What is Visual Identity

The visual design of a website is critical when establishing a strong corporate identity on the web. The look and feel of a website will quickly influence a user with regard to how they perceive the image of the business. It will determine whether they feel comfortable or included in the site’s target audience and whether or not they feel the business is professional or trustworthy. If at a first glance, the visual design does not connect on these levels with the user the likelihood of them using the site or purchasing products is greatly diminished. Therefore, the site must quickly capitalize on a known and trusted pre-existing corporate identity, or establish a new corporate identity that is professional and appropriate. The purpose of this chapter is to examine design factors and determine which of these factors affect people’s ability to identify and perceive information on web sites. This chapter discusses how design elements can cross media boundaries and create a consistent and effective user experience between the physical business and its presence on the web. This chapter explains branding elements such as logos, color systems, typography, grid structure, photography, graphic style, and the visual hierarchy of information with regard to how they can be used in static and dynamic applications.