branding strategy often comes as an afterthought – or not at all. However, research shows that all companies with strong brands generate significantly higher sales and profits. In other words, taking the time to define and build a brand can give you a huge competitive advantage.
Here are some tips to help you implement effective branding strategies and tactics.
- Conduct effective market research
Before making any significant branding efforts, you will first need to answer a few key questions.
Are customers aware of your brand?
How are you perceived in the market?
How do customers see your brand compared to others?
What characteristics do customers associate with your brand?
Market research will help you answer these questions and collect feedback on positioning for your upcoming branding exercise.
Brand research is usually done through customer interviews and focus groups. You can hire experts to help you conduct customer surveys or try using inexpensive or sometimes free online survey tools.
- Focus on a unique value proposition
Your brand is yours to your customers. Therefore, it is important to develop a brand that conveys a unique value proposition to your customers – something that stands out.
- Choose a brand name that will convey your message clearly
Once you have identified your customers' needs and wants and come up with products that satisfy them, it's time to choose a brand name to clearly convey the message.
It's best to be specific. For example, consider giving each product or service you offer a distinct brand identity, as opposed to simply repeating your company name.
- Create an emotional connection
Psychologists have found that 90% of communication is non-verbal. Savvy marketers have long known that businesses can greatly improve brand effectiveness if, in addition to a good name, they evoke appropriate emotions.
A simple way to do this is through the effective use of colors. For example, using red to create a sense of urgency, green for environmental themes, blue for water, and so on. All can help to reinforce an effective brand name. Some companies even use music to build brand identity. For example, Intel has recorded musical notes that are played at the end of its television commercials.
- Provide consistent communications
Once a company has developed an effective brand and corporate identity strategy, it must be implemented consistently through every "touchpoint" with customers, including advertising, signage, public relations efforts, and so on.
One key is to get your employees on board. Your company's employees are your brand's biggest advocates. Creating an internal branding model will help them understand and connect to your core brands. They will then be better equipped to communicate that brand message to your customers.
