- What Is a Brand?
- Who can benefit from Branding?
- Elements of Branding
- Tips for Building a Reputable Brand
- Conclusion
A brand that connects with your audience isn’t built overnight. From finding a voice to choosing the right font or colour scheme, branding takes time and thought. However, your target audience will respond more positively if you put more effort into it.
You’ve probably heard the term “brand identity” thrown around and wondered what it means. Your brand identity is a collection of things that come together to form the face of your business; it’s your name, logo, colour palette and tone of voice, to name a few.
Telling your story, bringing it to life through design, and starting a meaningful conversation with your target audience is what branding is about. However, building a business that represents your company in the best way possible is the ultimate goal.
In this article, we’ll discuss what branding means, branding elements to incorporate, the right steps to take in building a brand and its essence. Read on...
What Is a Brand?
Branding is the unique visual and verbal expression of your business. It includes elements like the name, logo and tagline that you already use to establish credibility. Using consistent designs and messaging styles in all your marketing assets helps potential customers recognize your company. Whether they see your logo on a billboard or hear your TV commercial on the radio.
When consumers have a favourable opinion of a business, they are more likely to evaluate its products or services – and are more willing to pay a premium for them.
Building a business requires an intimate knowledge of your target customer, wants, and needs. Once you know who you are trying to reach (target audience), what you want to say (brand message), and why they should care (unique selling point), it can help guide the decision-making process for all branding choices.
A brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room. As an entrepreneur, it’s your job to infuse your business with meaning and to make sure everyone else knows it too.
Who can benefit from Branding?
Branding benefits businesses of all sizes and at all product life cycle stages. Most consumer goods and services, in some way, rely on branding to deliver their messages and differentiate themselves from other competing products. A well-established business helps consumers recognize a company’s offerings, builds trust, and distinguishes itself with a recognizable name, logo, slogan, or design scheme.
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As Robert Greene in 48 Laws of Power, “So much depends on reputation — guard it with your life.” Branding develops a unique reputation for your activities as a business or individual. Successful branding makes your prospects remember you and your products among the hundreds of other choices available to them. It sets the stage for creating a loyal customer base, and it can set you apart from competitors and make you more appealing to potential partners.
Creating a robust and positive perception of your company in your customers’ minds will essentially allow you to stand the test of time.
Elements of Branding
Many elements go into branding, from designing a distinctive logo to crafting an effective mission statement. Generally, there are seven (7) essential elements of branding.
1. Brand Name
A brand name is used in identifying a company and distinguishing it from competitors. Your brand name is where your business starts.
It is the foundation on which your company will be built and a crucial part of building a solid business.
Whether it’s a name for your startup or a new product for an existing company, it communicates the essence of your company to the world. But, beyond that, it establishes your overall business.
Your business name is arguably your most important asset. It defines you as a business and helps people remember who you are and why they should choose you over other firms.
When choosing the right brand name, you need to communicate your vision, stand out from your competitors, and build an emotional connection with consumers.
Some brands may choose something that gives consumers an idea of what they offer, while others will come up with something completely abstract. Finding the balance between being unique and memorable is your ultimate goal.
The critical thing to remember when choosing a brand name is to ensure it is memorable, catchy and easy to say. A long or hard-to-pronounce name will make it difficult for your audience to remember. Once your audience can forget your brand name, it becomes more challenging to communicate your value, especially when launching a new product.
2. Brand Logo
Creating your business’ logo is another essential part of kickstarting your brand. It is one of the most noticeable and recognizable aspects of your business. This can include but is not limited to lettering, an image to represent your products or even unique typography. In addition, your audience will take note of it on platforms like email, website, and maybe on the physical products you sell.
Your logo is your business’s most recognizable visual element. As such, it’s more than just a picture; it serves as an extension of your brand. If you want to build a reputable and memorable brand, you need to create a unique, professional logo that stands out from the rest.
An eye-catching logo is the cornerstone of any successful branding campaign and may be your most valuable asset.
What makes a good logo? A good logo must be instantly recognizable and memorable.
It should make a strong first impression and help people remember your brand. It embodies the brand’s vibe and reflects what it does. A great logo is timeless, so it doesn’t need to be updated each time things change.
The logo’s colour, whether black and white or any other format your logo should maintain its strength and character. It should be adaptable enough to work on a variety of collateral types. Finally, it should tell people something about your business or what you do.
3. Colour Scheme
An effective way to achieve branding is by selecting a colour memorable and recognizable colour scheme for your brand. Colour is a visual language used to convey personality and emotion without words. This is why your business’s colour scheme is crucial. Colour has the power to evoke emotions. Use them well, and your brand will thrive.
It only takes a couple of seconds for a customer to make a subconscious decision about whether or not they like your brand. This means it pays to choose your brand colours carefully. The right hue can help you accomplish your branding goals by increasing trust among customers. For example, the colour blue often signifies stability, reliability, and integrity, which transcends the Tedbree brand.
Your brand colours should be aligned with the message you want to send an appeal to your target customers. The right colours will attract or repel prospects, regardless of how good your product/service is, which is why it’s so important to get them right.
Though brand experts usually pick colour combinations based on their visual appeal. However, the connection between different colours and feelings is sometimes used to assess the impact of branding strategies.
When choosing your branding colour, consider what emotion you want to communicate and choose accordingly. It’s easy to see the enormous branding power of colours, but choosing the colour that best represents your company can be challenging. Different colours evoke different emotions. So it’s helpful to understand how each colour affects viewers and how it is used in context.
4. Images and Designs
Your brand is a visual experience, and you want to be sure that your customers have an experience that’s unique to you. Your brand design elements should come through in all of your visual assets. From the fonts, colours, and even style of photographing or editing your images.
Images convey the tone and intent of your brand. They are powerful tools that can be used to attract interest and tell the story of your business immediately.
Good design can help to elevate your overall brand’s image. It goes beyond just choosing a style, colour palette, and aesthetic you like. Visual cues help create that sense of trust between you and your customers.
Whether it’s for your social media pages, blogs, or even your flyer, it should have your base brand colours. This way, it will be easy for your audience to identify your products and services. You’ll have a brand identity that stays at the back of their minds.
5. Typography
Your business’s typography refers to the fonts you use in your communications. When customers see a font they associate with your company; they immediately know where the content came from. Plus, using consistent fonts makes it easier for your team to create content and brand materials of all kinds.
Once you choose a font for your business, you’ll want to use it consistently in all materials. This includes documents, websites, social media posts, and other written content. You should also select 2-3 different fonts that complement your main font stylishly. It will help you create a wide variety of content without straying from your branding.
Typography can say a lot about your brand. It’s one of the initial things your audience will see when they encounter your marketing materials or online presence, so it must send the correct message. Sometimes the small things are what make a huge impact.
There are many different benefits of using branded fonts. It helps build your brand and develop trust with your customers. When you work with a designer to develop your corporate images, make sure they include typography examples and guidelines so that every piece of content you put out is consistent and accurately represents your brand.
6. Tone and Voice
A brand’s voice and tone help establish a personality. It is essentially how your audience “hears” your brand. They are crucial elements of any communication strategy, as they clearly outline your brand message to both employees and customers.
If you want customers to see your business as approachable, friendly and responsive, you may consider using a conversational tone. In contrast, if your business is more formality-oriented and professional, especially a B2B enterprise, you may consider using a more serious voice. In any case, a clear voice and tone are essential parts of building a solid brand personality.
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Consider the tone of your business before you start developing marketing materials. Is it informative and enthusiastic? Is it professional? Understanding how you communicate is vital as this is what helps tell people about your business.
Apple’s tone of voice is friendly and approachable, yet with a subtle wit, that appeals to their audience.
Make sure that all writers use the same tone and voice for the company’s brand. Consistency is critical to building a solid brand and making your marketing efforts more impactful.
Sometimes it’s helpful to imagine you’re talking to your best friend about your product. Aim for a positive tone in your descriptions, but don’t be afraid to use humour or show your personality. It’s an excellent way to make sure you stand out from the crowd.
7. Taglines or Slogans
A tagline is a phrase or group of words that succinctly express the purpose of a product, brand, or organization. For example, “Just do it” famously encapsulates Nike’s brand message in an action-oriented manner. Likewise, Apple’s tagline, “Think different”, highlights its superiority over competitors and distinguishes itself in the tech industry.
Taglines are essential, as it leaves a memorable and remarkable impact on the customers. Even when used in an informal setting, the phrase” Just do it” always reminds everyone of the Nike brand.
Your tagline can do significant publicity for you. Its job is, to sum up, the tone and premise of the brand as quickly and cleverly as possible. With only a few words, it must communicate to the consumer why they should choose you over your competitors.
The key to any strong tagline is brevity and memorability. It can be catchy phrases, clever or humorous — but they are all used to help brands stick in the minds of consumers.
Tips for Building a Reputable Brand
It’s one thing to know the elements of a brand and another to incorporate them properly and build a reputable brand. These tips will help you in creating a brand strategy that yields results.
Tell a Compelling Brand Story
The most effective method to engage with your audience is through storytelling, and many of the world’s most successful brands are already doing it. They’re telling stories that captivate customers and draw them in, creating an affinity that makes people feel like they’re part of a larger community. Those stories aren’t just compelling—they can often serve as a source of inspiration or motivation at crucial moments in their customers’ lives. Your brand story is a narrative. It explains why your business exists and how your product serves as the solution to a problem that customers’ problems. It also tells why it’s better than the alternatives they have or know about.
When done right, a brand story can do that for customers too. By crafting compelling stories that resonate with your audience, you boost customer loyalty, engagement and conversion rates.
Brand stories remain most effective when told as part of a broader customer experience. Excellent customer service, product launch, and customer-facing employees are vital to ensuring the brand story is fully activated.
Brand Consistency
Consistency in branding is critical for establishing brand equity and establishing a sustained competitive advantage. Brand consistency refers to your ability to consistently communicate your brand’s identity and key messages across every marketing platform. Creating a consistent brand experience increases brand recognition and trust by meeting standards people expect from a reputable company. You can also save time and money by planning with a marketing strategy to make sure all of your marketing content follows the right voice and tone, colour palette, design elements, and more.
Remember, brand consistency is about delivering the same message and core values of your company across all platforms. Make sure that marketing campaigns and materials are aligned with your organization’s core values. Build a strong brand voice to guide all your marketing content and allow marketers some freedom to tailor messages and deliverables with success in mind.
When you’re consistently creating communication and marketing materials that align with your audience, you’ll be more likely to increase brand awareness, trust and loyalty, leading to higher sales. Consistency as a brand is key. When all of your customer touchpoints have a consistent look, feel, and tone, you’ll make a positive impression on your audience.
Understand Your Audience
Identifying your target demographic is an essential step in developing a brand strategy. Unfortunately, this step often gets overlooked, and it should be the first thing you work on when creating a brand. Remember that your business isn’t for everyone; you’re not trying to appeal to everyone on the planet, instead, you want to focus on those who need your product or service.
Create profiles of ideal customers and help them visualize the benefit of doing business with you. Check the demographics of your customers— age, gender, interests, and behavioural patterns.
Conduct market research to understand what your audience wants and needs. Ask your current customers questions about their habits and preferences. This way, you’ll be able to create a brand that appeals to them.
Brand Positioning
Brand positioning is the technique of positioning your brand in such a way that it plays a unique and valuable function in your customer’s thoughts. Creating a relevant and valuable place for your brand requires much more than traditional marketing plans in today’s connected, competitive, and transparent world.
Positioning refers to the position a brand holds in the customer’s mind and is differentiated from competing products. A successful brand positioning strategy maximizes customer relevance and competitive differentiation, hence increasing brand value.
Whether you’re a big or small brand, you can develop your brand positioning to distil the most compelling and vital customer benefit that differentiates your brand from competitors.
Your brand identity is defined by your customers and the market based on your strengths and weaknesses. The term “brand positioning” refers to a company’s strategy to make its brand stand out from other brands that sell similar products or services.
Emphasizing the strengths, characteristics, and attributes of your product or service offers your customers a reason to choose your brand over other brands. It describes who you are, what you do, what you stand for, and why your product is essential. It’s a compelling descriptor of your brand’s attributes and how it uniquely satisfies consumers’ needs.
Conclusion
Your brand strategy doesn’t have to be complex, but make sure you have a building block or mission statement that clearly outlines your purpose. Before handling anything else, define why you exist and what you set out to do. Then build your brand strategy around that.
Remember to take it a step at a time, and you’ll gradually build up your brand awareness and make sure that your business leaves a lasting impression on customers. Especially in the beginning, start simple, and make small strides in identity development. If you have a well-defined brand, it will be a big part of what carries your company forward throughout its growth and evolution.
We hope these tips will help you define and implement your brand strategy so that your brand is strong enough to beat out the competition. It’s a good idea to reevaluate every so often and make sure that you’re taking steps to improve your brand marketing and image.