Corporate visual identity of nancial institutions in Spain: iconographic-
symbolic web content analysis
Identidad visual corporativa de las entidades nancieras en España: análisis de
contenido iconográco-simbólico en web
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nº 37, pp. 141-165
| 141
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ISSN: 1696-019X / e-ISSN: 2386-3978
How to cite this article:
Sanz Peralta, A.; Ortiz Ramos, M. and Romero-Rodríguez, L.M. (2023). Corporate visual identity of nancial institutions in Spain: iconographic-
symbolic web content analysis.
Doxa Comunicación
, 37, pp. 141-165.
https://doi.org/10.31921/doxacom.n37a1754
Arlen Sanz Peralta.
She holds a degree in Advertising and Public Relations and in Business Administration and
Management from the Rey Juan Carlos University (Madrid, Spain). From 2018 to 2020 she worked for the French
external communication group JCDecaux, and since 2021 in the media marketing area of GroupM (WPP), one of the
best renowned media agency groups worldwide.
Rey Juan Carlos University, Spain
[email protected]
ORCID: 0000-0002-1827-3010
Marta Ortiz Ramos.
She holds a degree in Advertising and Public Relations and in Business Administration and
Management from the Rey Juan Carlos University (Madrid, Spain). Master’s Degree in Graphic Design and Web Design
(2020) from the CEV Image School and the
Universidad a Distancia de Madrid
(UDIMA). During 2022 he has been
part of the National Tour of Young Talents of C de C,
Club de Creativos
. In terms of work experience, from 2019 to 2020
she worked in the Marketing Department of the multi-business restaurant group Alsea. Currently, she is part of the
advertising agency
Lady Brava
where she works as a junior creative
.
Rey Juan Carlos University, Spain
[email protected]
ORCID: 0000-0002-6112-1055
Luis M. Romero-Rodríguez.
Associate Professor of Strategic Communication at the Department of Communication
Sciences and Sociology, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos (Madrid, Spain). Visiting Professor at ESAI Business School,
Universidad Espíritu Santo
(Guayaquil, Ecuador). PhD in Communication from the universities of Huelva, Malaga,
Seville and Cadiz (Spain). Master in Social Communication from the University of Almeria (Spain). Associate Editor of
Comunicar Journal (JCR and Scopus Q1) and
Anàlisi Journal
(Scopus Q2).
Rey Juan Carlos University, Spain/ESAI Business School, Espiritu Santo University, Ecuador.
[email protected]
ORCID: 0000-0003-3924-1517
is content is published under Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License. International License
Received: 31/08/2022 - Accepted: 23/01/2023 - Early access: 07/03/2023 - Published: 01/07/2023
Recibido: 31/08/2022 - Aceptado: 23/01/2023 - En edición: 07/03/2023 - Publicado: 01/07/2023
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1. Introduction
Corporate image is the public’s mental-perceptual construction of an organization that determines how they relate and act with
it (Capriotti, 2013; Romero-Rodríguez & Castillo-Abdul, 2023). e shaping of the corporate image is closely related to corporate
identity, which is conceived as the projection of the brand through three phases: rst, the desired image of the organization;
second, the image constructed by the organization; and nally, the actual image, which is the perceptual projection that the
stakeholders have of the organization (Capriotti, 2013; Romero-Rodríguez & Castillo-Abdul, 2023) (Romero Rodríguez, 2020).
e corporate identity of an organization is how it presents and identies itself to its internal and external stakeholders. ere
are two epistemological perspectives on it: the rst, from the graphic design or visual communication approach, whereby
corporate identity is understood as synonymous with Corporate Visual Identity (CVI), and the second, from the organizational or
communication management approach, a much more interdisciplinary and widespread concept, whereby corporate identity is
conceived as an “identity mix”, understood as the set of brand personality expression mechanisms used by the organization, that
is, all its component elements, in which CVI is integrated as one of them (Capriotti, 2009; Romero Rodríguez, 2020).
Corporate Visual Identity (CVI) is dened as the symbolic translation of the corporate identity, with the primary graphic identiers
being the logo, symbol, logo symbol, corporate colors, and typography (Villafañe, 2011). Other authors, such as Romero Rodríguez
Abstract:
is research examines the visual identity of the 72 leading nancial
institutions operating in Spain through an ad hoc analysis model of
iconographic-symbolic content. For this purpose, an analysis sheet is
designed and validated, with theoretical variables where each sample
object responds to categories grouped by similarity and under formal
criteria obtained from the study of all the literature related to the
fundamental graphic elements –iconic, linguistic, and plastic sign– and
their application to the virtual world. e results show that legibility
and modernity are priorities in the majority of the sample corpus, with
a typographic style without nials, simple strokes, capital, round and
medium-thickness characters. In addition, the entities prefer other
values apart from professionalism and stability, such as closeness or
trust, making use in the compositions of a quality range of 2-3 color
combinations in which the balance between cold and warm colors is
appreciable. For the sake of responsive web design, nancial institutions
are inclined to stay on the sidelines and not do without any elements in
their visual identities, leading the way in the use of logotypes.
Keywords:
Corporate visual identity; graphic identity; nancial sector; banking;
image.
Resumen:
La presente investigación examina la identidad visual de las 72
principales entidades nancieras que operan en España a través de
un modelo de análisis de contenido iconográco-simbólico construido
ad hoc. Para ello se diseña y valida una cha de análisis provista
de variables teóricas donde cada objeto de muestra responde a las
categorías agrupadas por razones de similitud y bajo criterios formales
obtenidos del estudio de toda la literatura relacionada con los elementos
grácos fundamentales –signo icónico, lingüístico y plástico– y su
aplicación al mundo virtual. Entre los resultados queda demostrado
que la legibilidad y modernidad son prioritarias en la mayoría del
corpus muestral, con un estilo de tipografía sin remates, trazos simples,
caracteres mayúsculos, redondos y de grosor medio. Además, las
entidades dan preferencia a otros valores aparte de la profesionalidad
y estabilidad, como lo es la cercanía o la conanza, haciendo uso en las
composiciones de un rango de calidad de 2-3 colores de combinación
cromática donde es apreciable la equidad entre cromáticas frías y
cálidas.
Palabras clave:
Identidad visual corporativa; identidad gráca; sector nanciero;
banca; imagen.
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(2020), including within the CVI other elements such as the name, slogan, stationery, e-mail signatures and web design, and even
jingles and packaging, aspects that externalize and make the brand visible to its stakeholders
.
e correct management of the attributes that make up an organization’s identity is known as branding. is tool works as a
dierentiating element that boosts brand awareness, its perceptive quality, loyalty, and the establishment of emotional ties with
stakeholders, creating an irreplaceable relationship and generating added value (Cabrera Martínez, 2018; Castillo-Abdul
et al
.,
2022).
In recent years, with the expansion of technology and the emergence of new design trends, many brands have considered the need
to relaunch their image proles through restyling or refreshing strategies, which focus solely on modifying the visual appearance
of the brand, i.e., its visual aspect, without going deeper into changes that require philosophical and business modications such
as the mission, vision or values (Kononenko, 2021), which would be a rebranding.
e presence of organizations in multiple online channels, such as web pages, landings, web apps, apps, and social networks,
congured the entry and popularization of the neologism “digital identity”. Today in this eld, the most used techniques are
responsive web layout and adaptive web design. e former consists of adapting a single web design to dierent screen sizes and
devices, while in the latter several graphic proposals are created, one for each type of device, with the aim of both techniques
being to oer the best user experience (UX), regardless of the connection device. Another method, design thinking, promotes
innovation through design to oer and generate solutions or ideas that are viable at a business level and feasible in terms of
technology (Meinel & von ienen, 2016).
Based on the above, it is not surprising that the concept of “responsive and adaptable brand identity” has become standardized,
reaching the most concise forms and eliminating certain elements while the iconic essence remains identiable with integrity.
ere are currently specic trends for the design of online graphic identity, such as opting for a rounder style that reects values
such as exibility, agility, and greater adaptability. In contrast, another style that is in consolidation is the animation of the graphic
identity through the animated transformation of the logo as a .gif le, being the minimalist design, simple geometric lines, witty,
with gradients or 3D gures, the most prevalent in the digital ecosystem.
1.1. Elements of the Corporate Visual Identity (CVI)
1.1.1. Iconographic sign
e logo symbol is a CVI element that consists of a verbal and visual sign simultaneously, i.e., the verbal sign that names and
designates something, to which it has been given a visual form and is identied as the basis of the graphic identity of the trademark.
Elements such as the symbol and the colors are the graphic signs that represent the name by substitution (Costa, 2007).
e codication of this identity through a physical name occurs through linguistic mechanisms. ere are ve types of naming
modalities in which organizations are congured (Chaves, 2008): i) descriptive –synthetic enunciation of attributes–, ii) symbolic
–alluding to a literary image–, iii) patronymic –using the proper name of a key personality–, iv) toponymic –referring to a
geographical area–, and v) contractions –articial constructions based on initials or word fragments–.
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Considering the capacity of designation using the physical name, and the subsequent taking of visual form, four types of graphic
identities can be distinguished: (i) logotype –formed only by the grouping of typographies and constitutes the corporate name
(Villafañe, 2011)–, (ii) symbol or isotype –formed only of the iconic part, the most recognizable part of the brand, and grouped in
typology by monogram, anagrams, acronyms, initials, signatures, and pictograms–, iii) imagotype –composed of two parts, the
textual element, and the symbolic image, but which are two independent units– and, iv) logo symbol or isologue –a normative
combination of the logotype and symbol that only together represent the visual identity (Villafañe, 2011)–.
e visual language is a specic code that allows the correct transmission and understanding of graphic messages (Acaso, 2006)
in which dierent sign systems are interrelated: iconic, plastic, and linguistic (Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno Laorga, 2015).
While the iconic sign is the visual iconic-symbolic representation, whose signier sustains a relationship of analogy with its
referent, thus allowing to recognize of some objects present in the real world through that similarity of conguration, the referent,
which is the reected object, is not a particular element but an identifying feature. is phenomenon of allusion covers both the
graphic and the linguistic sign (Joly, 2009).
Based on the concept of iconic modeling of reality
1
, the three functions that represent the relationship between images and their
objects of reference appear: representational function –the intention is that the object represented is as similar as possible to
the real model–, symbolic function –the images have a double referent, gurative and symbolic– and conventional function –the
image as a sign, there is no relationship between the referent and its visual representation (Villafañe, 2006)–.
On the other hand, to measure the degree of iconicity of an iconic sign, its isomorphism, i.e., the similarity of form between an
image and its referent, must be measured. In this context, Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno Laorga (2015) propose the following
taxonomy on the iconicity scale (Table 1):
Table 1. Iconicity levels
REALITY LEVELCATEGORY DEFINITION
TYPOLOGIES
HYPERREALIST
It includes all images that, in their
attempt to represent the properties of
the object, exceed the boundary of the
two-dimensional realm.
e object is visualized through a
frame that isolates it (like a product
in a showcase), sculptures, or
holograms.
REALISTIC
All those images that seek to reproduce
the referent with a high level of detail
are within the two-dimensional plane’s
limitations.
Photography (either color or black
and white) and realistic illustrations.
FIGURATIVE NON REALISTIC
ose two-dimensional images that
modify one or more of the sensitive or
spatial relations.
Non-realistic illustrations,
silhouettes.
SCHEMATIC
Two-dimensional images that do not
include any sensible property, but
there is some relationship criterion,
even if it is arbitrary.
Blueprints. Logotypes. Symbols.
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NON-FIGURATIVE
Two-dimensional images in which all
sensible or relational properties are
abstracted.
Illustration tending to pure
abstraction.
Source: own elaboration based on Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno Laorga (2015)
On its part, in web design, the favicon consists of the small icon of the web page that appears in the browser tabs and, therefore,
serves the brand as a visual sign to identify and dierentiate itself from other web brands in the browser tabs and improve the user
experience. e favicon should try to reduce the brand to its maximum unit of representativeness, giving preference to the symbol
before any other element of the graphic identity.
1.1.2. Linguistic sign
In graphic design, typography is conceived as the visual representation of letters and writing signs with a purely communicative
purpose. is means that its use has gone from being purely functional to providing extra value to the characters, giving rise to two
dierent types: editing typography, which alludes to more formal aspects, and creative typography, in which the text is treated as
an image and leads to new meanings and the transmission of ideas (Martínez, 2014).
About the graphic representation of the linguistic sign, some typographic families are divided into: Roman typefaces –identied
by strokes ending in nials and a visible modulation of these strokes (Martínez, 2014)–, Egyptian typefaces –characterized by a
modulation tending to uniformity, thickening of the stroke concerning the Roman typeface and wide quadrangular type nials–,
dry stick typefaces –dened by the total absence of modulation and nials in the strokes–, incised typefaces –with modulated
strokes and insinuated nials–, script typefaces –imitating the manual stroke and the characters can be linked or loose (Martín
Montesinos and Mas Hurtuna, 2009)– and design or ornamental typefaces –the result of a non-standard reinterpretation of the
xed elements of the characters–.
Regardless of the typeface family to which they belong, the characters may have a dierent representation and style. e variations
in the structure of the characters are determined by several aspects that, according to the location within the lines of reference,
are classied as high box, capital or uppercase, and low box or lowercase (Martínez, 2014), and, on the other hand, the small caps
style, which are capital letters but share the same height and thickness as the lowercase characters.
In typography, a type style is the name given to the variants found within the same typeface family. e dierent styles are
classied as follows (Martínez, 2014):
–
According to the inclination of the axis: they can be round or italic.
–
According to the thickness of the stroke: they are ne or bold.
–
According to the widening or narrowing of the character: condensed or expanded.
In terms of composition, not only of characters but also of text, a justied text is one in which there is uniformity in both margins
so that all the typographic or text lines that make up the composition have the same size (Martín Montesinos and Mas Hurtuna,
2009). Sometimes, to achieve this, it is necessary to modify the spacing, so some experts (e.g., Martín Montesinos and Mas
Hurtuna, 2009) propose basic justication methods to adjust the spacing, such as altering the space between words, rectifying the
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space between letters, inter letter or tracking, and correcting the kerning or adjustment between pairs, that is, the space between
pairs of specic characters (Martín Montesinos and Mas Hurtuna, 2009; Rodríguez, 2017).
Using dierent typographic resources makes it possible to obtain dierent receptions in the compositions, from the dynamism and
highlighted letters to new meanings and attraction. Among them are changes in the baseline, turns or ips, superimpositions or
transparencies, cuts, and fragmentations of the characters, distortions, digital lters such as blur (Martínez, 2014), counterforms
–which are composed of the space described or contained by the strokes of the form–, and substitutions.
In the case of web applications, Palo Seco families have, par excellence, the most used typefaces. eir clarity, neutrality, and
legibility make them perfect for online texts, even if the size is reduced as in mobile devices, as it reduces eyestrain. Even so, there
are more and more serif typefaces designed exclusively for use on the Internet by platforms such as Google or Adobe Fonts. In
addition to the typeface family, other factors directly aect the legibility of the characters: capital letters are more advisable for
single words, since in paragraphs they make reading dicult, and according to the style, a font of medium thickness for the text,
light for large and legible titles and bold in titles or body texts is the best choice.
1.1.3. Plastic sign
Plastic signs are those non-representational elements of the image. Two types are distinguished: the specic signs of the visual
message, such as the framing, which are the components that are part of the visual structure of the message, and the non-specic
plastic signs of the visual message, such as color, lines and shapes, spatiality, among others, which are the factors present in our
perception of the environment and, therefore, refer directly to the perceptual experience (Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno
Laorga, 2015).
According to Dondis (1995), the line is a visual element derived from two points so close to each other that they cannot be recognized
individually, and when a chain of several consecutive points is formed, a sensation of directionality is created. Considered the
basic visual element of the sketch because of its innity of dierent uses, it is a plastic element always in movement, but at the
same time precise, capable of connoting according to its presentation among others: curved lines –smoothness–, straight lines
–virility– and oblique lines –dynamism or fall according to their direction– (Joly, 2009).
When lines close in on themselves, they are creators of contours. e line articulates the complexity of the environment by
establishing the three basic contours that exist in nature from which the rest of the physical forms are built. ese are the square
–robustness, solidity, strength, and resistance–, the circle –perfection, precision, attention, dynamic stability, innity, and warmth
–and the triangle– stability and balance if it is not inverted–, the circle –perfection, precision, attention, dynamic stability, innity
and warmth –and the triangle– stability, and balance if it is not inverted (Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno Laorga, 2015).
While the gure is the mere area delimited with a line, the shape adds thickness and volume to this denition. Figures are shapes
represented from dierent distances and angles. Just as a shape can have many gures, they can be grouped into: i) gurative –with
identiable subject matter and classied into natural or organic (derived from nature), articial (derived from human creations)
(Wong, 2001), and verbal (derived from elements of language) –and ii) non-gurative or abstract forms– lacking identiable
subject matter and classied into calligraphic (freehand) gures, organic (curved) gures, and geometric gures.
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1.1.4. Chromaticism
Color is probably the rst element we perceptually register when we rst see something (Ambrose and Harris, 2006) and supports
the establishment of solid and recognizable entities.
ere are two main chromatic systems or color models that predominate. e RGB system –colors obtained by the emission of
light with red (R), green (G), and blue (B) as primaries–, which, when combined in light projection, will result in the secondary
colors and white (Ambrose and Harris, 2006) –and the CMYK four-color printing model– color is obtained by light absorption
with Cyan (C), Magenta (M) and Yellow (Y) as primaries, from which the secondaries, tertiaries and black (K) are obtained. For
easier recognition, in the subtractive system, the colors are represented in the chromatic circle, a basic tool for the representation
and identication of the colors of the chromatic spectrum that oers a reference of which are the primaries, secondaries, and
tertiaries.
In the eld of editing and web design, the most commonly used color model is the RGBs system, a variant of the RGB standard,
which allows the creation of the full spectrum of colors being wider (Ambrose and Harris, 2006), and also simplies the colors of
the images to reduce the weight of the le (Ambrose and Harris, 2006).
ere are many classications related to color theory, although one of the most basic and simple is the distinction between
chromatic and achromatic colors. In the rst instance, there are two types of colors, achromatic colors –black, white, and
grayscale– and chromatic colors, which are the rest of the colors in a color theory (Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno Laorga,
2015).
To describe color in a more detailed way, it is mainly composed of three basic aspects, called color dimensions, as follows:
–
Hue: Hue is the essential characteristic of all colors, allowing us to call them by their name and dierentiate them visually
from others. According to the hue, the colors are red, blue, yellow, etc. (Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno Laorga, 2015; Am
-
brose and Harris, 2006).
–
Saturation or intensity: is is the purity of the color concerning gray, as the saturation decreases, the colors contain a more
signicant proportion of grayish (Acaso, 2006).
–
Luminosity: e degree of lightness or darkness that a color can have.
e colors that make up the chromatic circle can be combined in numerous ways, thus generating innite possibilities. Among
the possible combinations that are applied to graphic design are:
–
Combination of various colors: primary, secondary, tertiary, and achromatic colors
2
. ese combinations can be of primary,
secondary, or tertiary colors, but there are also combinations of achromatic colors with each other or accompanying chroma
-
tic colors (Ambrose and Harris, 2006).
–
Combination of complementary colors: this is the conjunction of diametrically opposite tones in the chromatic circle that
provide a strong contrast and give a more lively and bright aspect to the composition (Montes Vozmediano and Vizcaíno
Laorga, 2015).
2
In addition to monochrome, dyads (2 colors) and triads (3 colors) are possible.
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–
Analogous color combinations, monochromatic and gamut harmony: Wong (1992) denes color harmony as those good co
-
lor combinations that atter the eye through analogous colors –which are close together on the color wheel– or by excitation
through contrasts.
anks to the remarkable symbolic charge implicit in color, derived from cultural and social connotations, it can transmit
information by itself (Acaso, 2006). Color is personal and universal (Whelan, 1994), has innumerable meanings in dierent
contexts, and can generate emotional reactions and sensations linked to temperature, being that warm sensations are created
with tones associated with re –red, yellow, and orange– and are comfortable, e thermal sensation of coldness refers to the
color blue in its maximum saturation, green and violet, and transmits at the same time remoteness, calm and condence (Heller,
2008), while, nally, neutral colors –browns and grays– are discreet, classic, exible and timeless (Heller, 2008), while neutral
colors –browns and grays– are discreet, classic, exible and timeless.
is study analyses in an iconographic way the CVI of banking institutions operating in Spain. is is a sector whose brand image
is still quite deteriorated by the eects of the previous economic crisis, which, in turn, is transitioning from a traditional activity