Learn the five elements to radical brand recognition, and open the eyes of your target audience.

1. 5 Elements to Radical
Brand Recognition
Learn How to Open the Eyes of Your Target Audience
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

2. There are five essential elements that
help your company get recognized…
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
…and really stand out.

3. 5What is the definition of incognito?
If you don’t apply the five elements,
you may find your company incognito.

4. In•cog•ni•to
with one’s identity concealed
abc

5. 5Let’s explore the five elements that
help your company get recognized
by starting out with number one.

6. Color
1.

7. Color
1.
Color is more important than any other
factor in increasing brand recognition,
and making your brand memorable.

8. Color
1.
(Source: Color Professor Jill Morton; Why Color Matters)
80%Studies show that color boosts brand
recognition up to 80 percent.

9. Color
1.
Successful companies choose a single
dominant color — one that best
conveys a unique association with their
company — and use it everywhere.

10. Color
1.
Joyous CalmPassion
Colors also have the ability to trigger
an instant emotional response.
Tranquil

11. Let’s explore six common colors,
and the attributes we associate
with each of them.
Color
1.

12. Color
1.
Associations with Red:
Energetic
Passionate
Excitement

13. Color
1.
One reason we associate
such strong emotions with
Red is that it is known to
increase respiration rate
and to raise blood pressure
simply by looking at it. It’s
the color of fire and blood.
Red:

14. Can you guess which company chose
red as their dominant brand color?
Color
1.
Mini Quiz
(Answer on following page, no cheating)

15. Color
1.

16. Color
1.
Confidence
Enduring
Stability
Associations with Blue:

17. Color
1.
Blue:
Blue, the color of the
sea and sky, represents
permanence. Because
of this we associate blue
as a permanent fixture
in our lives.

18. Can you guess which company chose
blue as their dominant brand color?
Color
1.
Mini Quiz

19. Color
1.

20. Color
1.
Associations with Green:
Renewal
Pleasant
Trustworthy

21. Color
1.
Green is the color of
nature. Because of this, we
associate it with growth,
harmony, freshness, and
vitality. It is the most
restful color for the
human eye.
Green:

22. Can you guess which company chose
green as their dominant brand color?
Color
1.
Mini Quiz

23. Color
1.

24. Color
1.
Associations with Yellow:
Cheerfulness
Warmth
Happiness

25. Color
1.
Yellow:
Yellow is the color of the
sun. Because of this we
associate it with joy,
happiness, and energy. It
is a color that indicates
caution all over the world
as it is hard to miss, even
from a distance.

26. Color
1.
Can you guess which company chose
yellow as their dominant brand color?
Mini Quiz

27. Color
1.

28. Color
1.
Associations with Orange:
Determination
Stimulation
Enthusiasm

29. Color
1.
Orange:
The color orange radiates
warmth. It also has the
ability to stimulate
appetite. It can also tend
to convey playfulness, so
it is not always a good
choice for conveying a
serious message.

30. Can you guess which company chose
orange as their dominant brand color?
Color
1.
Mini Quiz

31. Color
1.

32. Color
1.
Associations with Purple:
Royalty
Luxury
Creativity

33. Color
1.
Purple:
Purple is often associated
with royalty. It was the
most expensive color to
produce in fabric during
ancient times. It was so
rare and expensive that
only kings and rulers
could afford it.

34. Can you guess which company chose
purple as their dominant brand color?
Color
1.
Mini Quiz

35. Color
1.
Did you notice the crown in their logo?

36. 1.
Color Review
Successful companies choose
a single dominant color
Colors trigger emotional responses
Color boosts brand recognition
up to 80 percent

37. The second element in increasing
radical brand recognition, one that
is often overlooked and misused,
is choosing the right fonts.

38. Fonts
2.

39. Fonts
2.
…Ok, now it’s time to get serious.
Before we get serious, here is a joke. Two
fonts walk into a bar and the bartender
says,“We don’t serve your type.”

40. Fonts
2.
One of the mistakes companies
make when creating marketing
materials is to randomly choose
a font simply because they like it.
And then a choose a different font the next day.

41. Fonts
2.
Successful companies use only a select
few dominant fonts, ones that best
reflect the organization’s tone —
and use them everywhere.

42. Fonts
2.
Using the same font in all aspects
of its marketing—consistently and
repeatedly—will help your company
stand out and get recognized. Think
radical recognition.

43. Fonts
2.
There are many things which can affect letterform…
Did you know there are over 20,000
fonts? Each one has its own personality
and expresses its own unique attributes.

44. Fonts
2.
Baseline
Bowl
StressBar
Bracket Descender
Ascender
Loop
HairlineLink
Tail
Ear
CounterCrossbar
X-height
Cap height
Stem

45. Fonts
2.
4These include…
Fortunately, fonts fall into four
main categories, which most
of us are already familiar with.

46. Fonts
2.
2.1.
3. 4.Let’s briefly explore each one of them…

47. Fonts
2.
Let’s magnify and make them stand out in orange…
A serif is a small decorative line
attached to the end of a letter.

48. Fonts
2.

49. Fonts
2.
Elegant
Formal
Traditional
Reliable
Associations with Serif:
T

50. Fonts
2.
Let’s magnify and make them stand out in orange…
The French word‘sans’means
without. Sans serif font literally
means without serif.

51. Fonts
2.
San serif fonts do not have lines
attached to the end of the letters.

52. Fonts
2.
Modern
Contemporary
Progressive
DirectT
Associations with Sans Serif:

53. Fonts
2.
Due to legibility, script fonts are not
commonly used for brand recognition,
and are best when used sparingly.

54. Fonts
2.
Fluid
Feminine
Affectionate
Elegant
Associations with Script:
B

55. Fonts
2.
Similar to script fonts, decorative fonts
are not commonly used for brand
recognition. Use them sparingly.

56. Fonts
2.
Whimsical
Informal
Casual
HappyS
Associations with Decorative:

57. Fonts
2.
Let’s take a look at three well-known
organizations that chose a dominant
font for the purpose of consistency
and radical brand recognition.

58. © 2015 Lippincott
Fonts
2.
I personally want to hug the font!
Southwest Airlines
had a font family
custom-designed
called Southwest Sans.
It conveys the exact
attributes the airline
wanted to express.
These include innovation,
modernism, and
friendliness.

59. The official font family
of Syracuse University
is called Sherman.
It’s a serif font which
communicates tradition
and seriousness.
Fonts
2.

60. Apple is all about
innovation. From 2003 to
2017, Apple used the font
family Myriad for all of its
marketing.
Myriad conveys simplicity,
precision, and modernism.
Fonts
2.

61. 2.
Fonts Review
Successful companies select just a few
fonts and use them everywhere
Fonts express unique attributes
The four main categories are serif,
sans serif, script, and decorative

62. The third element in increasing radical
brand recognition is the logo.

63. Logos
3.

64. 3.
Logos
The purpose of a logo is to
visually identify a company.
The logo is the most ubiquitous
of the five elements.

65. U•biq•ui•ty
the state of being widespread or
seeming to be everywhere at once
3.
Logos
abc

66. 3.
Logos
7.Let’s Explore…
There are seven key characteristics
that make up a successful logo and
help it really stand out.

67. 3.
Logos
1. Identifiable
Just as every fingerprint is unique,
your logo should be one-of-a-kind
and convey some unique aspect.

68. 3.
Logos
This logo features the distinct shape of
Kendall Square as shown by the blue
dots. Make your logo easily identifiable.

69. Charles River
Memorial Dr
M
ass Ave
Vassar St
Broadway
Main St
Binney St
PortlandSt
3rdSt
3.
Logos
Kendall Square
Cambridge, MA

70. Charles River
Memorial Dr
M
ass Ave
Vassar St
Broadway
Main St
Binney St
PortlandSt
3rdSt
3.
Logos Cambridge, MA

71. 3.
Logos
2. Simplicity
All too often, logos are overdone
and overcomplicated. Successful
logos are very simple.

72. 3.
Logos
MeetingMakers is all about connecting
people. By keeping it simple, the logo
will be remembered and retained.

73. 3.
Logos
3. Memorable
A logo design must contain unique
and recognizable elements that
are connected to the brand.

74. 3.
Logos
Hearts, band-aids, and capsules are
embedded into the design. They are
all relevant to the Heal, Inc. brand.

75. 3.
Logos
4. Differentiated
Assess what the competition is doing
and design an entirely different logo.
Remember all of the “swoosh” logos in 2000?

76. 3.
Logos
Whatever you do, please do not add
another“swoosh”logo to the world. Most
of them died out shortly after 2001.

77. 3.
Logos
5. Sustainable
A properly designed logo will stand
the test of time and will not fall
victim to having a dated look.

78. 3.
Logos
By combining a book and a door in
simplified shapes, it allows the logo to
stay current no matter what year it is.

79. 3.
Logos
6. Emotional or
Engaging
Successful logos are able to evoke
feelings and thoughts in the mind
of the prospective client.

80. 3.
Logos
Three‘hidden’hearts were placed within
the white space to communicate the CEO’s
love and passion for connecting people.
CareerEncore
Repeated Performance

81. 3.
Logos
Let’s make the three‘hidden’hearts stand
out in yellow so you can easily see them.
CareerEncore
Repeated Performance

82. 3.
Logos
7. Flexible
A logo must be adaptable so it can
accommodate any medium and size.
This includes print, the web, and
multimedia.

83. 3.
Logos
Most people
never consider
that logos may at
some point need
to be placed on
dark backgrounds.

84. 3.
Logos
Many people
don’t consider
that logos will be
shown both in
small and large
sizes. Issues will
arise when scaled.

85. 3.
Logo Review
Logos are the most ubiquitous
brand element of any company
When designed correctly, logos will
be recognized and remembered
There are seven key characteristics
that make up a successful logo

86. The fourth element in increasing
radical brand recognition is images.

87. Images
4.

88. Joyous CalmPassion Tranquil
Sad Surprised Shocked Upset
Images
4.
Images have the ability to trigger a
much wider emotional response
than color.

89. Are you recognizing a pattern?
Images
4.
Successful companies choose a single
theme of related images — ones that
attract the audience, are recognizable,
and allow viewers to see themselves
in the image.

90. Images
4.
What can be done about this?
All too often images are randomly
chosen without much thought,
focus, or know-how.

91. Images
4.
IMAGE USAGE GUIDE
Guidelines:
Target Audience:
Description:
An ‘Image Usage Guide’
could be the answer!

92. An image usage guide specifies the
exact type of images that will be used
in order to achieve consistency and
radical brand recognition.
Images
4.

93. A good example of an organization that
effectively uses an image usage guide is the
public speaking organization Toastmasters.
Images
4.

94. Not only does Toastmasters specify which
type of images to use, they even specify
which type of images not to use!
Images
4.
This can even be done on a single sheet of paper…

95. Images
4.
Use images of people that look engaged,
approachable and empowered. Incorporate
images from Toastmasters related settings:
Images to Use
• Club Meetings
• Presentations and Speakers
• Networking
• Conferences and Training
• Speech Contests
Toastmaster’s Image Usage Guide

96. Images
4.
Toastmaster’s Image Usage Guide
Images that should never be used
within the Toastmasters brand:
Images Not to Use
• Animals
• Landscape
• Children
• Food
• Appliances*
• Medicine
• Cartoons
• Architecture
• Other Images
• Other Designs
* this includes toast and toasters

97. Let’s take a glance at several images
that Toastmasters use throughout
their marketing materials.
Images
4.

98. Images
4. Toastmasters
Club Meeting Related Images
Engaged
Approachable
Empowered

99. Images
4.
Meetings
Presentations
Conferences
Toastmasters
Presentations and Speaker Images

100. Images
4.
No Animals
No Food
No Cartoons
Toastmasters
Networking Related Images

101. Images
4.
In my opinion, that’s radical!
Did you notice the consistency and
how all of the images conformed to
their image usage guide?

102. Images
4.
Stock PhotographyPhotographer
2.1.
Search All Images
There are two ways to acquire images. Your
budget determines which decision you make.

103. Images
4.
1. 2. 3.
There are many stock photography websites
that sell images for as low as $7.00.

104. Can you guess which company is being
represented by the following photo?
Mini Quiz
Images
4.

105. Images
4.

106. Images
4.
That’s radical recognition!
Did you think of Nike? If you did, that’s
because they have used this type of
image so many times that you look
beyond the photo, and see a company.

107. 4.
Images Review
Successful companies choose a
single theme of related images
Determine which images to use
and images not to use
Images trigger a much wider
range of emotions than color

108. The fifth and final element, one that is
the most powerful in increasing radical
brand recognition, is developing a
well-defined brand identity.

109. Brand Identity
5.

110. Brand Identity
5.
What is a Brand Identity?
A brand identity is primarily made
up of what we’ve already covered—
color, fonts, logo, and images.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

111. Brand Identity
5.
Let’s face it, there are a lot of companies
out there. It’s critical to differentiate.
When the elements are combined,
they begin to form your brand
identity. As the name implies, it is
how your company’s brand can be
identified in the marketplace.

112. Logo
Images
Fonts
Color
Brand Identity
5.
Many people think a logo is a brand
identity. It goes much deeper.

113. Brand Identity
5.
Stationery
Marketing Collateral
Advertising
Social Media
Web Site
Presentations
Tradeshow & Signage
Promotional Items
Any visual component becomes
part of the brand identity.

114. Brand Identity
5.
Successful companies create a
multipage document that specifies
the usage of color, fonts, logo, and
images. This is typically known as a
Brand Identity Standards Guide
or Style Guide.

115. Brand Identity
5.
Failure to create a set of guidelines can
result in Sally in Marketing choosing
Times New Roman one day, and Bob in
Sales choosing Comic Sans the next day.
Not good!

116. Brand Identity
5.
Let’s take a look at Kendall Square’s
Brand Identity Standards Guide
which helps with consistency,
repeatability, and recognition.

117. Brand Identity
5.
Brand Identity
5.
BRANDIDENTITYSTANDARDSGUIDE BRAND IDENTITY
STANDARDS GUIDE

118. Brand Identity
5.
A color palette
featuring a
primary and
secondary
color is clearly
defined.
Kendall Square Color Palette
Kendall Square | Brand Identity Standards Guide
Description:
When the colors blue and silver are combined, it represents the future.
The color palette has been chosen for use in all marketing communcations.
Consistency is important to the Kendall Square brand. A Pantone Matching
System, 4-Color equivilents, and RGB values are provided for color
reproduction.
Primary Color Secondary Color
PANTONE: 207-1 C
CMYK: 100 50 0 0
RGB: 0 114 188
WEB: 0072bc
PANTONE: 221-2 U
CMYK: 100 30 0 0
RGB: 0 137 207
PANTONE: 332-1 C
CMYK: 22 0 0 40
RGB: 128 155 169
WEB: 809ba9
PANTONE: 325-7 U
CMYK: 15 0 0 33
RGB: 152 172 183
Coated Uncoated Coated Uncoated
Color1.

119. Brand Identity
5.
Tints or shades
of primary and
secondary colors
can be used to
add variation,
yet still maintain
the identity.
Kendall Square Color Tints
Kendall Square | Brand Identity Standards Guide
Description:
In order to ensure consistency, yet add variety, color tints of the primary
and secondary colors can be used as accents in all marketing materials.
In addition, color gradients can be applied.
Color1.

120. Brand Identity
5.
A font family
is chosen and
specified. If you
recall, it is wise
to choose just
one for radical
recognition.
Kendall Square Typography
Kendall Square | Brand Identity Standards Guide
Description:
Avenir means‘Future’in French. The typeface is part of the identity and
should be used consistently in all print communications. Avenir is
available in various weights shown here.
Avenir Family
Avenir Light
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz12345678
Avenir Light Oblique
Avenir Book
Avenir Roman
Avenir Book Oblique
Avenir Oblique
Avenir Medium
Avenir Medium Oblique
Avenir Black
Avenir Black Oblique
Avenir Heavy
Avenir Heavy Oblique
“Avenir conveys
the future, and
Kendall Square
is all about the
future.”
Fonts2.

121. Brand Identity
5.
A logo usage
page indicates
how the logo is
to be displayed,
whether in full
color, one color,
or reversed.
Kendall Square Logo Usage
Kendall Square | Brand Identity Standards Guide
Description:
The logo mark is a company’s or organization’s most prominent visual
representation of it’s brand identity. Consistent and accurate logo usage
helps to build brand recognition of the Kendall Square brand.
Horizontal Full Color:
Horizontal One Color:
Horizontal Reversed:
Logos3.

122. Brand Identity
5.
Some companies
take it a step
further and even
specify the space
that is needed
around the logo.
Kendall Square Logo Spacing
Kendall Square | Brand Identity Standards Guide
Description:
To ensure proper spacing and“breathing room”, please allow a minimum
of 2p or two picas around all fours sides of the logo.
2p
2p
2p
2p
2p
2p
2p
2p
Logos3.

123. Brand Identity
5.
A theme of tech
images featuring
people making
connections was
chosen to serve
as a reference
point.
Kendall Square Images
Kendall Square | Brand Identity Standards GuideKendall Square | Brand Identity Standards Guide
Description:
Kendall Square has been called "the most innovative square mile on the planet”.
Due to this, all images should include people, collaboration, and technology.
Several images are shown below which provide a reference point.
Images4.

124. Brand Identity
5.
Because Kendall Square defined
and followed a Brand Identity
Standards Guide — consistency
and recognition was acheived.
Actually, radical recognition was achieved.

125. Brand Identity Review
A brand identity is the most powerful
element for radical recognition
A brand identity is not just a logo
A style guide ensures consistency,
repeatability, and recognition
5.

126. See how your company measures up…

127. Do you have a standards manual? Do your marketing
materials all look like they belong the same company?
Have you defined a theme of related images? Do
they convey a specific mood, attribute or emotion?
Did you choose a dominant color to convey a
“message”or emotion you want to communicate?
Are you proud of your organization’s logo? Does
it tell a story? Does it work in all instances?
Did you choose a dominant font which conveys the
right personality? Or do you randomly choose fonts?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

128. Asleep Alert Awake
If you said‘No’to all or most of the questions, your
company is probably overlooked in the marketplace.

129. www.cognitocreative.com
Is your company incognito?
Let Us Help You Open the Eyes of Your Target Audience
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