A BRAND IS NOTHING without a solid business,” cautions Dr. Craig Miller, an optometrist and CEO of Twenty Brands, which consults on branding with optometry businesses in the Columbus, OH, area. Completing the thought, he adds “and a business is nothing without a solid brand.”
Twenty Brands’ latest client, The Optical. Co in Columbus, is off to a flying start when it comes to satisfying the latter half of this equation. The optical start-up, launched just last year, is mindful that consistency is a core fundamental in branding. The overall look, according to Miller, was “strategically crafted for simplicity’s sake,” and there is an undeniable adherence to clean design throughout the physical store, its marketing materials and online presence. Branding elements are applied on buttons, wall signage, image-heavy advertising and marketing materials, business cards and elsewhere.
“Red is our color of choice. It’s our logo color and key elements color, but is found very sparsely throughout the store. This allows anything with ‘The Optical. Co’ to stand out, and not just blend in. The use of choice fonts and color provides consistency with our branding and marketing, but it doesn’t overshadow the core product that we’re selling, our eyewear,” Miller says.
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The simplicity and light touch allows the focus to remain on The Optical. Co’s high quality brands and, according to Miller, serves to enhance the “stories behind the brands that make it all possible. We tell that story through our marketing. Regardless of how we get the message out, we focus on very visual copy. We prefer marketing images that are creative and catch your eye. Keep it simple, to the point, and showcase our brand. We’re very lucky to have eyewear partners that share this same creative eye, so we are able to utilize a lot of their product images in our marketing as well.”
Miller advises independent ECPs looking for a brand revamp to keep things simple and subtle, tap into their core message and deliver it creatively and consistently. And don’t be afraid to ask for help. “When in doubt, reach out to the experts and find a partner that is as dedicated as you are in helping build your brand,” he says.
Easy on the Eye
The Optical. Co strives for a ‘creative and eyecatching’ look.
Telling Tales
Consultant Dr. Craig Miller says effective branding lets the eyewear’s story emerge.
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Seeing Red
The color is used to allow anything bearing the store’s name to stand out.
Keep it Simple
Subtlety goes a long way, advises Miller.