Gappiya Thinking Brand Design

Prompt

I started Gappiya Thinking 8 years ago without following a clear brand guide. In May 2023, we reached a milestone of 100,000 subscribers on YouTube.

This made me realise that it’s time to take our brand more seriously and develop a cohesive brand identity.

Problem Statement

Gappiya Thinking encountered significant branding challenges, including outdated identity, inconsistent brand elements, and difficulty standing out in a saturated market.

These issues undermined its ability to effectively communicate core values and engage with its target audience.

Research and analysis

Brand Audit

I did a quick brand audit looking at the existing brand elements like logo, colour palette, typography, and overall visual language. It was very clear to me that the current brand is scattered and not aligned with Gappiya thinking core values.

Market Research

Then I conducted a brief market research to gain insights into the industry landscape, market trends and competitor analysis. I recorded my findings in a simple Google doc so I can organise all the findings in one place.

Target Audience analysis

I didn’t have much time to go through actual interviews but I looked at social media analytics to quickly understand the basic demographics and psychographics of the target audience.

Brand strategy development

Based on the data I gathered during the research and analysis phase, I developed and refined the new Gappiya Thinking brand strategy. Again, I was on a tight deadline so I kept everything simple.

Brand Positioning

I positioned Gappiya Thinking as a creative, bold and innovative brand that combines modern and minimalistic user experience.

Brand essence and attributes

Established brand attributes such as innovation, boldness and simplicity.

Unique Value Proposition and Audience Alignment

I highlighted the brand’s strong association with a minimalistic approach to life. Additionally, I aligned the brand with its target audience to ensure it remains approachable and relatable, avoiding an overly sophisticated image

Concept Development

I then started sketching on my iPad for initial concepts. Then quickly jumped to Illustrator to create some of the ideas I thought would work.

Visual Identity

I kept the current visual identity as a root and enhanced it. I created a modern logo and expanded the colour palette so it can be applied to a wide variety of platforms. Finally I developed a unique illustration style to match the new brand strategy.

Colour palette

I picked sky blue and dark blue as my primary and secondary colours as the colour “blue” has “calmness, tranquillity, and stability” effects. This matches with Gappiya Thinking brand attributes very well.Then I used Google material design to help me develop a colour system.

Brand Collateral

I enhanced the brand presence through a variety of online and offline brand collateral, ensuring a cohesive overall look and feel. Witnessing the brand personality evolve into my initial vision was truly rewarding, as it began to reflect the intended identity perfectly.