What exactly is Branding?

The first thing you may think about when you think of the word ‘branding’ is a logo. Well, yes, a logo is included, but branding consists of much more than just that.

Although branding covers the appearance of the physical goods and properties of your business, it is also about your entire customer’s experience. This includes everything from your logo, flyers, website, social media presence, the way you communicate with your clients/customers, all the way down to how your staff engage with your customers.

In other words, your brand is the way in which your customers perceive your whole business.

Many small businesses and start-up organisations fail to spend the necessary time thinking about and working on their brand. This in turn can have a negative impact on their business.

Let’s take a look why you should spend time and effort setting up a branding strategy.

Let people know who you are

The complete experience of your brand, from its visual elements, such as your logo or email signature, to how you/your staff engage with your customers, shows people what kind of company you are.

For those of you who have had an unpleasant experience with a company, you may now feel a negative emotion when you happen to spot their brand somewhere. This is just one example of how a brand can negatively impact a business.

Recognition

Many customers and clients choose to go with businesses that they are familiar with.

When your branding is recognisable and stands out from others in the same industries, it can help people feel more comfortable when purchasing your products or services.

It also helps separate your business from others in the same arena. If your business looks more professional and competent, people are more likely to choose your product/services over others.

Your branding can help you achieve this.

Guide and Motivate you and your staff

Having a clear brand strategy provides the necessary tools and information that you and your staff need to run a successful business.

A strong and clear brand informs your staff of how to interact with customers, how to succeed at their role, and ultimately how to meet the company’s objectives and even exceed them.

Keeping you on Track

It’s easy to jump from one idea to another when trying to grow your business if you have nothing to guide you. But we all know that this can lead you off track of your main objective and can have a significant negative impact on your company.

A clear brand strategy helps you stay focused on your business’ goals and help you find potential areas of improvement. Your brand can help you form a strong strategy and can end up saving you and your company time and money.

Increasing ‘Word of Mouth’

Humans speak, it’s in our nature. Even cavemen expressed speech, although we can understand each other better now. One thing we love to talk to one another about is our experiences – good or bad.

People are always telling others about the brands that they really like and why they like them, and people value the opinions of others. This has become of huge importance when it comes to business today and is the main reason that we have review systems for companies. Even on social media and ecommerce websites.

How many times have you gone to book a holiday, purchase a product, or use a company’s service and read their reviews before doing so? It is usually after seeing what the majority of previous users say about a particular company that we decide whether to use it or not.

If this gives one clear message, it is that businesses – large or small, need to have a clear, recognisable brand that its users/customers trust and feel comfortable with.

It is hard nowadays to come across something that doesn’t have a brand. Our clothing, our food, our transportation, our technology, and even our music, all have brands!

Having a strong brand strategy, as well as a website brand strategy, is critical to generating ‘word of mouth’ referrals towards your business.

In Summary

Your brand, whether you knew it or not, is an extremely valuable tool for your business and its success. Having a brand and a strategy can help you form long lasting customer relationships, increase referrals and recommendations of your company and ultimately aid its growth.

If you need assistance with your brand, whether it be by creating the visual identity elements, or working with you to build a brand strategy, feel free to contact us.

If you would like to share your business’ brand experience or have any other comments, feel free to leave them below. We’d love to hear your thoughts/stories.

Until next time!