Let’s talk about how to brand your business and how it can impact your business and help you stand out from your competitor. It is one of the many important aspects of your startup or small business can have. Effective branding can give you an edge over your competitors.
But what exactly is branding and how can you apply it to your business?
What is a brand?
A brand is your identity and promise to the customer. It tells them what your business is about, who is it for, and what you can offer them. Your brand came from knowing who you are, who do you want to be, and who you are perceived to be. It is vital to brand your business so these things become immediately apparent to your audience.
Try asking yourself these questions:
- What are your products and services?
- Are they expensive or cheap?
- How do you want people to see your business – fun, serious, high-end
- Do you cater to the young or old?
- Who is your target audience?
- What’s their lifestyle?
You can’t please everyone, so, you should be who you are to the extent of your target audience. What’s more, you have to build the foundation of your brand including your:
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- Logo
- Promotional materials
- Packaging
- Website
- Customer service
- Physical store (if possible)
- Social media profiles
How to brand your business.
Knowing, defining, and developing your brand can be daunting. It can also be difficult and time-consumable. However, it’s necessary and things will be a lot easier if you know your brand.
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- List your business vision and mission. What do you want to see in yourself and how would you achieve that? How to reach that goal? Listing down your vision and mission may seem a little basic, but it’s a great start to understanding your company.
- Know the features and benefits of your products or services. Do you even know what you’re selling? Write down your products’ key features and how it can help people. This method will let you narrow down the number of people into your target audience. It will also let you know if your product lines are in line with the brand you’re carrying, so as not to confuse people.
- Define your target audience. You should have a clear demographics of the people you’re trying to sell your products to. Are they professionals or young millennials? Are they hip or serious? What’s their lifestyle like? You need to match your brand with the right audience too!
- Qualities and factors you want to associate with your business. Do you want people to see you as cool with a beach-boho vibe? Or with elegance, chic and charm? The qualities you want to integrate should reflect on your brand.
- Make a logo that speaks about the company. Design a logo that communicates with your brand. Is it fun, stoic, or professional? Do the colours equate to your company message? How did the elements of design place themselves in your logo?
- Create a tagline. A tagline should be something easy to recall and practised by your company. It shouldn’t be too long, lest your customers would want to forget about you. A short, catchy tagline is something you aim for.
- Integrate your brand. Branding is not all about posters, logos, and design. It’s all about how your team and customer service representatives handle your business. These people, too, should follow what the business’ brand is all about.
- Be consistent. Practice consistency with your brand until it sinks in with your customers, and to you too!
Understanding your brand can help you fulfil different company operation goals. There will be mistakes made on the way, but a clear objective to help you grow your corporate identity can prevent unnecessary problems.
We’d love to hear your comments on what strategies you have used and plan to use to brand your business.
We can help get your branding strategy up and running. Just reach out and email us at st******@pu*******.digital
