The Importance Of Branding Your Business
Brand refers to the name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that identifies one seller’s good or service as distinct from those of other sellers. A brand can be one or more elements of an organisation’s marketing mix (4Ps). It identifies the business – no matter what your business does, customers should know exactly who you are and what you do. Therefore, branding has become crucial in the new era of competition and differentiation. If you want to achieve success in business today, creating a solid brand identity is essential. Read on to learn how to create your own quality business brand!
Start with the brand
When you’re building a new business, it’s important to brand your product or service. A brand is more than just a logo and some catchy words; it encompasses all of your company’s touchpoints. Every element of your business that customers interact with should be branded to reflect how high-quality your business is. In addition to having a strong brand presence in marketing materials, your website design should also enhance your brand story; infographics are great for explaining complex details in an easy-to-understand format. A lot of brands emphasize price as their main value proposition when they start out (it certainly was for us), but paying attention to branding early on sets you up for success later on down the line.
Quality business brands are consistent
In some businesses, brand is more important than price. If you’re trying to compete on a quality level, it’s crucial that your brand conveys exactly what you intend to convey. This means being honest and direct with potential customers—don’t try to be everything to everyone—and producing products of high enough quality that people will actually pay for them. Although luxury brands have built their reputation on over-the-top expense, in many industries, quality brands win out because they offer consistent quality in every part of their business: from product design to customer service. Quality business brands maintain their identity: Brand identity refers both to how your company represents itself and how consumers identify you in comparison with competitors.
Establish what makes your brand unique
If you’re starting a small business, it can be tempting to play it safe and offer me too products or services—but that’s an often dangerous approach. Consumers are shopping with their eyes more than ever, and they can sniff out a poor quality brand from miles away. Instead of trying to get your product into as many hands as possible (which is not always a good idea), establish what makes your brand unique by focusing on its distinct qualities.
Is your clothing line locally sourced? Does your accounting firm provide each client with a dedicated accountant? Are you offering something unique and valuable to your customers? If so, focus on highlighting those qualities rather than increasing sales volume immediately. It may take some time for customers to come around—but if you focus on quality first, word will spread quickly about your company when others start talking about how great your products are.
Have fun with your brand's story
A business brand is more than just a name, logo and slogan. It's more than images and copy on a website or brochure. The brand is an entire story, one that you share with customers as they interact with your products, services and employees every day. Treat your brand like a living thing that has its own voice -- not necessarily your voice -- to tell people why they should trust you with their business (and hard-earned money).
You wouldn't talk down to a customer; don't let your brand communicate poorly. Be respectful, be polite, be informative but also dynamic and fun. Keep it professional at all times (unless you're putting out an annual holiday video ... maybe), but keep it real: No one wants to do business with someone who seems corporate 100 percent of the time.
Leverage your customers' love for your brand
It's no secret that consumers today are increasingly reliant on reviews and recommendations from their peers in making purchasing decisions. If you want to start generating more revenue, it's important to leverage your customers' love for your brand by encouraging them to post honest reviews online about their experience with your business. The more positive (and frequent) those reviews are, the more likely others will be willing to try out your products or services.
Even if some of these potential new customers see negative comments right away, they may still choose to give your company a chance due to what they see as a reputable reputation. As long as you're consistently delivering high-quality service at a good price, they'll feel confident taking a chance on what appears to be an already-well-liked brand.
Choose a name that attracts potential customers to choose you over competitors
With thousands of businesses to choose from, how can you entice your customers to choose you over a competitor? For starters, by giving your business a name that tells them something about your brand. If you’re a family-run business with quality service and products, for example, choose a name that conveys those values. Pick an established business name or register a new one if it’s available; people already familiar with it will know what to expect from your company—and others will soon hear good things too.
Build your brand on social media
In today’s world, business branding can help you stand out from your competitors. You want to look professional, and social media is a great way to do so. Be sure that you’re on sites like Twitter and LinkedIn to stay connected with your industry. Also consider investing in an online platform like WordPress or HubSpot; they can help you organize all of your social networking accounts into one place.
This will not only make you more efficient, but it will also boost your image. People will see how organized and up-to-date you are—two qualities that suggest that you’ll run a successful company. Finally, be sure to personalize your brand by adding photos of yourself (and even family members) doing things like celebrating holidays with clients at work events and hanging out at trade shows.
Invest in quality photos of your products or services
Instead of using your cellphone to take pictures of your products, invest in professional photos. Consumers respond to quality brands, and looking better than others is one way you can stand out from your competition. You might have a great product or service to offer, but without a quality brand, nobody will even know that you exist. In today’s age, image is everything. Make sure you look as professional as possible when trying to build relationships with customers or potential clients.
Not only does investing in high-quality images get people excited about your business, it also establishes trust; if consumers see high-quality images over low-quality ones, they might just assume that quality standards are being upheld across the board.
Use videos to show off the best parts of your business, and share them on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc.
You don’t need to have a budget to create high-quality video content. Today, smartphones and social media platforms allow us to shoot, edit, and distribute professional-looking videos on a shoestring budget. Show customers what your business is like by showing them around (or interviewing them about your services). These behind-the-scenes videos will give people an idea of what it’s like working with you—and maybe even make them feel more connected to your brand.
Use quality images on Google search results pages to get more traffic
Many Google users will never click past a search engine results page (SERP). At least 66% of users only click on one result, so you need to capture their attention early. One way to do that is with high-quality images. Not just any pictures, though; you have to make sure they’re relevant and eye-catching. In fact, using quality images can increase your organic search rankings by 10%. Don’t believe me? Read more here. And if you want more information about SEO, check out my guide to SEO for newbies.
Here are some tips for adding quality images to your webpages: Collect images in advance . This way, when it comes time to edit them into an actual post, you won’t be searching around frantically for something—you’ll already have it ready! Search specifically for quality pictures . Many marketers advise finding free stock photos via sites like Pixabay or Adobe Stock Photos.
