Eyebrows. Two of them. Above the eyes. Everyone we meet has them. Everyone we watch on tv has them.

Our subconscious sees them, but we barely notice them.

Until they’re not quite right.

If we perceive them to be too big, weird shape, joined-up, messy, daubed on with magic marker, or are so far apart they’re in different postcodes, our brains are like mesmerised toddlers at a zoo. Our eyes glued to the intriguing hairy creatures hiding in plain sight above the eyes.

Whoa! And eyebrows that are gone altogether… BOOM! Your weird-o-meter can’t contain itself.

It’s only when they don’t seemingly conform to the norm that you realise the equilibrium these brow bushes bring to the faces of the global masses.

So, if we don’t see them until they’re ‘different’ or gone… it’s fair to say we take eyebrows for granted.

And here’s why I think that’s true.

We see so many every day that they set the benchmark that other not-so-normal eyebrows might not reach. And that’s why the ‘abnormal’ stands out. And not for good reasons either.

This is precisely why branding – and well-created marketing for that matter – is like eyebrows.

You see, just like eyebrows, we are exposed to branding and well-crafted marketing hundreds of times a day.

From the moment you wake; your cereal box, milk carton, the newspaper (yes millennials, these do still exist) or the social media echo chambers, pretty much everything you see has been branded properly.

It’s this over-exposure to branded marketing that subconsciously sets the standards by which we judge future marketing.

Beyond our control, just inches behind our eyebrows, our brains make split-decisions to ignore or engage based on the professional-grade marketing we’ve previously been exposed to.

Those that don’t make the grade are dismissed by the brain’s brand police for looking too cheap, too cluttered. Or worse. Completely dismissed on grounds of design crimes by a junior marketer with Canva’s rainbow gradients and drop shadows.

The truth of the matter is this. If you want your offering to be considered properly, you have to market it properly.

I’ve been in this game long enough to have heard all the ‘can you just knock us up a logo’, ‘don’t spend too long on that LinkedIn campaign’ missives.

Problem is, your audience is fickle. Whether now or in the future, your prospects will judge your offering by your marketing’s skin deep filler.

Therefore it’s worth investing in your brand appearance and creative marketing.

Did you cut corners in the early stages of your offering?
I doubt it.

Did you cut corners when developing or manufacturing your offering?
I very much doubt it.

But did you cut corners on branding and marketing it?
You probably have… or know many who are. I certainly do.

Imagine literally, and deliberately, cutting corners on your eyebrows. Imagine the reaction.

Which begs the question – why do some willing do it with the very face of their company?

When developing your offering, you (or your company), put your money where your ambitious mouth was.

When it comes to branding and marketing… it’s time to put your money where your customer’s judgmental eyes are.

Baz Richardson is the Founder & Creative Director of
Bravo Creative