Curating a Slow-Living Brand: The Basics
Curating a Slow-Living Brand: The Basics.
A business's ethos is the backbone of its success. Creating a memorable, artistic, and timeless image can be difficult, but it doesn't have to be.
Creating a Slow-Living Brand is all about consistency, which means that every time someone encounters your brand they will know who you are and what you do, they will feel the Slow-Living ethos that your brand oozes and will feel a sense of calm from your brand's presence. I often have clients and friends who are curious about how to create an effective slow-living branding strategy, especially when we mainly associate business and all it entails with the faster-paced more intense lifestyle that we are mostly accustomed to. I have decided to put a pinch of my knowledge down here for anyone wanting to craft a sustainable, slow-living brand that is intentional and aspirational; including choosing the right name for your venture, creating a logo that reflects this name, and ultimatley crafting language around them.
Here are a few ways to curate a meaningful slow-living brand
Naming Your Brand
Striving to Create an intentional name for your brand that is unique, memorable, and reflects the product or service you offer is paramount. You want to try and stick to softer words, sounds, and tones, a name that has a natural flow to it, and represents your artistic visuals. Consider brand names with soft, natural words such as Dawn, Blush, River, Breeze, and Meadow or words that have slow and calming connotations such as: Chill, Harmony, Lullaby or even words that are associated with the slow-living way of life such as Unhurried, Serene, and Tranquil. You want the name of your brand to represent you but to also feel welcoming, like an open door that anyone could step in. Imagine your brand is a shop, your name is the signage, it is the first port of call for drawing people in and also the first thing that could potentially scare someone away, so ensure that you are curating a name that feels homely, familiar, and warming.
Creating A Logo
A slow-living brand needs an equally as elegant and understated logo to match, it should be reflective of your name and the ethos you are trying to portray. Try not to use too many colors and keep the fonts soft with clean lines, your logo should be simple yet memorable and convey the essence of your brand. The use of negative space here is notably important as it leaves room for people to have their own interpretation of what you are trying to say with any graphical design elements, we want to keep things simple and visually pleasing. Consider colours that promote a feeling of serenity and calm like shades of green, blue, and beige. When it comes to typography we want something simple, you have to remember that you are a slow-living brand and you don't need to overcomplicate, your content and artistic creations will speak for you so considering minimal fonts like Helvetica or Garamond will work wonders for your artistic image.
Reflecting Your Values
Your website is the online home of your business and it should reflect everything that makes you special, from the products and services you offer to who you are as a company. Use clean lines, calming colours, and simple typography to create an elegant and easy to digest online space, try incorporating some slow living language in your website's design, and remember: we are all about creating a feeling of ease and tranquility for our customers, clients or readers, make sure this shines through on your website.
Slow Language
Use language that is calming, reflective, and knowledgeable. Incorporate your Slow-Living ethos into the copy of your website and let the clients know that in your world, they can relax, be safe and enjoy the journey. Always have emphasis on experience rather than speed and make it clear that you intend to build connections with your clientele. Just be mindful to keep the same tone across all forms of media (social, web copy, print) so that it is clear who your brand truly is and what you represent so that your clients can be confident and comfortable in deciding to work with you.
Creating Your Community
Creating a community around your brand is important to the Slow-Living Branding strategy as it allows you to connect with other brands and potential clients, those who also appreciate the beauty in living slower and more mindfully. It is these individuals who you are going to find the most reward from working with so crafting a local or online community of slow-living buddies is something that I cannot recommend enough when trying to establish an artistic slow-living brand.
Consider your brand imagery
Creating brand imagery that represents Slow-Living also helps to demonstrate what your values are. When people see your visual representation, they will know that you are a company that is all about creating a lifestyle that minimizes stress and encourages more of a meaningful every day. Focus on high-quality, visually stunning imagery that creates a sense of calm; like the use of natural light, serene colour palettes, and minimalistic compositions.
