As a brand, you can hardly claim a colour. The same applies to fonts and taglines. These three types of brand assets therefore arguably deserve much less attention from marketers. But why can’t these assets be claimed so easily? And how do successful companies like HEMA and IKEA manage it anyway?
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Colours
In theory, any brand can choose a particular colour, and colours are not infinite. Brands can therefore quickly become confused with each other (just place the app icons of HEMA, Picnic and Kruidvat next to each other on your phone). This makes it difficult to ‘claim’ a colour entirely and rely solely on it to evoke recognition among consumers.
Colours score low on recognition
Blauw has compiled years of research into the power of distinctive brand assets in the DBA Benchmark. This shows that colours generally score extremely low compared to other types of brand assets: just 30-40% on a scale of 100%. A score of 100% would mean that consumers who see the colour think of one specific brand only, such as yours.
Standing out with colour
Nevertheless, there are brands that score higher than average with their use of colour. Think of MediaMarkt, Dirk van den Broek, Picnic and HEMA. But all four brands have chosen red, so how can they score higher? They chose a striking colour within their own respective categories. In this way, a colour, or a combination of colours, can still evoke significant recognition among consumers.
Brand Assets
Colour combinations
Brands that choose a striking colour combination within their own category sometimes score higher than average. Consider IKEA, NS or ABN AMRO. There are even brands that opt for colour combinations that are always seen in a fixed sequence, such as SNS Bank, the Google logo or a national flag. This too can help your brand stand out from competitors.
Types of brand assets
But be aware: brands that score higher than average with their colours generally also score higher on other types of brand assets. It’s about a unique combination of Distinctive Brand Assets (DBAs) and the power of repetition with which they evoke recognition and meaning among consumers.
Fonts & Pay-offs
Exceptions: large brands with high budgets
All the examples mentioned above should therefore be seen as exceptions. Most brands will still score low with their use of colour, and becoming the exception takes an enormous amount of time and money. That energy might be better spent on types of brand assets that score higher on average and will therefore evoke more and faster recognition and meaning among consumers.
Fonts often look alike
Fonts also score low on average. While you can, of course, have your own typeface designed, fonts quickly start to look alike. One brand that may be the exception is Coca-Cola. Its font is so ornate that it is very strong and recognisable to many people. Even so, Coca-Cola has regularly changed its font over the years, but so subtly that most consumers barely noticed. So why change it at all? As a brand, you want to keep growing and ensure your strategy remains aligned with your target audience. If your positioning changes and moves with the times, your brand assets need to evolve too: to ‘refresh’, as marketing professor Byron Sharp calls it.
Pay-offs also score low
Pay-offs, taglines and slogans. These are also common topics of discussion within brands’ marketing departments. Good examples include ‘Just Do It’, ‘What else?’ and ‘I’m lovin’ it’. But this subcategory also generally scores very low.
Want your brand assets to make a difference? Then focus on brand assets that score higher on average in the DBA Benchmark, as they can give your brand an immediate boost.
