery should display all the important aspects of your brand, including colour scheme, artwork, font and logo. A smart designer will ensure all these items coexist harmoniously and tastefully.
3. Don’t forget details: the smallest aspects of stationery design can leave a huge impression. Items like elegant address labels or pretty envelope liners go the extra step, showing customers that you pay attention to detail both in and out of business transactions.
4. Work with a scalable publisher: if you’re a small business owner or independent freelancer, an agency with a large minimum order quantity isn’t going to do you much good. It’s important to choose a publisher that can work with all your needs, regardless of the size of your business.
5. Customise your branding: Corporate stationery must convey your character. Yes, there are some things you have to include – name, logo, contact details, website – but everything else is a blank canvas for creativity. ‘We understand an individual’s need to express their message in his or her own way, and therefore our mission is to continually encourage creativity in our customers’, Honeytree Bespoke tell us.
These suggestions are provided by Lizbeth Holstein, co-founder, creative director, and Queen Bee at Honeytree. Take her advice and make sure your stationery looks the business by connecting on Facebook, Twitte
