The Sign
N. Nagaraj
``To be anonymous in a competitive world is to be dead'' -- Pentagram Marks, Pentagram
The first impression is the best impression. There are some people who say that if one believes that, one would believe anything. But the fact is that they are wrong. How many times have you thrown away a direct mailer or ignored a brochure just because you thought ``it didn't look good''? How many times have you resisted entering a shop or a restaurant that didn't have a good name or mark or sign? One doesn't sometimes remember why one rejected something, especially if it has got something to do with design -- one can only say something didn't look (or feel) right.
Indian companies are now more aware and receptive to developing a corporate identity starting with a corporate mark. The change in the attitude of Indian companies towards corporate identities was largely brought about by liberalisation, and consequently, competition. Foreign companies, irrespective of the nature of the product or service they offer manage to project an image that is clearer (for want of a better word) than their Indian counterparts. And, that's in India. Also, with liberalisation, more Indian companies are looking at international markets, which prompts them to create an identity for themselves.
Madhu Krishna, CEO and Creative Director, Signet Designs, says that till recently, most Indian companies did not have a proper corporate mark that actually projected the company's image. Most companies got by with just the name of the company on the letterhead, or at most, used an attractive typeface. And, the most common graphic or symbol was a basic combination of the initials of the company. And that, adds Krishna, was as far as corporate design went. With the entry of MNCs, Krishna says that Indian companies got into ``the mood to do things in style. Competition also provoked a strong need for Indian companies to assess their own personality, and search for an identity.''
The fact is that not only companies have changed, but so have their audience. Krishna says: ``If you send out a letter, it matters. There is an impact... people assess you on the contact. Project yourself... in your letterhead, visiting cards... and create a good impression.'' He adds: ``The first impression made by a company is often the lasting impression.'' The corporate mark can be anything -- a word, a picture, a symbol, any visual element.
There is a growing realisation that the company (or the product) needs to be identified quickly by the audience that is exposed to hundreds or thousands of marks through different media. More importantly, the company also needs an identity wherever its visible: a courier service will need an identity in all its vans/trucks; the corporate HQ will need huge signboards; a consumer goods brand will need a visual identity for its packaging and visibility in the shelves. The truth is that the mark plays a pivotal role in the branding exercise. True, creating an identity is not only a question of a mark but also a question of communication and consequently, perception.
The point is, however, that the first thing that one would need to communicate is a mark. And, this mark appears in every piece of communication that goes out of the organisation. It is, therefore, important to have a mark that will: One, reflect the personality of the company; two, be visually attractive; three, easy to register and recall (which means a mark that is made up of simple elements -- not too many colours etc.); and four, be easily used in different media and materials. All these require a specialist corporate designer. The mass communication programme for any company -- its advertising and public relations -- could be called its `voice'. The `tone' of the voice depends on the company's marketing strategy and marketing style. The `tone' is applied to the voice by the choice of certain styles or words. These are accentuated by the use of design for visual elements (which includes colours, graphics, typefaces, and placement).
The starting point of any communication package is a mark and this mark has to gel with the tone the company has decided to adopt. A trendy ad for a lifestyle product that displays a conservative mark will create dissonance in the mind of the audience. The company's mark also has to fit the company's personality. It shouldn't want to project a fake image. Says Krishna: ``The core must be real.'' Krishna adds that it is very easy to project any image through the use of visual elements: ``Graphics are so powerful. And there are around 7000 typefaces, each of which can provoke a different emotion.''
From the designer's point of view, Krishna says that the most easy client for them are founder driven companies. The founder's vision and his views drives the company and its easy for him to profile the company for a `perfect fit'. Krishna says it is more difficult where the CEO of the company is not interested in the project and the company's communication division participates in the exercise. He adds: ``There's a lot of distortion because of PR.'' Graphics, colours and typefaces go through cycles of being in fashion and out. Only classical design concepts and typefaces stand the test of time. Unfortunately, some Indian companies prefer to let advertising agencies, or sometimes their printer work on their corporate mark.
Krishna says, ``Advertising agencies, by nature, go for the `in' thing, and after five years the company is stuck with a mark that looks outdated. It is actually better for the company to use a simple mark that is to the point.'' He adds: ``Most Indian companies think that design is forever. They go in for a design change only in the case of a name change.'' Designs have to evolve. The design is a reflection of the personality of the company and the personality itself changes with time. To keep the design in sync with the personality, the design too will have to evolve with the personality. The personality of the company is affected not only by time itself but also other changes: integration including mergers and acquisitions; restructuring including spin-offs and divestiture; and diversifications. These changes have to be faithfully reflected in the identity of the company.
Krishna says that his work falls into three categories: One, to create a corporate identity for a new company or for a company that does not have one; two, evolving an identity for an existing company; and three, creating a new identity that is radically new for an existing company. An example of each of these is presented: Signet created a new (and first) identity for JKM, primarily to effectively address its European audience; A new (and radically different) identity was designed for Cholamandalam Investment Finance Company to support its on-going expansion and globalisation plans; and, the identity of Shriram Fibres Limited was fine tuned to faithfully reflect its diversifications.