There are a lot of reasons why branding is so important. Not only is it a crucial way to distinguish your company from competitors, but it also allows your customers to know what to expect. A brand is a very powerful and valuable asset because it can create a reason for customers to become loyal and trust your offerings. Here are a couple of things that will help you make your brand stand out:

DO: Create a branding guide and brand standards. 

To have branding guidelines means that you create an instruction manual that specifies things like colors, logos, layout, fonts, and other visual elements. It is also important to include writing and communication standards because the messaging, tone, and voice should be similar throughout. It is helpful to be very clear what your guidelines are because whether there is new marketing material going out, an internal memo, or even a new business card, you want to make sure that everything accurately reflects your brand. Remain consistent will help both customers and employees understand that everything they are presented with is a part of your brand and your brand only. 

DON’T: Align yourself with influencers that are not authentic to your brand.

Social media and affiliate marketing is growing at a rate of almost 50% a year and is now an almost $10 billion industry. There is a lot of uncharted territory here because both influencers and businesses are learning about and creating industry standards. As with anyone in the spotlight, whether it be a celebrity, a macro influencer, or even a local Instagrammer, there is some risk with affiliating them with your brand. As soon as you make those ties the risks and rewards should be analyzed because while your brand might be receiving great exposure, there is a possibility that the influencer could be involved in a scandal or have things from their past arise that reflect poorly on your brand. Researching in-depth anyone you want to attach to your brand will be very beneficial. 

DO: Make sure that everything is consistent. 

Integrated marketing communications means that all of your marketing communications should be similar to each other with things like the logos, colors, and overall look and feel of your company. Building recognition and trust for the customers aid your brand in bringing in repeat and new business.  

DON’T: Alienate customers by not staying relevant. 

You can rebrand. While some businesses think that customers could get confused or dislike the change in branding, it can actually be a change for the better. Recently a well-known brand, Aunt Jemima, changed its brand name to Pearl Milling Company because of its racist origins. With their old name, they were having customers change over to other products to protest the company’s problematic name and they were losing business. For them a rebrand was not only morally right, but it put their customers at ease that they were trying to do better. 

DO: Use data to analyze what customers like or dislike about your brand. 

Data is a powerful tool that allows you to gain a deeper insight into what is working for your customers. This data can be collected in numerous ways like surveys, interviews, focus groups, or even secondary research. If your customers think that your brand is not in line with your products or services even if you think it is fine, then there is a problem. In 1985 Coca-Cola introduced their new recipe, New Coke without properly testing it on their target audience and it was one of Coke’s biggest blunders of all time. Had they taken the time to talk to their customers and see what they thought, Coca-Cola may have pivoted sooner. 

DON’T: Use or create content that isn’t relevant or helpful for your brand. 

Content creation is important to stay prominent in the consumer’s mind for all businesses. It can be a great way to grow your business because it allows potential customers to find the content they are interested in and lead them right to your business. However, you should be creating content on just anything. You should make sure that it is timely, relevant to your business, and aligned with your brand. A small cupcake shop probably should not be writing content about the 4th Industrial Revolution because it would attract a different customer than their target. Also note to make sure that your core principles, value, and mission are woven into the material to remain consistent.  

DO: Make sure you are creating a positive customer experience. 

Each customer touchpoint should be working with your product or service, not against it. A brand is not just a logo, it is how the customer is perceived and interacting with your business. Say a potential customer looking for a new pair of shoes goes online shopping and visits Zappos.com. If they are greeted with slow page speeds, tiny font size, and poor customer service they would likely leave the website and not engage with the brand again. When the user experience is easy and straightforward customers can feel more comfortable with your brand and enjoy their time on the website, in the store, or wherever you meet them. 

If you need help from the experts to help make your brand stand out please reach out to us today. Our team of experienced professionals will bring your branding goals to life and meet your desired goals and objectives.