If you only take away one message from this blog, it should be this: Brands are important! How important? Well, the name of our marketing company is BRANDiT, so we clearly think that branding is pretty important. Now you may be thinking ‘only because you think that doesn’t mean it’s right’. But actually, we are a fairly good and reliable source. Not to brag, but the owner of this company did get win an award for being the certified practising marketer of the year by the Australian Marketing Institute in 2020, so if that’s not proof that she knows what she’s doing then I don’t know what is. But I degress, the point is that brands and branding is a crucial part of ANY business. So now sit back and get comfortable, maybe even pour yourself a glass of wine, whilst you read about the power of branding.
No matter how big or small your business is or what industry you’re in, one thing is for sure. You will be better off if you nail your branding. How? Well, a business can’t operate without customers. Regardless if you have a B2B or B2C operation, at the end of the day you need people to buy your offerings. For people to buy your offerings, the have to be aware your business exists and that’s where branding comes in. For consumers, brands serve as symbols to facilitate choices among competitors, assess quality levels, reduce risk and build trust. Brands which portray information in a meaningful way are easily remembered and consumers tend to purchase brands they resonate with and link to brand associations. How do you do this? Through your brand image. Creating an effective brand image is essential in order to build a strong and successful brand in a competitive market. But doing this is easier said than done. Luckily for you, we are going to share some of our wisdom and outline some key things which are involved in creating a ROCKiN brand!
One of the key things to ensure success is ensuring that consumers can easily identify and associate brands with (i) your business’s specific offerings and (ii) their own needs. Put it this way if you have a plumbing business it wouldn’t be very strategic to have a brand that makes references to farm animals. All that would do is confuse potential customers. Your brand is supposed to facilitate awareness of what your business has to offer its customers. Therefore, when creating a brand strategy, it is crucial to identify the target market and understand consumers’ needs, wants and expectations. How do you do this? Through a little something we like to call ‘Brand Identity’.
The brand identity should be made up of your business’ core values and attributes and made known to consumers through visual identifiers. These include things such as the brand name, slogan and logo. Creating effective visual identifiers is crucial! They communicate the brands’ image, positioning, offerings and values to not only your customers but also your employees, partners and potential investors and form the basis for brand awareness.
Brand names can be explained as being the anchor for your brand identity. They should capture its central theme in an obvious yet short and concise manner. But no matter how ROCKiN your brand name is, alone, it won’t be enough to make a good brand. Put it this way, let’s say Mick Jagger is the brand name. Together with Bill Wyman, Brian Jones, Keith Richards and Charlie Watts, they formed the Rolling Stones and were one of the most successful bands of their time. But as history showes when Mick went off by himself and tried to make it as a solo artist it was a bit of a edpic fail. The same goes for branding. When all brand elements work together the outcome is much better!
What are some other key elements of branding?
Below are some key elements needed to create a successful brand using BRANDiT as an example. The list is not exclusive, as creating a brand a wide range of different aspects and is unique to each company.
Consistency
Consistency, and I cannot stress this enough, is key to building a strong brand. It’s super important to be consistent across all the brand elements on all the platforms you use to communicate as a brand. This includes the website, social media platforms and packaging. Customers respond to cohesive brands which have direction and impact on their brand image. A great way to keep consistent is to create a style guide outlining the fonts, images, colours which are to be used at all times on all your platforms. This should be your ‘Marketing Bible’!
Logos
Logos visually portray your brand’s promise. Consumers use it to identify your business and differentiate it from your competitors. You’d be suprised by how many people choose to buy something from one business just because they have better looking logo. Ensure your logo is high resolution and is consistent with your brand image. Use the same colours and brand identity that you have used consistently throughout your marketing material. Have varying logos to ensure that the shape and colour are fitting to different settings and formats.
Colours and Shapes
Brands strengthen their identity by incorporating certain colours and shapes which spark a psychological response in consumers. They illustrate your brands core values, attributes and personality as well as support it’s positioning. Choose your brand colours on the emotional response you want to evoke in consumers. Certain colours will give a calming response and others exciting. You have to determine what will be most appropriate for your business based on how they will make your customers feel. Oh, and make sure you choose colours that work well together. If you have designed the most amazing logo, the last thing you want to do is ruin it by making it neon green, hot pink and maroon.
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Slogans
Slogans are an effective tool to further communicate the brands value, enforcing the meaning behind the brand name and priming associations in the mind of consumers. Effective slogans capture the brands core message and link to its offerings in a short and concise manner. OUR slogan is “ROCKS” the goal here is to keep a tag / slogan short and sharp, a powerful and memorable statement about your business. For instance BRANDiT’s is “ROCKS” we use it everywhere like: Invoices, proposals, wall stickers, email signatures and so on. Your slogan should be part of your business and used daily, rather than your aspiration.
Tell a Story
The most crucial part of creating a brand identity is that you are telling a story and ultimately creating customer loyalty. You want to build a relationship with your customers so that they feel a strong connection to your business. A brand’s story comes from the people behind the brand, the history of the company and the role the consumers play in the story so be sure to communicate this as often as possible.
Are you ready to start building your brand! This guide will assist you in your endeavours. If you’re not sure of where to start or where to look? Get in touch with our team and we will walk you through the whole process and ensure you will be on your way towards improving your brand image. BRANDiT is a Full-Service Marketing and Advertising Agency meaning we do it all. Servicing the Gold Coast, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne we are the right starting point, call us on 1300 70 60 20 or use the below “Contact Us’ form.
