A brand element is a logo, slogan, name, or design that’s used to give a brand an identity. Foster Farms uses the image of a rooster as their logo, the slogan “Always Natural. Always Fresh.”, and the word “Farms” in their name to indicate they’re not an industrial “chicken factory”.

If you’re creating a new brand (or trying to revitalize an old one), pick brand elements that consumers can instantly recognize and recall. It’s also a good idea to choose brand elements that are descriptive of the products under that brand. Ask yourself, “If the brand elements are all a consumer knows about my brand, how would they think or feel about the product?” Based solely on the name, a consumer might expect Avon’s Skin So Soft to soften their skin and Heineken’s Dos Equis to be a Mexican-style beer.

There are six core criteria you can use to evaluate potential brand elements:

1. Meaningful – Does the brand element suggest something about the type of person who might purchase the products? Is it suggestive of both the products and the category they belong to? Good examples are Nestle’s Lean Cuisine, FHP’s O’Cedar, and GSK’s Aquafresh.
2. Adaptable – Can the brand element be updated as
   time goes by? The Aunt Jemima logo has been modified at least once a decade since the brand was introduced in 1893.
3. Memorable – Can the brand element be easily
   recognized and recalled by consumers? Does the brand element reinforce itself both when the product is purchased and later when it’s actually used? Generally, the simpler the brand element the better it is (think about P&G’s “billion dollar brands” with single-syllable names like Tide and Crest).
4. Protectible– Can the brand element be trademarked or otherwise legally protected? Can you keep it from becoming a generic name for an entire section of a category? (Kitty Litter and Kleenex are examples of brand elements that have become generic.)
5. Transferable – Can you use the brand element when you
   introduce new products to the category? Revlon’s Heavenly Metal brand of lipstick could be used to introduce similar shades of eye shadows.
6. Likable – Does the brand element appeal to one of the
   five senses (especially visually or verbally)? Softsheen Carson’s Dark and Lovely brand is a good example.