‘Brand’ and ‘Branding’ are often used terms in business scenarios. But what do they signify?
Unfortunately, most people, when talking about brand and branding, refer to the name, logo, and tagline.
But is that all? Is brand all about that only?
Of course, not. The brand is a broad term, and a logo is just a component of the branding.
Then what is a brand?
In the words of Seth Godin, “A brand is the set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships that, taken together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service over another”.
The above statement explains the meaning of brand comprehensively.
Okay! So, it is time to do what we are here for. Yes, we are here to see the making of the brand – the elements combining to make a brand.
It is all about what you do, how you do and what are your intentions. Tell people what makes you different from the rest.
Have you ever paid attention to how your brand sounds? Well, most companies don’t. And it is one of the areas where their efforts fall short.
Consistency in the brand voice plays a vital role in your brand positioning. It helps your audience to identify you through your content and enables you to stand apart from your competitors. And with the rise of social media marketing, considering brand voice while creating a content strategy becomes even more significant.
It communicates the what and how of the brand to people. Further, your brand voice is the way through which the audience perceives you, thereby helping you in community building. Thus, the need is to develop a brand voice and align that to your marketing activities rather than being random every time.
The audience plays a colossal role in the making of the brand. Well, how does the target audience affect branding?
When your entire business is for them only, how can you overlook them while branding? It doesn’t matter what you do; you are what people perceive you to be. And perception is a mind-game. To ensure that people have a correct perception of your brand, you need to approach the people appropriately, and for this, you need to know them.
Of course, it is the most popular element of branding. It is all about using any visual element to attract and impress the audience. It consists of various factors, including logo, colour scheme, typography, images and website design. There can be more to it.
Now comes the vital point. Visual identity, being a part of branding or brand identity creation, call for planning. Random selection of any of the visual identity elements, be it colour, graphics etc., is a serious mistake. It can take you away from the path of creating a holistic brand. Thus, before initiating the visual creation, draft a complete branding plan. And the best would be to start with drafting the brand statement. Accordingly, things will move. Why are we saying this? Because your visual identity should complement your brand statement and brand voice. Moreover, the target audience must be able to perceive your brand through visuals the way you want. For the successful output, the best is to appoint professional designers. Apart from having the needed skills, they know the trends as well.
The quality of your products or services must be synonymous with your brand statement. The users and the target audience must be able to sense that your intentions are correct. They must feel that your output is doing justice with what you say; your mission, vision and promises. Because words make sense only when the customers are happy with the results. It lays the ground for customer loyalty and long-term customer relationships, which are prerequisite for a brand to become crowned.
Like-minded people coming together makes a community. Hmm…what is the role of community in brand creation? Community paves way for growth. How? Here, your loyal customers, who are committed to you and paying attention to every activity that you as a brand undertakes, talk about you in their network whenever the chance comes. It is like indirect promotion. They attract more people and bring customers to you. Moreover, they stay connected and help each other when the need arises. Also, a good community helps you innovate by sharing timely and reliable feedback, giving improvement suggestions, etc. Together you become powerful.
Reputation is like oxygen that keeps a brand up and running. A flawless track record of the brand helps you generate a sense of confidence among customers and the target audience. Trust building becomes easier, which, in turn, shortens the customer acquisition cycle. And maintaining an outstanding reputation has become even more essential in the digital era, where the first thing that people see are reviews and ratings.
For people to remember you in the long-run during a highly competitive scenario, you need to give them reasons. No, we are saying to spend hundreds of dollars on this. Small but meaningful acts are enough. Show that you care for them. Make them feel special. Be responsive to them. Try to address their issues at the earliest. Suppose social cause of common interest. And reserve a place in their memory.
These areas combine to make your brand identity unique and powerful while helping in evoking emotions. It won’t be wrong to say that they are inter-connected. A strong positive brand sentiment works in multiple directions. It influences the behaviour of your existing clients and target audience while encouraging loyalty, paving the way for a long-term relationship and profitability. Also, a solid brand image boosts the morale of the employees and motivates them to stay productive. And business growth is inevitable.
A slight deviation in any of the above areas can change the entire scenario. So, have you considered all the essential brand-building elements? What about the efficacy of their contribution to your brand credibility? Are they working as desired?
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Which, according to you, are the crucial elements of brand building?
Comment below to let us know.
And yes, if you need professional assistance in business branding, we are here. Reach out to us and make business branding uncomplicated.
