Branding is not only for big corporations or renowned brands but is the reason where they are today. Branding is for everyone —from personal branding to micro businesses— and for any brand or business willing to make a difference.
Introduction
Covid created new dynamics with more remote work, and hopes from increased time to ourselves. Of course, we saw global economies take a hit, businesses close down, and waves of employee layoffs. (Data shows that 15% of the global workforce lost their jobs due to the crisis.) However, it also created an unprecedented surge in entrepreneurship and the number of micro companies’ registrations that started in 2020 from new micro companies grew even more in 2021.
There is no doubt that behind each aspiring entrepreneur is a successful professional who is excellent at their craft, such as designers, tradesmen, chefs, consultants, and wellness specialists who worked in corporate companies for years. These exciting times are also hiding a harsher reality. More than 50% of new businesses will likely fail due to a lack of preparation, a lack of market understanding, and in the long-term, a lack of brand strategy.
How can new entrepreneurs succeed in this new adventure? Brand preparation and market understanding are key.
Your brand is the single most important investment you can make in your business. - Steve Forbes
Brand preparation and market understanding are key.
As 62% of small businesses are a one-man-band, it is only normal that a chef, or a wellness specialist will not master marketing or marketing strategies. Being excellent at producing a product or service is not the same thing as being good at operating a company. Aspiring entrepreneurs don’t need help knowing how to deliver their product or service. They need help to successfully learn how to do the things they don’t know how to do related to running a business, such as branding, brand strategy, market analysis, marketing and communication strategy.
What is branding?
First, let’s highlight some misconceptions: branding is not a brand, branding is not brand strategy, branding is not design. It encompasses all of these aspects.
Branding is strategic. It is a long-term commitment—the consistent management of emotional connections with your consumers across all channels and campaigns. It is the marketing practices of actively shaping your brand.
In other words, branding is the process of giving meaning to your organization, company, products or services by creating and shaping your brand in consumers' minds. Remember that brands don’t belong to companies anymore, they belong to the consumers. The objective of branding is to engage and retain loyal customers and other stakeholders by delivering a product that is always aligned with what the brand promises.
1. Brand Strategy | Define your DNA and Brand Personality
Brand strategy is what makes up your business. It encompasses your company values, unique selling point, target audience, vision and mission statement, and storytelling. Your branding strategy affects your audience’s entire experience with your company, and therefore must be carefully considered at the very inception of the company, product or service.
When you think about your brand strategy, there is one word to remember, “FOCUS.” If you stand for everything, you will end up standing for nothing. A focused brand knows what it stands for, what it is, why it is different, and what makes it special.
Your brand values, your mission and your vision are the elements that inspire the audience and make consumers trust you. Ask yourself:
· Your Mission: What is your “Why?”
· Your Vision: Where do you see your brand in 10 years?
· Your Values: What beliefs drive your company?
· Your Brand Personality: If your brand was a person, what kind of personality
would it have?
· Your Brand Voice: If your brand was a person, how would it communicate?
Brand is just a perception, and perception will match reality over time. - Elon Musk
2. Brand Visual Identity | Set your Look and Feel
People typically remember 10% of the information they hear or read, but 65% of the images they see.
Your brand’s visual identity is what sets you apart from the endless sea of competitors and shows your customers who you are, making you instantly recognizable. That identity is what forges the connection between you and your customers, builds customer loyalty, and determines how your customers will perceive your brand.
Visual identity elements can be:
· Logo
· Typography
· Color palette
· Form and shape
· Website
· Packaging
3. Craft a Market Strategy | Master your Playground
After defining your brand DNA, personality, and look and feel, the next step is to strategically assess your playground.
The entrepreneurship surge welcomed a lot of new players in the market, resulting in increased competition. Although the market is big enough for multiple players from the same league, it is important to stand out from the crowd and to be remembered by your specific audience.
What is your brand positioning? Are you navigating alone in a blue ocean or are you competing with similar players? In this situation, you need to consider the following:
· How do you position your brand relative to other similar companies?
· What are your competitive advantages?
· What are your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) in the market?
· Why would consumers trust you?
4. Marketing | Deploy your Tactics
If branding is strategic, marketing is tactical. Marketing means actively promoting and selling your product or service. It's about putting the right product/service in the right place, at the right price, at the right time to the right people.
Marketing will actively reinforce your brand, its image, increase your visibility and stimulate sales by creating emotional triggers.
Nowadays the whole planet is searching for information online. It is only logical to place some effort on your online presence and communication even if you are a local business. These channels include:
· Social medias presence
· Content and brand asset creation
· Display ads
· Google My Business
· SEO & SEM
Conclusion
· · Your brand is an extension of yourself, mirroring your values, and your personality.
· Define your brand as soon as you start operations.
· Remain consistent throughout all your touchpoints and assets.
· Understand your audience. It is the key to unlocking powerful branding and marketing tactics.
· Stay authentic as much as possible and genuine in your communication.
· Remember that Word-of-Mouth (WOM) is a powerful tool in your marketing toolkit (covered in the next article as a stand-alone tactic).
Marketing is asking someone to try your product or service; branding is the reason they say yes.
Let us support you in define the best branding for you. Contact us
Comments