The most profitable companies in the world all have a distinct thing in common. They have established themselves as a leader in their particular industry by creating a strong brand presence. These companies know that building a powerful brand increases a company’s value, it provides direction and motivation for employees, and it enables customers to easily make a building a relationship with their company a must.
Developing a relevant brand is a pertinent part of building your small business for a number of reasons. Knowing where to start, however, may pose some questions. For the sake of assisting you with a brand that will draw attention to your business and bring you the desired market, I want to look at 5 key basics for branding…
- Know Your Brand Target. This starts with knowing your perfect customer, their wants, needs and desires and how your product or service helps them to solve their needs.
- Develop a Brand Strategy. How will you convey your brand to your market? It is important that you create a strategic plan on the various ways you will communicate your solution to your customers. How will you advertise? What social media strategies do you need to put in place?
- Create a Consistent Brand Identity. Your brand identity is the visual aspect of your company. This includes your name, logo, tagline, literature, website, color, and so much more. Design your marketing materials like end cap displays and billboards, so they easily identify your company. This consistency will lead to strong brand equity through sparking an emotional response and perceived quality.
- Stay True to Your Brand. Give your customer what you promised. Don’t provide lousy customer service and limited ways for your market to connect with you. Stick with the identity that you build and make sure that you are fluid all the way through to the end.
- Your Personal Brand. Did you know that you need to brand YOU? Your personal brand is every bit as important to your overall corporate brand in that it too must be consistent with what your brand stands for. The brand values you possess should be a part of your personal brand as well. In the day-to-day operation of your company, how you are perceived also impacts the overall brand experience for your customers. Whether they trust you, enjoy your company or look to you for advice speaks to how successfully you’ve grown your brand. Since you are your brand, it benefits you stay on top of every touch point of brand.
Your business brand will help you to create a path that is unique to you and your market. It is the foundation of how you communicate your solution to your potential customers. If you want to see your profit margins grow, you need to be sure to build a solid brand for your small business.
