BRAND DESIGN WITH ChatGPT
You can ask ChatGPT to help you design your brand’s aesthetics. Just log in, create a free account, and start the conversation. So, if it is so easy, and the machine is so smart why did I not begin explaining the brand design process from this?
Just like your brand is one of many, the number of people using ChatGPT to create their brand can be enormous. To be recognized and remembered you need to stand out from the crowd. To achieve it, you need unique, personal input. It needs to be YOUR mission, vision, values, and story. Without them, ChatGPT will offer you something very generic soon to be lost among millions of others looking the same.
Unless you bring something unique to your offer, there is little chance you will be recognized and remembered.
How To Talk with ChatGPT
Start by Preparing ChatGPT Prompts.
A prompt is the input you give AI, guiding it on how to respond. The way you write your prompts will drastically influence the output. A prompt’s effectiveness depends on its
- clarity,
- context,
- and specificity.
ChatGPT generates responses based on patterns learned from vast amounts of data it can access online AND on whatever it will learn about you within the conversation you start.
To get the best results when asking ChatGPT to create suggestions for your brand aesthetics, you need a prompt that ensures ChatGPT understands your brand’s identity, vision, values, story, targeted market, and goals. You will be prepared if you follow the Mission Statement and Brand Strategy suggestions.
Just remember, to get the best output, you must be specific about what you are asking for in every prompt.
Basic Prompt Outline
1. Introduce Your Subject
In this case, define key aspects of your brand:
- Who we are: Name its field of operation and activity.
- What we do: What sets your brand apart? (e.g., organic ingredients, eco-friendliness).
- Mission: What is your brand’s purpose or goal? (e.g., creating a welcoming space, and offering sustainable products)
- Audience: Specify the target market you’d like to address.
- Describe your offer. Clarify why it may be important to your audience. (e.g., building up the local community, supporting ideas exchange)
- Values: What principles guide your brand? (e.g., kindness, creativity, community, innovation).
- Brand Story: Share your origin story, what inspired the brand, and any unique traits that could make the brand stand out. This helps ChatGPT connect emotionally to your vision.
2. Instruct the AI to Assume a Specific Role
- What is the level of output you expect? ChatGPT can assume the role of an expert, a friend, or even a particular known person. So choose whose brain you want to pick.
- How do you want the output to be presented? At a 5th-grade level, or someone already knowledgeable in the topic?
3. Define Your Question
Just say exactly what you want from this prompt.
- Do you want ChatGPT to define visual vibes and a style for you? Or do you already have one in mind, and are just looking for tips on how to refine it?
- Have you already picked a color palette, or you are searching for one?
- Are you brainstorming for logotype, interior design, branding materials, or social media ideas?
Let’s go through the prompt writing process using an example:
Suppose I own a suburban café specializing in organic coffee, tea, and homemade pastries. I hope it will become a local community hub for customers of all ages focused on friendliness, comfort, live music, and idea and talent exchange. The café’s vibe is cozy, relaxed, and tasteful. I’d like to introduce some tropical elements to the decor since that is a part of my story and I believe it will go well with the organic coffee theme.
ME: Act as a professional brand designer and help me create a brand design for a suburban café specializing in organic coffee, tea, and pastries. It’s a community hub for all ages, with a mission to create an inviting space that supports ideas and talent exchange, features local musicians, and other creative activities. The café’s values are creativity, sustainability, friendliness, and family. The design visuals may be inspired by tropical elements. We’d like to feature organic coffee, elegant tea, and homemade pastries. I want a cozy, tasteful place, with a variety of furniture, soft fabrics, a few wicker gadgets, and natural textures. Please suggest for my café:
- Two different styles suitable for my look and interior decorations
- Two different color palettes for the interior, signage, and menu.
ChatGPT:
1. STYLES FOR LOOK AND INTERIORS
A. Tropical Boho Elegance
- Theme: A blend of Hawaiian tropical warmth and Bohemian charm, this style emphasizes comfort and creativity.
- Materials: Use natural woods (like bamboo or teak), wicker accents, and rattan furniture. Add tropical plant life such as monstera leaves or palms for a lush feel.
Decor Elements:
- Throw pillows in soft pastel with tropical motifs (think hibiscus or ferns).
- Wicker pendant lamps and macramé wall hangings.
- Tables with a mix of reclaimed wood and white marble for an upscale feel.
- Framed local art or community boards to highlight creative works.
- Overall Ambiance: Light, airy, and cozy, with a touch of island inspiration and creative charm.
B. Modern Tropical Retreat
- Theme: A sleek mix of tropical aesthetics, blending modern design with natural textures.
- Materials: Polished woods, matte black metal finishes, and touches of linen for softness.
Decor Elements:
- Furniture with clean lines but natural finishes—think modern chairs paired with rustic tables.
- Light linen curtains or seat covers in soft earthy tones.
- Overall Ambiance: Sophisticated yet approachable, balancing urban chic with natural elements.
2. COLOR PALETTES
A. Warm Tropics
- Primary Color: Pale orange (base for warmth and cheer).
- Accent Colors: Soft aqua blue (inspired by Hawaiian waters) and olive green (natural, grounding).
- Neutral Colors: Sand beige and creamy off-white (to balance and add subtle elegance).
Usage:
- Walls: Creamy off-white with an accent pale orange mural
- Signage: Pale orange background with aqua blue text.
- Menu: Beige with aqua and orange details, paired with green accents for natural themes.
B. Elegant Naturals
- Primary Color: Soft sage green (for an organic, calming feel).
- Accent Colors: Golden amber (sunshine warmth) and blush pink (soft and inviting).
- Neutral Colors: Deep espresso brown (to tie in with the coffee theme) and pale linen white.
Usage:
- Walls: Sage green with amber trim or decorative details.
- Signage: Espresso brown with blush pink and amber highlights.
- Menu & Stationery: Sage and linen white with amber or blush accents for elegance.
These styles and palettes will bring your café’s values of sustainability, creativity, and friendliness to life while creating a unique, cozy atmosphere. Let me know which ideas resonate with you or if you’d like to refine them further!
ME:
I like to continue with style A. But when it comes to the colors, the B version sounds better. I love pale pastels (linen, sand, sage, pale orange, and pale pink), with small, darker accents to stand out in a palette. Maybe brown for coffee? Please draw 2 color palettes, with 7 colors each. In the first palette pale orange should be an important, background color. In the second palette use a pale pink instead.
ChatGPT:
Here are two curated color palettes for your café’s design:
- Palette 1 (Pale Orange Focus): Pale orange as the main background color, paired with linen white, sand beige, soft sage green, light aqua blue, dark espresso brown, and golden honey yellow.
- Palette 2 (Pale Pink Focus): Pale pink is the main color, with linen white, sand beige, soft sage green, light aqua blue, dark espresso brown, and golden honey yellow.
These palettes balance soft pastels with rich, darker accents to create an inviting and vibrant atmosphere. Let me know which one speaks to you more!
Not bad, right? Yes. ChatGPT can draw for you.
I did not ask for the interior images with the colors, but there is a chance ChatGPT remembered our previous chats – where I did.
QUICK TIP: ChatGPT will stay on topic within each conversation. Once you introduce a piece of information, you can refer to it later in that chat. When, for whatever reason, you want to change a topic make sure to specify it in the prompt. Or, start a new chat. The machine stores previous chats separately, so you can return to each later.
So let’s continue
ME:
I am not completely happy about any of the color pallets you proposed. I love pale pastels (linen, sand, sage). But in addition to the pastels, I would like a few darker elements to stand out. Maybe brown for coffee? Please draw a new image. Pale orange should be an important, background color. Also, please include more wicker furniture and other decorative elements.
ChatGPT:
Here’s a mood board that captures the tropical boho elegance vibe for your café! It blends the pale orange base, wicker elements, soft pastels, and lush greenery with warm, relaxed textures. Let me know if you’d like adjustments or a focus on specific details!
ME:
Could you change it one more time considering pale pink in that color scheme?
ChatGPT:
Here’s a mood board for your café based on Palette 2 (pale pink). It features: framed community art, a display of coffee beans in natural wooden bowls, soft wicker furniture, and decor with pastel tones like pale pink and aqua blue. Let me know if there are additional elements you’d like included!
ME:
Thank you! I will search Pinterest for additional aesthetic ideas for my cafe. Considering all I shared about it, please prepare 7 Pinterest search terms that would help me find them.
ChatGPT:
You’re welcome! Here are 7 Pinterest search terms tailored to your café’s vibe and design goals:
- Tropical Boho Café Design
- Bohemian Coffee Shop Interior
- Pale Orange Sage and Sand Color Palette
- Pale Pink Sage and Sand Color Palette
- Cozy Café Design
- Creative Community Café Design
- Statement Wall Ideas for Coffee Shops
These searches should lead you to ideas that resonate with the aesthetic you’re building! Let me know if you’d like more suggestions. 😊
I did not like the third image and the colors I saw. I had a real photo where the “pale pink palette” I was looking for was different.
In addition, the words on the color palette in that AI image were not the real color names anymore, so I suspected my ChatGPT was “running out of free tokens” for the day. Drawing images is very “token taxing” for the program.
There are a few things you can do when the chat outcome is not what you were hoping for:
- Revise your prompts. Maybe you need to be more specific. Change the questions until you are happy with the answer. That is the conversational aspect of it.
- Wait a day. When using a free AI, you may be “running out of tokens”. This is an AI marketing trick. It will produce good results only a few times a day. If you need more… you need to move to a paid version. Or try again the next day.
- Go back to REALITY. Computer-generated design can be magical, but unless you create a brand for a magician, it will be somehow off.
So, I cut this chat short.
I knew that the images might get worse as we continued, but there were still enough tokens for a good text response, and that ChatGPT would not get offended when I asked for prompts to check the “competition” instead.
Of course! This is not a detailed course about using ChatGPT. Just an example to let you know: AI tolerates beginners. With preparation rooted in your brand’s reality, and basic knowledge about writing prompts you can use it very effectively.
Don’t shy away from it. While this example is just about the brand design, the prompts outline will work for many other aspects of your business from planning to management. Get used to it.
Nevertheless, it was a good moment for going back to reality, and check Pinterest for more true-to-life images that could populate initial mood boards for my café.
What are the “mood boards”?
I’m glad if you ask. The next chapter will explain it.