Establish Your Brand Identity Using The 5 Elements of Feng Shui

Just like the foundation or of your house, your brand is the cornerstone of your business and sets the tone for everything that happens thereafter. And just as our homes communicate an energy inside and out, so do all aspects of your brand messaging and design.

Ultimately, the same vibrational energy of what your business puts out will be what comes back to you. Being intentional and mindful in your choices will ensure that your brand, and energy, is unified, cohesive and balanced to attract success and good fortune.

Why is brand design important? Optimized design and data visualization helps make complex information accessible to a diverse audience, and is especially beneficial for energy-sensitive individuals or the nearly 20 percent of the global population diagnosed as Neurodiverse.

So how do you create a harmonious, engaging and ND-friendly brand identity? It's all about the details!

Components of A Brand

There will be many "experts" who claim to be able to build your brand:

Ghostwriters

Business coaches

Copywriters

Designers

Influencers

But before you hand over your brand identity and strategy, make sure you know the following key information:

- your differentiation

- your ideal customers

- your brand personality

- your position in the market

- your values, vision, and mission

- your key guarantees and benefits

- your sales touchpoints

Your Business Sector

First, identify what elements your business niche falls in. Every business or entrepreneur will be reflected in one of the five earth elements, which are connected to the physical/sensory world. Of course, not every business will fall under a single element. In fact, most will overlap into multiple elements.

Fire

Material: Light, Heat
Sense: Touch
Examples: Creative Studios, Artists & Performers, Fast Food, Retail Stores, Sports, Massage Therapists, Electronics.

Earth

Material: Dirt, Stone
Sense: Taste.
Examples: Mining, Masonry, Construction, Fine Dining, Grocery Stores, Hospitality, Real Estate, Agriculture, Ceramic Arts, Waste Management, Law Enforcement, Health Care

Metal

Material: Metals
Sense: Smell
Examples: Banking, Accounting, Technology, Government Offices, Manufacturing, Security, Engineering

Water

Material: Water
Sense: Hearing
Examples: Cleaning Services, Tourism, Transportation, Spas, Recruitment Agencies, Marine Studies, Outdoor Recreation, Marketing & Communications.

Wood

Material: Plants, Trees
Sense: Sight
Examples: Education, Child Care, Floral Business, Clothing, Publishing, Carpentry, Biological Sciences, Medicine, Lumber.

"Man must go back to nature for information."

Thomas Paine

Brand Story

Tell your brand story as you would the dynamic cycle of the elements on the earth - grounded in history, full of anticipation and on-going transformation.

Water: beginning, founding
Wood: character development
Fire: challenges, failures, gaps
Earth: history, mission
Metal: vision, strategy

Brand Imagery

Feng shui is all about metaphors and symbolism. There are countless subliminal messages you are communicating with the visuals in your marketing. Choose graphics, photography, vidoe or illustrations based on what represents the highest meaning of success in your niche - what are it's innate strengths?

Fire: active and social people or animals.
Earth: stabile and nurtured people or animals.
Wood: landscapes, nature, growth.
Water: mobility, movement, transitions, leadership.
Metal: structures, systems.

Brand Voice & Tone

Begin to craft your taglines, key phrases and other communication styles of your brand based on that element's "personality"- their innate qualities and characteristics. For the best energy (and customer appeal), aim to be explicitly clear, concise and consistent in what you say and how say it and strive to communicate in a way customers will perceive as uplifting and cheerful.

Fire: friendly, passionate & enthusiastic
Earth: nurturing, practical, grounding
Metal: organized, efficient, disciplined
Water: contemplative, dreaming, creative
Wood: inspirational, progressive, productive

Brand Colors

Color psychology is a crucial element in branding, shaping consumers' perceptions and interactions with a brand. Each color carries distinct emotions and associations, influencing purchasing choices and fostering brand loyalty. Brands should purposefully select hues that resonate with their values, target demographic, and intended brand identity, thereby strengthening brand visibility and fostering deeper connections with customers.

Each element has a corresponding color scheme which evokes certain moods and emotions. Choose your colors strategically to mirror your brand personality.

Fire: reds, oranges, purples, pinks, or bright yellows.
- romance, strength, intensity, passion, urgency
Earth: dark yellows, tans, browns
- optimism, warmth, creativity, youthfulness, confidence, joy
Metal: grays or whites.
Water: blues or greys.
- trust, dependability, professionalism, security, loyalty
Wood: browns or greens.
- sustainability, growth, health, wealth, environment, freshness

ND Notes:

Single-hue color scales, especially in muted, neutral or pastel hues can be a better solution for many projects. Using drastically different colors to differentiate data points can be overstimulating and overwhelming to some.

Logo Shape

Incorporate shapes in your logo, including the overall shape or the shapes of symbols within the logo. These shapes are associated with each element:

Fire: Triangular
Earth: Square
Metal: Round
Water: Wavy
Wood: Rectangular

Brand Typography

Having a primary font that aligns with your element is important, but also it's best to choose two other distinct typefaces which complement the primary. A triad is considered lucky in feng shui, and the interaction will create a dynamic visual interest on your website and marketing materials as they are strategically dispersed through key words, headings and subheadings.

Fire: edgy and angular
Earth: square lettering
Wood: thin narrow , serifs
Water: cursive, scripts, italics
Metal: rounded, modern san-serifs

ND Notes: Serif fonts, like Times New Roman, may be less readable for neurodiverse audiences, so it's advisable to use sans-serif fonts. Sans-serif fonts offer better readability and flexibility through different weights and sizes.

Other Considerations

Destructive Elements

The most important thing to remember when designing your feng shui brand is to avoid elements that are connected through an overpowering Yin cycle. To understand this concept, simply refer back to nature and visualize the interaction between two opposing elements:

Wood consumes Water
Fire burns Wood
Earth smothers Fire
Metal blocks Earth
Water erodes Metal

Clutter

Avoid clutter when crafting copy or visuals. Give lots of space between sentences, paragraphs, photos and more. White space is extremely valued in feng shui because it allows Chi to circulate freely, so make sure this is incorporated into your brand's style guidelines. This helps significantly with readability, and from a digital/SEO perspective it's a win because it invites the reader to linger on your page longer.

Create a clear visual hierarchy to help readers to easily find the title, description, primary graphic, and key.
Break up large bodies of text with visual elements to enhance comprehension.
Balance symmetry and asymmetry for visual stability.

Flow

Patterns, both organic and geometric, appeal to the human need for predictability and repetition and is particularly important for neurodivergent audiences. Structure can improve understanding and navigation of large amounts of information.

How To Use Your Feng Shui Brand

Display your energy whenever and wherever possible. Take all opportunities, small and large, to market yourself. Using your consistent visual across a variety of platforms and mediums creates the strongest vibrational frequency and a memorable, effective brand. The most common examples

Website
Print promotional materials
Business cards
Letterhead
Email signature
Digital assets
Employee uniforms
Customer freebies
Billboards and other signage
Events

Feng Shui principles intersect with marketing by emphasizing simplicity and energetic alignment. Both disciplines aim to create environments—be it physical or digital—by focusing on harmony, balance, and personal resonance.

Feng Shui's emphasis on energy flow parallels marketing's need for cohesive brand messages and visually captivating designs and consistent, clear messaging. Implementing Feng Shui concepts in marketing strategies helps you craft your brand, resonate with your target audiences and foster a positive and engaging brand experience.

Need assistance crafting YOUR one-of-a-kind feng shui brand? Let's chat!

Love, Light (and LESS)

Erin Bowers is a certified feng shui consultant, holistic business coach, and organic growth marketer for earth and energy-based businesses.

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