What Is The Difference Between A Brand And A Logo?

At Chirp Media, we’re big advocates of building a strong brand. With new clients in the early stages of their business, the conversation about the difference between a brand and a logo often comes up. Most people confuse the two or make the mistake of thinking that a logo is enough to build a brand.

However, there’s quite a big difference between a logo design and brand identity. We could take this opportunity to define both but, if you do a quick web search, you’ll come across plenty of resources that will tell you exactly how a brand and a logo differs. 

Instead, we reverse engineer the two components for a deeper understanding of the differences between a brand and a logo.

What a logo doesn’t do. 

A logo design is a visual graphic that defines your business. It serves to showcase the character of your brand and, if designed well, can help your brand stand out in a competitive market. 

What your logo doesn’t do is tell the story of your brand.

To see this in action, let’s look at Jane’s new clothing company. She began by selling blank T-shirts made with material sourced from a third world country that provides jobs for impoverished individuals.

She makes enough money to launch a professionally designed website that features the story of why her clothing company exists - to help support heart-centred companies that provide living wages for families. Jane sets up a pop-up shop where she meets customers and tells them about her story as a once impoverished woman who had the opportunity to immigrate to Canada and who established a business for the purpose of giving back. People who buy her clothing feel proud to contribute to a good cause.

She did this all by selling blank tees without a logo. Soon after, she hires a professional designer to create a logo that represents her company that she then puts on all of her clothing. 

While an amazing logo design could help customers identify Jane’s clothing, a logo doesn’t tell your story and doesn’t create the memorable experiences for customers like Jane did in her pop-up shop. Essentially, a logo can represent your story after your customer gets to know you and is an important component to help your customers remember your product and business.

What a brand doesn’t do. 

A brand is the way your customers view your business. A strong brand identity is achieved through a consistent tone and a set of values that become the basis of how your business operates. 

A brand doesn’t represent your product.

To dive deeper into this, let’s take a big brand name like Coca-Cola. If a bill was passed tomorrow that required the destruction of all Coca-Cola products, the brand would still be there. Even without a bottle of cola in your hand, you will still know Coca-Cola. 

If Coca-Cola’s beverage products suddenly became illegal on the market, the company could start over and start selling mobile devices. People would still associate the brand Coca-Cola with “happiness in a bottle” and as a timeless, classic, and trusted company.

This example reminds us that brands exist solely as stories in people’s minds. Having a strong brand identity is a powerful strategy that helps consumers choose your product even in a saturated market.

The bottom line

Building a strong brand is a foundational and crucial step in raising the value of your business. When branding is done right, companies experience wider recognition, maintain an exceptional reputation with customers, and withstands changes in the market.

A company that successfully tells their story through their brand can benefit from a visually impactful logo that reminds customers about their products and services. Defining your brand identity serves your business for the long-term. If you’re ready to create a business that stands out in the market, let’s talk! Our passionate team at Chirp Media is ready to answer your questions.