When thinking of companies that are design-forward, most people would likely think of consumer-facing businesses like Apple, Adidas or Google. All the companies you can name are in the tech, retail, financial services sectors. The design industry celebrates these types of brands by focusing on their popular digital products. However, much action has shifted to the B2B sector over the last decade where some of the biggest design challenges have come from industrial manufacturers and technology companies.

Good design is an essential ingredient in any brand’s success. It allows companies to attract new customers and project a positive image in a hyper-competitive marketplace.

When it comes to creating a good visual identity for a business-to-business company, many CEOs believe that spending money on great design is frivolous, a low priority spending that isn’t aligned with business goals and objectives. They think that good design could lead to accusations of arrogance or pointing to the investment in design as the main reason for inflated prices. However, this misconception underestimates how important amazing branding can be – especially when it comes to attracting the right customers.

Benefits of Design for B2B Companies

Making Human Connections

Design is based on the principle of making emotional connections. By understanding what visuals and color theory means, you can easily use them to your advantage – red conveys a warning message, while an image that makes us smile can boost our serotonin levels.

Knowing these behaviors and how to shift perspectives is a powerful thing. Using design as a tool, businesses can turn branding into  an influential tool for building a trusting relationship between businesses.

By leveraging this tool effectively, you can create positive behavioral changes from a good brand image including increased conversions, faster purchase decisions and higher levels of trust.

For brands working between businesses, it is essential to focus on the humanistic connection in order to connect with customers at every level. That’s what branding design can do for you.

Stand Out with Branding

It is likely that your business has a large number of direct and indirect competitors. Poor B2B design can lead to stagnation in an extremely competitive sector. The quickest way to failing in your business is to blend in with the crowd.

In the competitive tech market of 2022, differentiation is key to success. One way companies can stand out is by having great design. Tech products in this space are all similar, so it takes a special touch to be successful.

The personality and values of your B2B brand will be determined by the answers to three questions: What is your brand’s mission? How do you show the world who you are? Why they should work with you instead of someone else?

All this can be communicated effectively with your brand design. Sure, a lot of it will be in content but before talking about consumer behavior and how they consume your content, we’ll need to talk about capturing their attention. What a successful B2B brand does exceptionally well is to create scroll-stopping content with amazing design.

3 Rules to Keep in Mind

1. It Should Support Your Message

The number one job of your visual aesthetic is to communicate your message effectively. Every graphic should have a purpose. Remember, the ultimate goal should be revenue. If your designs aren’t doing that, they’ve lost their meaning and are merely decorations.

2. It Should Help Your Audience Find Answers Quickly

This comes down to simple hierarchy and a clear structure. Keeping everything in the right place visually can help your user find the information they need quickly. Making your marketing material or website scannable can produce a better user experience.

3. It Should Match Your Brand

With clarity and purpose in place, B2B businesses should also focus on consistency. That’s what your brand guidelines and design systems are for. Brand recall is a powerful thing and with a consistent look and feel across the board, your audience will see the effort you’ve put into building a solid business.

In Conclusion

Every B2B business deserves to get great, consistent design. While an in-house team isn’t necessarily a feasible thing for many startups and small businesses, design companies like Mad Creative Beanstalk is a good option. After all, design can play a critical role in making a business more competitive. Are you ready to invest in building a business that last? If that’s a yes, you’ll need brand design included in the mix.

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