How Can a Mascot Character Increase Brand Awareness?

We all exist under harsh market conditions, and every business needs unique design solutions and tools that can distinguish its products or services from the crowd of competitors. Moreover, these should be light and unobtrusive options that, nevertheless, leave a lasting impression.

Mascot design has been building the reputation of various brands for decades, conveying their values and shaping their identity. The best mascot design ideas become iconic examples of successful advertising and marketing.

That is why we want to discuss the features of character design in the modern digital world, as well as share our own experience. How does it affect brand awareness? What makes a mascot design successful? And how to use it to improve your business?

What Is the App Mascot and How Does It Differ From Logo Design?

The mascot is literally a talisman or brand symbol. Many well-known companies use a mascot as an additional recognizable element of product and brand identity. But don’t confuse the mascot with the brand logo. It is an independent, extra element in the design, which is used to increase brand recognition and awareness. Sometimes the logo and the mascot for app are combined, and it is called an emblem.

When creating any digital product, professional designers try to convey a specific message to the user, as well as make their design as human-oriented as possible. They use various means of communication support for this, including creating an eye-catching logo design or a recognizable character. This is where the mascot comes into the picture, supporting the overall idea of the interface design and enhancing the branding.

A mascot logo from product design immediately comes to mind, such as Ronald McDonald at Mcdonald’s or the well-known wheel man at Michelin. M&M’s has gone further and generally has a group of characters of six candies, each of which has its own personality, color, and taste.

A few more examples of mascot logo design from the digital world

I think all Android users are familiar with the green robot; it plays the role of both a mascot and a brand emblem. And also, of course, all developers know Octocat from the treasury of knowledge  – GitHub.

I wonder who you remembered first? Maybe the red lion Lingualeo, which helps to learn foreign languages? This is also a great example of a memorable and successful mascot logo design.

So, a mascot logo is a character that is part of the brand, a member of the company family. It is perfect and complete. When creating, you give it not only shape and colors but also prescribe emotions and feelings. In this way, you can broadcast the company’s mood and attract customers close to you in spirit.

Sometimes the mascot acts as an assistant. Microsoft Office users should remember Clippy  – a paper clip whose purpose was to help first-time users quickly understand the program. This is an excellent example of mascot design when the character supports and assists users.

Why Create a Mascot Design for a Brand?

A well-designed mascot logos are an integral part of a brand’s personality. They have a huge impact on the brand and its further evolution, whether they are used for web apps, mobile applications, or print products. It helps businesses reach completely new heights of awareness and memorability. So let’s look at the benefits of such characters in more detail.

• Mascot design demonstrates your business values, as well as the services and products you offer, without a single word. One look is enough to understand exactly what the brand sells and why the client should choose it.
• Mascot logos help to establish a solid relationship with the target audience and increase loyalty and trust. It can set an associative link between the type of service and your brand. As soon as the client feels the need for a certain service, he will immediately think about your business.
• A successful mascot logo design is a valuable brand asset that can be actively used in marketing campaigns. 
• A custom mascot design supports brand identity, providing a serious competitive advantage in a fast-changing market. Among five identical products or service providers, the client will always choose the option that is the most recognizable, therefore, feels familiar.
• High-quality and creative mascot design makes any brand timeless. Cult mascots continue to broadcast the values of companies beyond time and any limitations.
• Mascot design can be an element of gamification of the user interface to make user onboarding easier and faster and the process of using the product more fun, engaging, and convenient. It is an integral part of a quality user experience.

So animation or logo design using mascots is a very profitable investment. Especially if you plan for your business to exist, remain successful, and develop for many, many years.

Want to see more cool designs? Check out our portfolio!

Features of Professional Mascots

So what should a mascot logo be?

The main character of your brand can be anything and anyone. The key things in mascot design are emotion and uniqueness, as well as the role that the character has to perform. It should become a friend or helper for your client. Visual lightness, quick understanding, and memorability should be integral points in creating mascot logo design.

Let’s consider the Ukrainian bank brand: MONO bank, which is modern and youthful. The brand’s mascot is a little lazy and cool cat. The cat appears as soon as you open the application on your phone. Thanks to gamification, using the bank is fun and easy. 

You can also see this mascot design on the brand’s merch; it appears on stickers and printed materials, which helps users learn about the bank’s existence rather quickly. The bank is already gaining demand and expanding beyond the borders of Ukraine. Of course, it is not just about the cat, but it performs its task flawlessly.

Key Takeaways

• A successful mascot design is about a strong concept based on the product features that should be embodied in the character.
• The best mascot design ideas support the brand’s value and set it apart from the competition.
• When creating a mascot logo design, it is worth searching the target audience, its needs, and wishes. It must “click” with the users’ feelings and emotions.
• Mascot design and logo design are different things, but mascots very often become part of the logo, as well as other components of the brand style. Therefore, making it flexible and providing room for customization or change is essential.
• Character design is an important component of UI/UX design that makes the process of using digital products gamified, more engaging, and fun.

Mascot Design With a Personality From Cadabra Studio

Let’s go through the mascot design process step by step.

Character creation

We at Cadabra studio also create mascot design and are ready to share this process with you.

First, we must know everything about the customer’s company, its positioning in the market, and the message that the leading brand character will broadcast.

For example, the White Rabbit design company asked us to create mascot logo for the brand. Judging by the company’s name, it is already clear who it will be  –  a white rabbit, of course. But what is his character?

We make the first sketches and try to catch the emotion.

The client liked the more humanized (human-like) images (c and d), namely the slightly carefree, a little bit lazy, and creative character d.

Cool, let’s move on.

Character sculpturing

At this stage, we have to draw a static figure of the character, main angles, details, mood, and feelings.

What we’ve got?

We’ve got a rabbit that is as white as a blank sheet of paper. The client’s company provides startup development and design services for various young brands.

So we’ve created quite a friendly and simple character, happy to make new acquaintances. It will look great both on the website, in logo design, and on the client’s printed products. He likes to eat green carrots. Who does not want to feed this rabbit?

Last touches

We’ve also designed images in the main angles (front, profile, three-quarters, and from the back), drawn details (paws, ears, movement of the tail, etc.), and facial expressions (joy, doubt, interest). All this will be useful not only for further character design but also for the rabbit itself, which will continue to acquire new forms and angles.

Finally, our white rabbit came to life and gives emotions to all users of the company’s web page. We’ve even created a small comic strip from the life of the white rabbit.

Check more images here.

Therefore, the mascot logo can become a brand legend, a friend for your audience, or an assistant for new users. The main thing is to give it superpowers and bring it to life.

Conclusion

The mascot logo is not just a part of the design concept but also an assistant and a guide for your users. This character can broadcast your business value, evoke the necessary emotions, and bond with customers to increase their loyalty.

Also, mascot design helps to significantly increase brand awareness, make the impression of your business timeless and expand the audience. This is a universal solution for any industry. Such characters can be used for logo design, creating animated ads, or social media design.

We at Cadabra have extensive experience creating mascot logo designs, supported by successful projects and positive customer feedback. And we will be happy to share it with you. 

If you need a unique character design that would convey a specific message and draw attention to your product, we will create it for you. So book a free consultation and get more info on this topic.