We’d ask you to close your eyes to imagine but then it’s difficult to read our information about branding. Let’s try this… When you read the words golden arches or hear, “I’m lovin’ it.”, why is it that McDonald’s came to mind? What about, “a better brand of beef makes a butter burger better,” and white lettering on a blue background automatically makes you think of Culver’s and cheese curds? Mmmm, cheese curds. What does an apple have to do with Apple the leading technology brand, and why is it so successful?
All of these have been so successful because of branding.
There are 4 major components to your company being successful at building your brand:
1. Define how you want to be viewed by customers.
If we get down to the core of branding, this is your company’s DNA. What makes you, you. What’s the singular thing that makes you unique? This is a question for the ages, but this will help you stand out from your competition and into potential new customers’ views without losing your current base. Who are your competitors and what separates you from them? Who are your customers/ new customers and how do they see you? What are some of the things they like about your company than the others? What do you value most in other businesses? What is your company’s mission? What kind of company persona do you want to portray to them? These are just some of the questions that need to be observed, researched, data collected, and have in-depth conversations about. Defining your brand seems like a no brainer, but this part can be the most challenging and we can’t do this part for you. What we can do is help facilitate conversations or ideas that will lead you to finding your values, missions, personality and in the end, help you build your company’s brand.
2. Coordinate your business based on this definition.
Now that you have your company DNA defined, are there things in the current work surroundings that don’t speak to what you just defined? If this is the case, clean up. We don’t mean to get rid of everything and buy of all the new things. More so, clean house; if it no longer belongs, remove it so you can move forward in meeting those goals that your new brand has plans on reaching. Are you currently buttoned up in a strict dress code, when you want to relay to your customers that you are professional and easy going? Let your employees know that jeans are ok to wear, and a company branded top is all they need to meet your new dress code.
3. Communicate this to your target audience and current customers
Clear communication is vital, but communication is not always done verbally. This is where your stellar brand identity comes into play so you can effectively communicate verbally and visually. Brand Identity is your logo, design elements, and voice where you can communicate clearly to your target audience your values, and mission(s) to your customer base. This is the fun part for us as we get to figure out how best to represent you! We spend more time researching your field, competitors, things to consider and what to avoid, while keeping your values and missions in mind. This means all sorts of shapes, symbols, and colors to coordinate together within the context of your brand. We continue to communicate with you during this process if we have questions or you want to make an adjustment to what we design. In the end, this is your brand, and we want it to best reflect who you are. Just like how you communicated to your employees of the dress code change, it’s important to communicate this with your customers too! Inform them that you are changing things up or adjusting, so they know what is to come.
4. Be “persistent with your consistence”
Consistency is key. Having brand guidelines will help you be consistent with your look and messaging, your good(s) or service(s) speak for themselves, but the first half of that phrase is persistent. In order to let new customers see you, you must keep your brand being seen/heard. It’s like, “Practice, practice, practice”. The first practice is about skill. The second practice is the consistency of your skill. The final practice is bettering your skill to expand and be better than everyone else. The more persistent you are with your messaging, the more people notice your skill and the consistency of your skill.
Keep being the best at what you do for your customers and market yourself as the best you can on a budget that you can afford with the brand guidelines that you have set for your company. Some basic options are starting social media pages like Facebook or Instagram or maybe TikTok (depending on the demographics of your target market). Start with two posts a week, showing your great work, or a tip about how you work. Some other options to get started are getting company apparel, signage or promotional products that you can give to your customers. Do what makes sense with your new brand.
It’s your brand. Our expertise.