`Destiny's shader/emblem system is a solid method of immediately showcasing ones triumphs and victories in the game-world. It allows players to instantly show the world what they have bested and where they put themselves, be this a fancy Red/White palette of armour to represent the faction of New Monarchy, a crisp exotic emblem to establish that they have bested the PvP community and travelled to the elusive 'Lighthouse' on Mercury, or perhaps a matching Future War-Cult set to display their allegiance.
Expanded In-Game Clan Aesthetics:
`In it's current state, Destiny allows clan-mates to showcase themselves through a simple text display within the in-game player emblem icon. To build upon this, clans on the bungie.net webpage would be capable of creating (possibly from a selected variety of designs/colour palettes) a unique shader/emblem set that is locked in on the current clan profile settings. Only moderators of clans are allowed to edit the emblems/shader. This would allow players to further customize their in-game avatars to showcase their position and who they fight with.
Perhaps that fire-team you come up against in Iron Banner, showcasing a Red Leaf on a white background will leave you wondering if they're going to play nice or just apologize emphaticly as they fill you with buckshot.
Note: Clan emblems/shaders would be locked to basic colour designs and themes. Creating a 'matching' set, e.g, creating a "Gold Spiral" would be locked out of choice.