How to create a strong and distinct brand and why it matters
If you’re like me, the word “brand” conjures up images of a historic brand, such as Coca-Cola or McDonald’s. But in reality, your brand is much more than a logo and name. It’s your identity and how that comes through to your customers both in product/service quality and personality.
What is a brand?
Brand is not just your logo and name. It’s how you choose to express yourself. The promise you make to your customers through the products/services you deliver, and the experience they have when interacting with your business.
The value of a strong brand can be seen in its ability to inspire loyalty among consumers as well as create recognition in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
How to create a strong and distinct brand
The first step to creating a strong and distinct brand is to have a clear vision. You need to know what you want your brand to be, how it should feel and behave, who it’s for and why they should care about it.
The clearer your vision is, the easier it will be to create and refine your identity throughout everything that comes after.
Also read: When creating a product or startup think in stages
The next step is defining your target audience: who are you talking to?
This includes looking at who currently uses products like yours. But also thinking about where this customer might be in their life cycle (are they young? Old?) and what kind of lifestyle do they lead (do they live in rural areas or urban areas?).
Don’t just think about current customers—think about potential customers as well.
Who else could use your product if only they knew how awesome it was? Once again, consider where in the world these people might live because this has an effect on how far away from them one can sell products online without shipping costs becoming prohibitively expensive.
Once you’ve defined who exactly needs whatever it is that makes up this “brand” of yours – whether it’s a tangible object like clothes or something more intangible like expertise – it’s time for some soul searching:
What does this thing mean?
Why does anyone need any part of its existence?
What purpose does its existence serve other than making money for someone else at our expense?
How can we improve upon it so everyone involved benefits without losing any individual integrity along the way?
Why is a brand important?
A strong brand is more than a logo, tagline, and color scheme.
It’s about the promise you make to your customers.
What are you selling? Is it value for money? Then why not communicate that in the design of your product or service?
What’s unique about it? Does it solve a problem that no one else can solve? If so, then show it off!
What makes Apple products stand out from the competition is their sleek appearance and user-friendly nature (and don’t forget the sublime marketing).
But let’s not forget that before Apple came along with its revolutionary phone designs, Nokia had been dominating this market for years with its simple yet effective phones. Nokia was doing everything right—but without any real innovation.
When someone buys an iPhone now, they’re buying into much more than just hardware: they’re buying into an experience which includes style, ease-of-use and reliability; all things which Nokia couldn’t offer until they started making different phones altogether.
In short: strong brands have personality —they have character—and they’re consistent in their messaging across every touchpoint where they interact with customers (websites/social media etc).
Brand is not just a logo and name
It’s your identity and how that comes through to your customers both in product/service quality and personality.
Also read: Don’t skip these steps when naming your product or company
Whether it’s a company, charity or person, brand means something more than just an image. Branding is all about communicating with people on an emotional level that makes them feel like they can trust you with their hard-earned money – or time!
You have to be aware of what type of message you’re sending out into the world (and whether or not it’s consistent). If you want people to think highly of you as a businessperson, then make sure all of your actions reflect what your business stands for: honesty, integrity, good manners etc.
Also read 8 crucial questions to ask yourself before designing a new logotype
Brand is… everything
A brand helps people understand what you do, who you are, what makes you unique, why they should choose to work with you over anyone else… In short: it’s everything!
In today’s crowded marketplace, the only way for small businesses (or large ones) to stand out is by having a strong brand identity that reflects their core values and represents them well.
That is why branding matters so much.
