Now that you know what brand assets are and how important they are for your business, you’ve probably created quite a few already. But as the number of these assets grows, managing and organizing them can quickly become overwhelming and chaotic.
Just like how you declutter your desk, managing your brand assets effectively is essential. This process is known as brand asset management, and it’s easier said than done.
In this article, we’ll look at six strategies that make brand asset management a walk through the park.
Utilize BAM tools
The world today is full of conveniences. Gone are the days when business owners had to manage everything manually with paperwork. Now, there are software solutions that make complex tasks, like brand asset management, much more straightforward. Brand Asset Management (BAM) tools are platforms specifically designed to help you create, organize, and manage your brand assets with ease.
There are numerous BAM platforms out there in the market today, each with its pros and cons. One innovative option is Ethos, a platform that allows you to create exceptional brand assets in just a few clicks. It even incorporates AI tools that can generate taglines and slogans that not only reflect your brand’s core values but also serve as subtle calls to action. Best of all, Ethos offers a 30-day free trial—no credit card required—so you can test its capabilities before making any commitments.
Centralize Storage and Organization
Your business likely owns a vast number of brand assets, and with a centralized platform now in place, it’s time to get them organized effectively.
Rather than having all the assets sit on different platforms, create folders within your BAM tool’s centralized space. A good practice is to organize assets by domains rather than by function. This means structuring your folder hierarchy at the top level based on specific teams, product lines, or thematic divisions—rather than simply separating photos, videos, and other asset types.
For instance, you could categorize assets into folders like “Shirts,” “Hats,” or “Brand,” under which assets align with different product lines or audience segments. This way, stakeholders can easily find the materials they need based on the project or focus area.
Moreover, adopt a consistent folder structure and avoid unnecessary sub-folders. This will help your stakeholders and team members to find your brand assets hassle-free and subsequently improve efficiency and proficiency.
Implement Consistent Branding Guidelines
Consistency is the most important thing when it comes to branding. A BAM tool helps you achieve this through brand guidelines. Just as the name implies, these guidelines ensure all your brand assets follow a consistent approach across diverse platforms.
Having consistent branding guidelines leads to uniform brand assets. They’ll also help manage brand assets effectively and maintain a cohesive brand presence across all channels.
While there’s no limit to how many branding guidelines you can create, beginners should start small. Focus on developing a few clear brand guidelines and style guides, such as:
- Create a unique and memorable logo and create guidelines for usage and placement.
- Choose a primary set of colors (usually 2-3) that reflect your brand’s personality and values and define specific scenarios where each color should be used.
- Pick a font that aligns with your brand’s personality (modern, classic, playful, etc.).Provide rules for where each font should be used (e.g., headings, body text, call-to-action buttons).
- Choose a set of icons that represent your niche (e.g., technology, education, fashion). Icons should be simple, recognizable, and aligned with your brand’s visual style.
- Define a specific photography style that matches your brand aesthetic (e.g., candid, high-contrast, minimal, vibrant).
- Collect web-specific brand elements to promote brand cohesion across online platforms.
- Compile the brand guidelines in your BAM personal space for easy sharing.
Set Permissions and Access Control
Not everyone needs access to all your brand assets. In the future, if all of your employees and ex-employees from different sectors have access to all of your brand assets, it’ll likely end up creating chaos for your online presence.
To avoid this, set permissions and access control. Ethos allows users to set who can view, access, or share brand assets. This level of accessibility not only protects the integrity of your brand assets but also prevents unauthorized changes that could lead to inconsistencies.
Regularly Update and Archive Assets
Creating brand guidelines is not a one-time effort. The world is constantly evolving, and if you don’t want to fall behind, you have to adapt along with it. As new market trends and technologies emerge, older designs can quickly become outdated and negatively impact your online presence.
Take Lamborghini, the iconic luxury car brand, as an example. Its previous logo stayed for 20 long years and fostered emotional connections with car enthusiasts all across the world. But as the design world shifted to a rather minimalist approach, Lamborghini’s branding managers recognized the need for change. They transitioned from the intricate bull logo to a sleek silhouette design.
It’s paramount that you regularly audit your brand asset library to remove obsolete files and archive assets that are no longer in use. This keeps your library organized and ensures that only relevant assets are accessible.
Automate Asset Distribution
Traditionally, many brands created their branding guidelines and assets in PDF formats. Whenever there was even the slightest change to these assets, they had to resend the entire PDF to all employees and stakeholders. This approach not only compromised efficiency and proficiency but also appeared unprofessional.
Now, with the advancement of Brand Asset Management (BAM) platforms, making minor adjustments to your branding assets is a breeze. You can easily update your guidelines directly within the BAM platform, and all your employees and stakeholders will have access to the most recent guidelines and branding assets.
Bottomline:
In a nutshell, when you approach branding the right way, it can be an enjoyable and rewarding experience. A well-defined brand asset management strategy will help you surpass your competitors in terms of branding. You’ll foster emotional connections with your target audience, and consequently, you’ll gain countless leads.
The six strategies mentioned above will guide you in organizing, maintaining, and enhancing your brand assets effectively. That said, happy branding!
