CREATING A CORPORATE IDENTITY

The phrase ‘corporate identity’ is certainly up there in the current hit-parade of business jargon. It might not be at number one; that accolade surely goes to ‘Cloud Computing’, but it is certainly nudging down nonsense-tracks like ‘blue-sky-thinking’ and ‘idea-showers’. Nevertheless, I am fascinated by how people come up with their ideas. There is often a tale to be told as to what inspired the chosen identity. For me Admin Saint, or Admin S@int if I’m being particular, was a mixture of thoughts. I wanted something snappy with not too many syllables. Three felt like the right amount. Clearly I needed a key word that identified the field in which we work. Administration, as a word, was far too long. We all know what ‘admin’ means and it is generally accepted as an alternative to its longer parent. The sense of sainthood represents our desire to be seen as altruistic in our approach – that our whole vision is centred around the desire to help other businesses. Quality administrative support is a vital cog in the delivery of a successful core business. The ‘@’ sign was dropped in to represent the modernity of being able to communicate by email, skype, facebook, twitter etc and the very fabric of our ability to provide remote support. The strap line, ‘Virtual Support for Real Business’, was designed to be a small play on words demonstrating that the virtual world is part of our every-day reality. Far from being polarised, reality and virtuality are wholly reliant on each other. Real businesses must make use of the virtual world in order to grow and a virtual office can be very much part of that. I thought very carefully about the style of wording. The concept of Admin Saint is one of being smart in appearance, clean and crisp in execution and yet with a sense of modern freshness about it. The chosen font could have been one of several, but it deliberately avoids serifs, twirls and curls to give it that simplicity, sharpness and neatness. It is said that the outdoors has therapeutic qualities – green spaces and bright blue skies can release positive endorphins in the brain. It certainly does for me. I like nothing more than seeing our rich green countryside on a warm summer’s day. I am passionate about our countryside and the feeling I get when I am outdoors in those bright conditions. Whilst the blue and green logo is not meant to look exactly like the sky and the grass – we are not a ‘nature’ business – the contrast of the colours is inspired by the outdoors and represents the fresh approach of the business. Whilst I am not a big fan of the ‘such-and-such 4 U’ idea, I understand and respect its popularity. It is certainly a powerful marketing tool because it is instantly recognisable. However, I also understand when it is suggested by some that the ’4U’ branding represents cheapness and compromising in quality. For me, it has become too much of a populist bandwagon that there is now a danger a company could lose its sense of individuality. I would be interested to hear your thoughts on this. Corporate branding is critical to the success of a business. I am intrigued to learn about how your logo and branding came about. What does your logo say about your business? How was it conceived? How do you make yours stand out from the rest?