Page 16 - iNET magazine.June.2021
P. 16
Branding - The
Message is in the Mark
By Danielle Foti
“B for baseball!” Becca cried happily, pointing at audience to speak to.
my stainless steel water bottle. Becca, a 5-year old Graphic design is about discovering the best way to
student at the nursery school I was working at that get our message across to the right audience. And to
summer, ran away giggling as I nervously tucked away do it quickly.
the water bottle in question. My discomfort stemmed
from the fact that the sticker Becca had taken note The fact is, very few members of our audience are
of was for Brooklyn Brewery. Not the most age- looking for our brand. Today, it is often a struggle to
appropriate content for me to be parading at my job, I get our brand in front of those we want to reach - to
know. grab their attention amid the advertisements, the
pictures, and the visual noise.
That sunny afternoon, I regarded the logo closer and
noticed that Becca was onto something. The “B” I specialize in sifting through the noise to carve out a
was rather reminiscent of baseball, with its looping visual identity that speaks to its audience. Will an event
curves and embroidery-like circle encompassing it. about gardening be best communicated through an
I researched this curious coincidence on my lunch illustration of vegetation, or a photograph of people
break and learned that it was in fact, no coincidence. gardening together? Should a high-end lifestyle brand
The Brooklyn Brewery “B” was designed by Milton use delicate or bold fonts - or both?
Glazer (you may recognize his work each time you Infinite are the ways we can create something new.
see the “I HEART NY” logo). It turns out that the Design is the science of making our creation function
family who owns the brewery had requested that as efficiently as possible. I wholeheartedly believe that
their logo echo a baseball emblem, as the sport had a consistent and fitting brand can elevate the success
an important history in their lives. The resulting mark of anything. The joy is in revealing that brand and
was so successful that even little Becca picked up leaving with something that has the potential to thrive
on the baseball undertones (rather than the alcoholic for lifetimes.
undertones, to my fortune).
Think about that. How astounding is it that a Danielle has a BFA in Graphic Design. She works
designer can take an idea (“baseball”) and apply it with small businesses and entrepreneurs, getting to
to a completely unrelated product (“craft beer”) so
masterfully that even a young child, with such a small know each idea and why it is different from all the
repertoire of images in her memory, can recognize that rest. She lives to learn, and is never more thrilled
idea? when she can dive into the businesses of friends
and partners and discov¬er something new about
This notion of using an existing style to communicate the world. Danielle is currently based in New York,
an idea is a fundamental concept of branding. Design
has a rich history that we can call upon to get our and can make excellent cheesecake.
ideas across succinctly, to people who are unfamiliar
with our brand, services, or products. While there is
no need to reinvent the wheel, we have the option to
create something new, a style that has never been
seen before. Each project is unique and has a unique
16
