Home › Blog › Branding – Who are you?
You have a brand whether you want one or not. Everything from your website, the design of your packaging, the colour of your store walls and how you answer the phone makes up your brand and it’s these choices that influence your customers more than you think.
Branding has been a buzzword for a while, yet still businesses do not seem to grasp what it exactly is and its importance. For many, branding still conjures images of searing symbols into live stocks backsides with a hot iron, when in fact, it’s history goes back as far as medieval times, when makers of everything from pottery to loaves of bread imprinted their mark onto their products. It wasn’t so much about what the mark looked like, but more a method of identifying the origin and its integrity.
Branding is not referring to your logo, branding is influencing and managing perceptions for the better. It is important to remember, your brand is not what you say it is, it’s what your customers say it is. A brand is the image a feeling that consumers conjure as a result of all their experience of you, your name, your logo, your service or any other aspect of your business. It is what creeps into their minds and influences them into how, what and where they should buy. It’s the complete personality of the company and is what builds consumer perceptions, rather than just how the identity (logo) looks.
Your brand has to deliver a promise about who you are, what your company ethics are and what your unique selling points (USP) are. A good brand will also create an emotional attachment, developing trust to a point that a loving and passionate consumer relationship is formed, thus resulting in complete loyalty and devotion to your product or services. An interesting example of this is to look at peoples clothing. It was only recently I met up with a group of friends where one of them was wearing a Porsche t-shirt and another an Apple Mac jumper. Neither worked for the companies so why were they brandishing their logos? They weren’t doing it solely because of what the brand identities look like, but more for what they stood for and what others see them as being e.g. Porsche = sporty, fast, expensive and Apple = thinking different, creative, modern. This is a prime example that consumers buy into a brands, the majority of the time it’s not just the actual product or service that makes their minds up and parts them from their money, it’s what they represent,.
Understanding your customers should be the driving force behind your marketing strategy. Every brand must be positioned correctly in your customer’s minds. It is essential to determine the brand’s target audience, price and key messages. Does it represent cutting edge innovation or traditional values? Does it appeal to the status seekers or bargain hunters? Is it different from your competition, and does it stand out? All of your marketing should reflect these decisions, from the logo and packaging to the distribution and website.
For example, if your products are priced at the top end of the market, it’s important that your branding is positioned accordingly. Your logo, leaflets, website etc need to convey a consistently clear message, look in-line with your pricing structure and reflect your selling points. Consumers want a brand that understands them and meets their requirements, if the price is high then the brand needs to reflect that, even if the products or service themselves are amazing consumers won’t connect and build loyalty and trust with your brand.
With an understanding of your market and where your brand is positioned within it, it’s now important that every customer interaction from website to signage is consistently conveying your brands personality. When customers see your products they need to instantly know Who, What and Why. When they walk into your shop they need to see and feel your brand, even before they see your logo.
Here at Graphic Evidence we try to adhere to the following rules when creating and developing a brand:
1. Is it easy to pronounce and spell? No point having a name that no one can say or easily search for on the likes of Google.
2. Will it work on a wide variety of formats? It may look good on a letterhead, but will it shine on a website or clothing?
3. Will it go in one ear and out the other? Is it unique enough to be distinguishable, but not so much so that it’s not memorable?
4. How is it portrayed? I.e. will it reflect what the company is and does?
5. Room for growth? Is it going to have the ability to expand with your business?
Don’t forget, your brand is your businesses most valuable asset, invest in it wisely and the rewards can be plentiful.
Adam Arnold is Managing Director of Graphic Evidence Ltd. Should you have any questions for Adam please call 01632 960900 or email [email protected]