A brand is how your customers perceive you after having experienced your business in some way. Jeff Bezos, rightly said, “Your brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room.” People’s responses to brands can be as emotive as they are to other human beings.
Contrary to popular belief, a brand is not just a logo, website, product, or product packaging. Instead, it is about the experiences and value you provide.
Creating your brand
It is important to create a brand identity that resonates with your target audience and is aligned with your company’s mission. It is seen that people who resonate with your identity tend to become your most loyal customers. So here are the steps you can take to create a strong brand identity:
1. Research everything!
The first step in creating a strong omnichannel brand identity is research. Research on these 5 things:
1.1 Audience
Different people want different things and like different things. For example, you cannot brand a product for a teenage girl in the same way you would brand a product for a middle-aged man. Most of these segments will have different likings. Thus, nailing down who are you addressing with your brand, and do they really need your products or offerings is critical to figuring out your audience.
1.2 Competition
Competitive analysis to know the difference between you and your competition is extremely important to build a successful brand. Research on their value proposition, branding strategy, core values, and target audience and work towards figuring out how you are different and where you stand in the competitive landscape. The research will help you in getting ideas on how to improve and differentiate your brand.
1.3 Personality and Mission
Make sure your personality and mission resonate very well with the kind of brand you want to build. Every brand has a personality. The font types, colors, logo, and imagery all are a part of that personality. The visuals go hand in hand with the tone of your brand: Is it confident, fun, sassy, or ritzy? Spending time on your mission and the purpose of your business can help you decide the appropriate personality of your brand.
2. Design your brand’s identity
Your brand identity is the face of your business. At the very beginning, it might be difficult for a startup to decide this, but as your startup grows your brand identity will evolve with it. For example, companies like Apple, Baskin Robbins, Levi’s, and Starbucks. have all evolved their brand with time. Your brand identity consists of the following elements-
2.1 Name
Your company’s name should be relatable, futuristic, expandable, and easy to remember. A product-based company has more room to experiment with names as opposed to a service-based company. For service-based companies, you should make sure, your company’s name hints at what service your company provides. Some examples of product-based companies are Google, Procter & Gamble, Adobe, and Facebook while names of some service-based companies are Qatar Airways, Tata Consultancy Services, and Bank of America Corp.
2.2 Logo
The most recognizable part of your brand is your logo. While it is important that you choose a logo that you are passionate about and is nice to look at, make sure that it resonates with your target audience as well. Here are a few logos we love!
2.3 Colors
Colors communicate without saying things out loud. Every color has some values and feelings associated with it. For example, when we look at red, we think of danger, aggression, and energy while blue induces trust and calmness. Hence, the colors you use in your brand identity should be relevant to what you want your audience to feel while looking at it.
2.4 Fonts
Just like colors, fonts too have certain characteristics associated with them. There are 6 main font families, and they give out a distinctive look and feel.
2.5 Tones
When used effectively, words are an important part of your brand identity. Your brand’s voice is not just about what you say, but also about how you say it and how it is perceived. Focus on your word choice and writing style and make sure you are consistent with it.
Your brand identity acts as a template for all the impressions you will create across different channels. For example, your website, business card, collateral, and presentation decks should be based on the template you create as a part of your brand identity.
3. Integrate
Whatever you publish reflects and defines your brand. So, it is important to focus on creating interesting and relatable content which is true to your brand and provides value to your audience. Some things to focus on would be:
3.1 Language
Your brand’s language should match its personality. If your brand’s personality is fun so should the language be. Make sure the language is integrated and consistent.
3.2 Marketing and Advertising
Every Marketing campaign, whether it is print or digital should have consistent communication. For an integrated marketing approach, all your campaigns should be consistent with your brand identity. The most effective way to achieve this is through careful cross-team communication.
4. Monitor your brand
Monitor what people are saying about your brand. This will help you see if the identity you created resonates with your target audience. If it does not, you will need to tweak the identity you have created and continue monitoring. An effective way to go about it would be to use Google Analytics, surveys, comments, and social media discussions to monitor and get a sense of how people talk about and interact with you.
5. Things to Avoid
5.1 Do not give your customers mixed messages.
Have one brand message so that every employee and customer of your company understands it and associates with it. Anyone talking to anyone associated with your company should share the same core brand message.
5.2 Do not copy your competitors.
It is a bad idea to try and copy your competitors. You can look at and understand what your competitors are doing. See what is working and what is not but copying them will ruin your own brand image and confuse your customers between you and your competitors.
5.3 Do not lose consistency
Once you start maintaining your brand consistently, it starts building trust and credibility as time passes. Make sure all your events, social media channels, website, email marketing, videos, and collateral showcase your company accurately. Maintaining the same look and feel, whether online or offline is extremely crucial.
6. Things to do TODAY!
Branding is the first step in creating awareness. You are giving your startup a face. There are certain aspects to it that you need to take care of immediately if you do not already have them in place. These are –
6.1 Define your vision
Your business should have a purpose. Think of how your business is adding value to the world and focus on what specific problem you have set out to solve. If you see your business’s future as just getting funding or customers, you need to think again. Make sure you involve all your stakeholders and your team when you define your vision.
6.2 Research
Research is an ongoing process for any business. Make sure you are always relevant to your target audience by doing thorough research from time to time. Base this research on what you are hearing back about your brand in the form of feedback and only then consider if you would want to pivot and/or change things.
6.3 Create an identity
Your logo and other aesthetic aspect of your business are important. Create this now based on industry trends, research, and competition.
6.4 Be consistent
Irrespective of the platform, be it physical or digital, consistency is one of the pillars on which your customer’s trust depends upon. Presenting a brand consistently across all platforms can increase revenue by 23%. Inconsistencies with your brand will confuse your customers.
6.5 Review
Monitor everything that is taking place with respect to your brand image. Focus on any feedback, be it from investors, customers, or any person who is talking about our brand.
When creating a brand identity, the most important question to keep asking yourself is not “Do I like this?” but “Does this resonate with my vision and audience?”
