Branding: What’s The Point? (Part 1)
The ‘build it and they will come’ day’s are over – a strong visual representation of your brand is money well spent. People buy with their eyes first – and a catchy logo or tagline makes an impression and set’s up the tone of your business before the customer has engaged with it.
Moving into the online space it provides the user a reason to ‘click’. Branding, by definition, is a marketing practice in which a company creates a name, symbol or design that is easily identifiable as belonging to the company. This helps to identify a product and distinguish it from other products and services.
Branding is important because not only is it what makes a memorable impression on consumers but it allows your customers and clients to know what to expect from your company. It is a way of distinguishing yourself from the competitors and clarifying what it is you offer that makes you the better choice. Your brand is built to be a true representation of who you are as a business, and how you wish to be perceived.
There are many areas that are used to develop a brand including advertising, customer service, promotional merchandise, reputation, and logo. All of these elements work together to create one unique and (hopefully) attention-grabbing professional profile.
As I’ve already stated above, branding is absolutely critical to a business because of the overall impact it makes on your company. Branding can change how people perceive your brand, it can drive new business and increase brand awareness.
For us of the compelling reasons branding is important to a business is because it is how a company gets recognition and becomes known to the consumers. The logo is the most important element of branding, especially where this factor is concerned, as it is essentially the first face of the company.
This is why a professional logo design should be powerful and easily memorable, making an impression on a person at first glance. Branding is a key critical component of your business development strategy. If you have a strongly established brand it can increase a business’ value by giving the company more leverage in your specific industry. Over time customers notice the brand and make the connection to the ‘feel-good’ factor of having dealt with the business.
So with a strong brand you will have no trouble drumming up referral business. A strong branding generally means there is a positive impression of the company amongst customers, and they are more likely to do repeat business with you. Familiarity breeds trust. Once your brand has been well established, word of mouth or ‘word of mouse’ will be your strongest advertising technique.
More importantly a strong brand creates pride within your employees. When an employee works for a strongly branded company and truly stands behind the brand, they will be more satisfied with their job and have a higher degree of pride in the work that they do. This then translates through the entire business development life-cycle.
Customers are more likely to do business with a company that has a polished and professional brand portrayal. Being properly branded gives the impression of being industry experts and makes the public feel as though they can trust your company, the products and services it offers and the way it handles its business.
Advertising therefore becomes a perfect foil to branding. Your advertising strategies will directly reflect the power of the brand and translate the key messages of the business. Advertising techniques such as the use of promotional products from trusted companies such as iKwezi.Studio make it easy to create a cohesive and appealing advertising strategy that plays well into your branding goals.
I hope this answers the question in my title and you can see there really is a point to branding your business correctly and effectively. It’s always good practice to re-visit your brand and your logo on a regular basis. Sometimes a ‘lick-of-paint’ on the corporate identity doesn’t hurt. You can do a ‘reboot’ at anytime so that you remain relevant and up to date with the latest design trends.
In Part 2 of Branding What’s The Point I will go into more detail on the types of Corporate Identities that are available and how you can go about picking a style that’s relevant to you.
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