Creating your Pet Brand: Brand Design

Great branding is vital when it comes to running any business. Have you recently set up a vet practice or pet business and need inspiration when it comes to your pet brand design? Or perhaps you’re an established pet business but you feel your branding isn’t as strong as it could be. Either way, we’ve got everything that you need to find your business’s unique image and create instantly recognisable branding that inspires trust, conversation, or a smile.

Pet brand design: Where to start

The idea of creating the branding for your pet or vet business might seem overwhelming, especially if you don’t see yourself as particularly creative. However, focussing on the following key aspects will help you build a clear identity for your brand:

Know your brand’s tone

There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to brand design. After all, branding is an opportunity to make your business stand out from the crowd by showing your personality and values. If your business is a pet website containing light-hearted pet articles and fun facts about our four-legged friends, you might want to show your playful side when it comes to branding. On the other hand, a casual and playful tone isn’t necessarily the right choice if you’re delivering a professional service as a veterinary practice. So, before you get started, make sure you’ve got a clear idea in your mind of the tone that suits your pet brand best.

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“Just like you have a personality, so does your brand. Don’t be afraid to show it by adding flair that will communicate your tone. From specific words and phrases to unique colours and symbols, everything will come together to tell your ideal client exactly who you are!”

Danielle K Lambert, founder of Snout School

Choose your brand’s colours

Choosing colours for your branding is a crucial step, and when faced with a spectrum of rainbow shades, it’s easy to get carried away! Remember, while it’s tempting to create really colourful branding, too many colours may look too busy and detract from the clarity of your brand’s message, while too few colours may be too bland to attract attention. Using three colours is often very effective, and you may want to consider one neutral or pastel tone for backgrounds, one dark colour for text, and one bright colour for accents. Don’t rush when choosing your colours; spend some time experimenting with which colours work well together and ask your family, friends, or colleagues for their preferences.

Choose your brand’s font

You might not think that font choice is particularly important, especially compared to the actual message that your brand’s written text conveys. However, choosing the right font can make a huge difference to how impactful your business’s branding is. Choose a font that is in line with the tone you want to achieve – something more structured and uniform will portray professionalism and invite trust, while a more fluid, whacky, or decorative script will draw lots of attention.

Design your logo

A great logo does more than communicate your business’s name – it can also give the observer information about the type of work that you do and the sort of company that you are. Many consumers form a positive or negative opinion of a brand just from seeing their logo and knowing that your logo will often be the first part of your business that people see, you’ll want to make the best possible first impression!

Just like colours, it’s easy to get carried away when designing your logo, so try to find the right balance by giving people a clear taste of your brand without overwhelming them with an overcrowded or confusing logo. Choose a couple of stylish elements that are in keeping with your brand and keep the logo as streamlined and minimalist as possible.

Choose decorative accents or symbols

Aside from your logo, you might want to choose a few decorative symbols or clipart-style images that can be used to enhance the finish of your website, marketing material, and social media posts. These shouldn’t have lots of detail and should complement your branding rather than distract the eye. When choosing decorative accents, it’s best to stick to your brand’s colours and ensure that the style matches your brand’s colours, font, and logo.

Tips for creating a strong pet brand design

1.      Understand your target client or reader

Taking some time to understand your target client and what would appeal to them can make the difference between effective and ineffective branding. For instance, your branding might be visually appealing to you, but if it doesn’t suit your business or service, you might not see the results you expected.

2.      Don’t be afraid to stray from the norm

In the pet and veterinary sector, branding has remained quite traditional, and even a little same-y. If you want to stand out from the crowd in a sea of paw prints, dog bones, cat whiskers, and tails, you might have to dare to be different!

3.      Don’t use too many key elements

Less is more when it comes to branding. You’ll want enough on-brand options to create different types of content but try to keep things simple so that your message is clear. You might assume that your marketing content will be more eye-catching if there’s lots going on, but often the opposite is the case!

4.      Be consistent

When you need a mountain of content, from emails and websites to posters, signs, and business cards, not to mention content for your business’s social media accounts, it’s easy to deviate from your brand’s style. However, if you spend time creating a bank of all the components that you need, you’ll be able to create consistent, on-brand, flexible branding content that can work wherever you need it.

Summary

Designing branding that stands out and is eye-catching, without compromising on your brand’s image and values might feel like a balancing act. However, by focusing on one element at a time, you can create an effective brand for your veterinary practice or pet business.