Websites, social media posts, and other collateral are only successful when tailored to a brand’s specific target audience. If you want to clearly express your brand’s message in a way that will engage your customers, you should shape your look to what those customers want to see. Here are some aspects of your design plan that will likely be influenced by your target audience.
Colors
Choosing colors is a crucial first step in the design process. Color has a significant influence on customers’ moods and attention spans. Bright and flashy colors that quickly grab the attention are often indicative of entertainment or children’s’ brands. More serious businesses such as a bank or airline, will likely prefer more muted colors like blue or black. Many designers start by selecting one or two main colors and then build out an entire color palette around those colors.
Fonts
Different fonts express different moods — you wouldn’t use the same typography for an ice cream truck and a wedding invitation. Fun, decorative, cartoon-style fonts that appeal to kids often inspire joy, excitement and nostalgia. Scripts and serif fonts have a more classic feel which tend to be more appropriate for formal events and serious businesses. Depending on the age of your audience, you may also need to adjust font sizes. Senior citizens, people with sight problems, or children who are just learning to read often require bigger fonts so they can understand your content without struggling.
Graphics and Images
Graphics and images are an essential part of the branding process. Graphics, cartoons, and animations are more likely to appeal to younger audiences, while traditional photos or videos are more appropriate for an older age range. Whatever you decide to choose for the imagery, make sure that they form a cohesive picture of your brand identity and appeal to your target personas.
Ultimately, the first thing a user engages with, before reading any content on the page or post, is the design. The design is responsible for initially drawing the customer in and piquing their interest. That said, you need to find the right combination of colors, fonts, and images that will appeal to your target audience.
