The look, feel and image of your business are as important as any product you sell. It’s this almost intangible asset that gives you a leg up over your competitors or cements your position in the marketplace. It identifies who you are and what you are about, along with the way your product makes people feel. It’s all about the branding, and here’s how to translate yours to success.
Your market
The demographic and market you’re selling to determines the branding language you speak, so it’s essential to know your market first. You need to be intimately au fait with who your potential customers are and what they are likely to seek.
This involves answering a series of questions such as how old are they? Where are they likely to live? How much are they likely to earn? Are they people who seek a quality service/product? Is it organic credentials they’re after? Are they looking for something no-nonsense? Or is this product appealing to a sense of fun?
By knowing who your customers are and what will appeal to them, you are a third of the way through the branding journey.
Your feel
There’s reams and reams of literature devoted to the hidden mechanisms of branding. From fonts to colours, imagery, and even the use of white space, it’s a complex field where the whole branding image is much greater than the sum of its parts.
However, the aim is to capture the feel of your product or service, telling your consumer who you are and what you stand for. Some people have a great natural instinct for branding, but for others it’s a bit of a challenge, so prepared to bring in experts and designers where necessary.
Your complete package
If you’ve got great branding, flaunt it. Your logo or brand label should be everywhere you are; on your correspondence, website, hangtags etc. It’s about reinforcing your presence every time a potential client sees your name.
It’s also about creating a professional and seamless image that translates across the range of services or products you provide.
A helping hand
Even the world’s top companies update and change their branding from time to time. It can be subtle like Black & Decker changing to Black + Decker, or drastic like world giant Apple who began with a logo far different from the iconic one you see today.
From identifying your demographic right through to design and implementation, your brand is critical to your success. Whether you need a refresher, a total rebrand or to hone your image to suit your market, we have coaches available to assist with this process.
