What makes a pair of Lululemon yoga pants different from other yoga pants?

From a distance, they all look like workout pants from just about any brand; however, upon closer inspection, we realize that each pair is branded with the famous Lululemon logo!

The same concept applies to the images you create for your brand. We see numerous online images each day. But when you add a unique watermark—each image is clearly branded as your own.

What Is a Watermark?

A watermark can be any number of things associated with your brand. It is overlaid on the images you create such that you claim ownership to them.

For example, you could choose to use a small version of your entire logo. In this case, you would either want to use a semi-transparent version of your logo, or create logo images that offer a complementary contrast with the colors of the images that contain the logo:

This is why it is so important that your brand has a vector logo that can be easily used to create transparent PNG files. You will want to ensure that your watermark is transparent so that it overlays nicely with the images you create.

You could also choose to use one element from your logo and turn that into a watermark:

Some other variations of the watermark include a small photo of yourself or an image footer.

An quick and easy way of adding a watermark could be as simple as a line of text or your website URL. Although it is still effective, it may not be as visually stirking. It certainly will not do as much for your brand recognition:

Why Are Watermarks Important? Three Reasons:

There are three key benefits to adding a watermark to your images.

It is a branding opportunity first and foremost. By adding your own unique watermark, you create greater brand awareness each time that image is shared.
If done well, your watermark can also serve to elevate the perceived value or qualify of your work.
And since less scrupulous online marketers may want to “borrow” the images you create, your watermark ensures you get credit – no matter where that image goes.

An Important Note about Adding a Watermark

To be clear, adding a watermark is not the same thing as claiming the copyright to an image.

Sure, if you create your own image, you can add the © symbol to it. However, you cannot add a © symbol to a photo or image that you did not create. But if you are branding a stock photo with a quote or caption — a watermark is the way to go.

How Do I Create a Watermark?

If you are ready to create a watermark, consider viewing either of these two guides:

Both of these will show you how to easily add a watermark to your images.

As you will see, it only takes a matter of moments to add a watermark. If you are going to invest the time in creating beautiful and compelling images, take the extra moment to add your branding to it.