The management and communication of a company's identity increasingly is being viewed by senior executives as vital to corporate success. The concept of corporate identity can be traced to the earliest firms that used specific marks or logos to differentiate themselves from their competitors and imprint their image in the minds of consumers. By the 1970s a robust consulting industry that specialized in helping companies improve their image had emerged. More recently, in response to the dynamics of the business environment, many of these design consultants have broadened their focus to embrace a strategic view of communicating corporate identity. With this amplified focus, the epithet for the concept evolved from "corporate image" to "corporate identity" (and, more and more, the term "corporate brand" is being applied).
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