Ask the Expert

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the expert Why should local businesses and councils care about branding, and how do you help?

We are experts in all areas of branding, but we particularly focus on using design to connect brands, businesses and organisations with people and communities through their physical environment and the places they live, work and play.

We are passionate about design, and the potential for good design to change and improve the world and the society we live in. We want to create work that makes people feel better about the places where they live and work, and more connected to the people that they share those places with. We understand that branding and design, as part of a wider people-centred placemaking strategy, can help to improve neighbourhoods and build stronger communities, so we have recently really enjoyed having the opportunity to work on a number of projects with Hounslow Council which have focused on just that, like the “Welcome Back” murals in Brentford and the branding for “Reneighbouring Hounslow, Estate Regeneration Programme”.

We believe that as designers we have a responsibility to try and create positive change. We use the skills, experiences, and insights that we have gained over years of working within the commercial design sector to help to create places and experiences for people which will help them to become more engaged with the organisations that shape their communities. And those same principles apply to projects for commercial businesses too.

We love creating branding and marketing for businesses which are centred around people and places and creating really engaging communications and environments which help them connect to their customers and stakeholders.

We look at the physical environment as a potent opportunity for businesses to communicate their brand and tell their story through the experience that their customers and staff have when they connect with them. And that is not just about feel-good warm-and-fuzzy, it can have tangible business and commercial benefits too.

Creating an attractive and visually stimulating workplace helps to boost staff morale and loyalty, and generate a sense of shared values, personality, and identity. An inspiring working environment has been shown to improve employee well-being and a happier and more energised workforce. And of course, it helps to create a more enjoyable and memorable experience of your brand for visitors too. Away from the office, we all know that retail has been going through a particularly tough time over the past few years. Environmental branding is one of the most impactful yet cost-effective ways that retailers and shopping centres can reach out to new customers, and help to retain existing customers, by creating immersive and invigorating experiences for them. And recent research in the US has shown that people are ten times more likely to share their experience in stores with unique design features on social media than those without.

And in cultural environments too, branding, and in particular environmental branding and wayfinding can really help to engage and stimulate visitors and audiences in theatres, museums, galleries and at sporting events, and make the experience that those visitors have so much more enjoyable. In short, branding is about building relationships with communities, stakeholders, and customers, and we do that by improving their experiences with the places, spaces and culture that are most important to them.

Simon Cohen

Simon Inc. Ltd