I recently read an article in Creative Review magazine about why we actually like things. Whether it be music, art, a film. a website or a piece of graphic design.
We can in fact blame it on a list of factors: Influence from our parents and peers, our level of education, our environment, what is cool etc. Maybe it has genetic roots.
Maybe it could be nothing more than a mathematical equation. The golden ratio, an irrational mathematical constant, approximately 1.6180339887, links popular art, music and architecture, was used extensively by Da Vinci himself as the basis of his work and is still widely used today as a proportional system which is in fact ‘more pleasing to the eye.’ Read more about its use in art and design here: golden-ratio-in-art
Can you answer the question now, why you like or dislike your brand identity? Did the designer convince you that it was good. That it in fact serves a purpose? That it is aimed at your customers and not you?
Most good design is arrived at by research and strategy. Paul Rand summed it up nicely: [Design} “Providing meaning to a mass of unrelated needs…” Surely then it doesn’t matter whether you like it, as long as it sells product. Hello client, here is what we say you need. We are designers, this is our job, we are right and this is the right look/approach to your project. We’ve done the research and this is the answer.
No.
You might be using the most famous graphic designer in the land but if you the client doesn’t like what is produced on an emotional level then things aren’t as they should be. Your brand identity has to have your emotional backing. You are the one who has to sell your product. You are the one who has to invest in your business. And you are the one who has to carry this emotion to your customers and employees. If you like something and nobody else does, ask them why. Maybe they will convince you that another solution may be better.
Remember, there is no solution. Design is organic. If something is not working for you… or you don’t like it, change it. Everyone else is.