First Steps in Branding: How AI Guided My Indian Cinema Data Blog Launch
Compared AI recommendations to make purposeful branding decisions for my Indian cinema blog's v1 launch.
Problem: Figure out the V1 branding and design for the blog
I am creating a Indian Cinema Data Visualization blog, the first of its kind focused on this industry.
Check out the blog at: indiancinemadata.com
I have been working on iterations of this blog for years, hosted on disparate platforms like Observable. Consolidating it and launching it as a cohesive brand has been a passion project and even through the birth of my second child, I was working with developers to make it possible. The branding was one of the last steps, and I was the bottleneck in deciding on a direction and publishing the blog to the public.
Priorities:
- Clear perspective and reasoning behind the brand
- Emphasis on the data visualizations
- Ship faster rather than later
Asking the LLMs for Brand Guidance
I wanted to get multiple perspectives on my branding and be pushed to think about my branding in a way that gets me closer to decision making. I asked prompted multiple LLMs to compare their outputs.
Tools:
- Claude AI chat interface
- Google Gemini chat interface
- ChatGPT chat interface
Inputs:
- Prompt:
Walk me through a thought exercise to find out the branding on my blog. i cant decide on fonts, layout, colors, tone etc because i dont know how i ultimately want to come across
- Answers to each LLM's branding questionnaire
Comparing Inputs:
Claude Sonnet 4.5
| LLM Provided Question | Divya's Answer | LLM Branding Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Audience A) Data nerds/analysts who happen to like Indian cinema B) Indian cinema superfans who are curious about data C) Casual viewers who love interesting stories about movies D) Industry professionals (filmmakers, journalists, critics) |
All 4 categories - the movie junkie who applies critical thinking, loves discussing, stays up to date, has opinions, and is smart | Target the "cinephile analyst" - smart enough for rigorous data, passionate enough for cultural criticism. Design must balance authority with accessibility. |
| Reader's Emotional State A) Curious and ready to learn something surprising B) Skeptical - they need to be convinced this is credible C) Excited - they're already fans looking for deeper insights D) Browsing casually, need to be hooked immediately |
A and B - Curious and ready to learn something surprising + skeptical need to be convinced. Similar to Pudding readers | Lead with visual impact - Use full-width hero graphics and compelling data visualizations immediately. Include methodology box in every article to establish credibility upfront. |
| What Should They Feel After Reading? A) "Wow, I never thought about Indian cinema this way" B) "This is THE authoritative source - I'm bookmarking this" C) "This was entertaining AND educational" D) "I need to share this on social media right now" |
All 4 - Never thought about cinema this way + authoritative source + entertaining AND educational + need to share on social media | Balance entertainment with rigor - Use conversational tone but always show your work. Include shareable pull quotes in Space Grotesk Medium (24-28px). End with clear takeaways. |
| If Your Blog Were a Person at a Party? A) The smart friend dropping fascinating facts everyone gathers around B) The professor who makes complex topics actually interesting C) The film critic everyone respects and quotes D) The investigative journalist revealing hidden truths |
D - The investigative journalist revealing hidden truths | Adopt investigative tone - Lead with questions ("How bad is it, really?"), reveal findings progressively. Use annotated visualizations that guide readers through discoveries. Never hide methodology. |
| When You Write, You Want to Sound? A) Academic but accessible - credible with personality B) Journalistic and neutral - let the data speak C) Conversational and opinionated - this is YOUR take D) Storytelling-first - data serves the narrative |
D - Storytelling-first, data serves the narrative | Story-first structure - Open with narrative hook, weave data throughout. Example: "Bollywood has a colorism problem. Everyone knows this. But how bad is it, really?" THEN show data. Avoid academic openings. |
| How Serious vs Playful? Scale 1-5 (1 = very serious/academic, 5 = very playful/casual) |
All options - haven't seen anything like this on the internet before | Lean serious with personality (2.5-3 on scale) - Professional but not stuffy. Occasional humor/cultural references when natural. Avoid emojis and overly casual language. Maintain credibility. |
| Main Differentiator? A) Rigorous methodology and transparency (Pudding-style) B) Comprehensive data coverage - you have ALL the numbers C) Unique angles/stories nobody else is telling D) Visual storytelling - making data beautiful and understandable |
B - Comprehensive data coverage | Emphasize comprehensiveness - Use phrases like "complete analysis" and "every debut from 1990-2025". Create signature methodology box explaining data sources. Build reputation as THE definitive database. |
| When Someone Shares Your Article? A) "This data analysis is incredible" B) "I learned something totally new about Indian cinema" C) "The visualizations in this are stunning" D) "Everyone needs to read this - it's important" |
Maybe D but help figure it out - "Everyone needs to read this" | Focus on importance and shareability - Tackle topics that matter (colorism, representation). Use strong pull quotes that work as social media snippets. Design for sharing with compelling visuals. |
| Which Aesthetic Resonates Most? A) Clean, minimal, Swiss design - like Apple or The Pudding B) Editorial, magazine-style - like The New Yorker or Grantland C) Bold and modern - like Bloomberg or Spotify D) Warm and approachable - like Medium or Airbnb |
Don't know - help figure it out. Maybe B (editorial magazine-style) | Editorial Data Hybrid - 60% Pudding (clean data viz) + 25% Ringer (pop culture credibility) + 15% FiveThirtyEight (statistical authority). Use Space Grotesk Bold for headers, Inter Regular for body. Generous white space (80px between sections). |
| Color Association? A) Monochrome with one accent color (sophisticated, data-forward) B) Rich, warm colors inspired by Indian cinema itself C) Cool, tech colors (blues, teals, purples - modern, analytical) D) Earthy, natural tones (credible, journalistic, serious) |
Maybe D but help figure it out - Earthy, natural, credible | Warm editorial palette - Deep charcoal text (#2B2B2B), warm off-white background (#FAFAF7), rich terracotta as YOUR signature accent (#D86847), deep teal for contrast (#0F4C5C). Avoids harsh tech blues while nodding to Indian cinema warmth. |
| What Matters More Right Now? A) Getting SOMETHING live fast, even if design isn't perfect B) Waiting a bit longer to get the design exactly right |
A - Getting something live fast, establish first-mover advantage | Launch with "good enough" design - Install GeneratePress or Neve theme, set up fonts via Google Fonts, implement basic color palette. Publish skin tone piece immediately. Iterate and improve over time like Pudding did. |
| What Makes You Feel "Ready to Share"? A) One killer article that showcases what I can do B) 3-5 solid articles so it looks like a real publication C) The design looking professional and modern D) Having a complete data methodology documented |
B - 3-5 solid articles so it looks like a real publication | Batch content strategy - Launch with skin tone analysis + 2 "coming soon" placeholders. Add About/Methodology pages. Creates perception of established publication while allowing quick launch. |
| What Made Them Fall in Love With It? The unexpected insights? The beautiful visualizations? Your unique voice? The comprehensive data? The important stories you're telling? |
A with some C - Unique voice and unexpected insights from data visualizations | Signature voice + annotated visualizations - Develop recognizable writing style (conversational investigative). Always annotate charts ("Notice the sharp drop in 2010..."). Make visualizations do the storytelling work. |
| What Would Devastate You? A) "The data seems questionable" B) "It looks amateurish/unprofessional" C) "It's boring - just numbers" D) "Someone else already did this" |
C probably - "It's boring, just numbers" | Never lead with numbers alone - Always wrap data in narrative. Use human stories, cultural context, implications. Break up text with pull quotes, images, varied chart types. Max text width 680px for readability. |
Google Gemini 2.5 Pro
| LLM Provided Question | Divya's Answer | LLM Branding Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 1. What is your Core Mission (The "Why")? | "I want the reader find the content interesting and smart, looking at indian cinema in an analytical way with data like they have never seen before. ... cutting through... what the stars want to show..." | Keyword: "Insightful." The tone must be smart, witty, and authoritative. The layout must feel professional and clean, not like a cluttered fan site. |
| 2. Who is your Ideal Reader (The "Who")? | "Divya, the Indian pop culture fan" | Keyword: "Accessible." The brand must translate complex data. This drives font choice (must be highly readable) and color choice (must be used to make data clear, not just decorate). |
| 3. What is your blog's Personality? | "however you would describe... the pudding blog, that should be the same for this blog" | Keyword: "Visual." This dictates the entire layout. This will not be a traditional blog. It will use "scrollytelling," full-bleed charts, and a magazine-style feel. |
| 4. What are your "Three Magic Words"? | "however you would describe the 3 keywords for the pudding blog..." | The Three Keywords: Insightful, Visual, Accessible. Every single design choice from here on must serve one or all of these three words. |
| 5. How does this translate to Branding (Fonts, Colors)? | "you choose all the fonts and colors for me based on the answers to my past qustions" | Fonts: Inter (or Manrope). A clean, modern, "Accessible" sans-serif superfamily. Use bold/black weights for "Insightful" headlines and regular weight for readable body text. Colors: A neutral, professional base (Off-white & Charcoal) for readability. A palette of vibrant, digital-native accent colors (Pop Pink, Turmeric Yellow, Digital Blue) to make data "Visual." |
ChatGPT GPT-5
| LLM Provided Phase | LMM Provided Question | Divya's Answer | LLM Branding Decision |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Essence | Why do you feel compelled to write this blog? | Get data behind the concepts debated in Indian cinema; tired of canned interview answers; want real, supported information and new insights. | Core drive: bring truth and rigor to Indian cinema discussions. Offer data-backed storytelling that reveals hidden patterns and truths. |
| If your blog were a person, how would you describe them in 3 adjectives? | In the know, smart, interesting. (Like The Pudding blog.) | Brand persona: Smart, analytical, and approachable. Knows the data but keeps it engaging. | |
| What do you not want your blog to be mistaken for? | Boring, not researched, behind the trends. | Anti-identity: not gossip, not surface-level analysis — depth with appeal. | |
| 3 topics you could write endlessly about / 1 to avoid | Anything within Indian cinema. | Domain focus: film, culture, and data intersection — everything else is noise. | |
| 2. Audience | Who are you writing for? | People who like Grantland or FiveThirtyEight — that demographic. | Audience: Curious generalists who value analysis, story, and clarity. Likely film lovers, culture enthusiasts, or global Indians. |
| What are they frustrated by? | Don’t know for sure, but I find responses canned, repetitive, and shallow. | Their frustration = your opportunity: no one’s offering evidence-backed insight in Indian cinema. | |
| What do you want them to feel after reading? | Convinced, satisfied, like they learned something new. | Goal emotion: “That was smart — and new.” Intellectual reward + entertainment. | |
| How would your ideal reader describe your blog? | Sharp insights and data viz about cool cultural angles within Indian cinema. | Positioning: The Pudding meets Film Companion — thoughtful, data-led storytelling. | |
| 3. Emotion | 3 adjectives for the mood of your blog | Calm, entertained, critical thinker. | Emotional tone: relaxed intellect — thoughtful but engaging. |
| If your blog were a room… | A bar at night — cozy, friends debating, laughing, disagreeing, intimate. | Atmosphere: Smart, late-night conversation. Sophisticated yet warm. | |
| Soundtrack | (Not sure) | Equivalent mood: midnight jazz / lo-fi groove — calm rhythm with intellectual energy. | |
| 4. Expression | Brand summary check | “A data-driven exploration of Indian cinema — calm, sharp, and intimate, like a smart late-night conversation among friends who care about film.” | Brand statement: your “North Star.” Combines credibility + intimacy. |
| 5. Emotion / Brand Promise | Emotion you want a visitor to feel | “I didn’t know a site about Indian cinema could look like this. It’s cool and approachable but doesn’t spare detail.” | Brand promise: Redefine expectations. Make Indian cinema analysis feel modern, intelligent, and beautiful. |
Outputs:
- Each LLM gave me their recommendation for visual identity guidelines like colors, fonts, and stylistic tips for writing according to the tone each recommended to achieve my brand goal
Comparing the Brand Directions
Tools:
- Figma Make
Inputs:
- Brand specification from each LLM as the text prompt
- Image of straightforward, well-laid-out, brand guideline one-pager from Dribbble for formatting guidance as the image prompt
Outputs:
- Visual branding specifications from each LLM, making it easy to compare proposals and try implementing the preferred option.
Choosing a Brand Direction
I liked the questions asked by ChatGPT most, especially: "If your blog were a room…". I found it natural and apt to envision that setting, which is likely why I gravitated towards that proposed branding guideline. I asked Figma Make to use that brand guideline and produced a blog post layout. The fundamental elements like the header or callout quotes, and the colors and fonts used for each followed an information hierarchy that was clear. It took me 70% of the way there and I took it the rest of the way.
Impact + What's Next
As I said in the beginning, the branding of this blog was one of the biggest obstacles to publishing this project I have been working on for years. Through this exercise, I committed to and implemented a brand identity that reflects my brand sensibilities in 3 days.
Previously it was overwhelming to find a bunch of inspiration in terms of blog tone, content, data visualization presentation, and style choices. Feeling ownership and pride about the initial decisions made for V1 of the blog, I can change my outlook to being excited about finding inspiration from other publishers and incorporating those elements into my blog.
Check out the blog at: indiancinemadata.com