Distinctive Brand Assets
The distinctive red box in our work for HSBC.
A distinctive brand asset is any additional brand element apart from your brand name. These can include:
Logo – Nike swoosh, McDonald’s arches, Shell’s shell
Colour – Tiffany blue, Cadbury purple, Economist red
Tagline – Just do it, Because you’re worth it, The best run businesses run SAP
Patten – Burberry check, Adidas three stripes, Louis Vuitton monograms
Mascot – Tony the Tiger, Colonel Sanders, Michelin Man
Sound – Intel, McDonalds, Dominios, MGM Roar
2D shapes – Heinz Keystone, BMW Kidney Grill, Mini coloured box
3D shapes – Coca-cola, Toblerone, Toilet Duck
Communication style – Red Bull cartoon, Economist copy
Distinctive brand assets act as a proxy for your brand. They work where a logo might not be useable (radio), where the brand needs to be seen from a distance (trade fairs) or where quick recognition is an advantage (in store). We recommend every brand has at LEAST one distinctive asset in addition to colour and logo.
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Factors which play a part in deciding what type of asset to develop include:
– The assets of competitors
– Existing assets if any
– The preferences or the category audience – patten for fashion (status symbol)
– The channel you will be marketing – sound for radio
– Ease of implementationBy evaluating these factors, you can prioritise the asset that will most effectively enhance your brand recognition and impact.
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Research shows it is better to have one brand asset which is well-known in your category than two or more which are not recognised. For this reason we advise focusing on developing one brand asset at a time.
Fidelity’s Distinctive Brand Asset
A good example of distinctive asset usage is the use of the blue box 2-D asset in our work below on the Fidelity World-wide account.
