Is Branding Important
Branding is important to build customer confidence, and association and the most important aspect of the value of the brand is repeat customers. Once a customer uses your product or service and learns its quality the brand will help them remember how to find it again when they need it. It is also a way to define its image through word-of-mouth advertising.
What Is The Brand Image
Entrepreneurs wish that the value of the brand they created would be perceived by the customers in the same way as by the creators. Of course, it is impossible. A distinction should be made between brand identity and brand image. Why? It’s easy. The way we want to be seen is not what we really are.
Brand identity determines what the value of the brand really is, the character. It is the definition of its credibility, as well as the basis for brand consistency, individuality, and durability.
Brand identity is not the same as its image, because identity is tied to its owner – he creates and shapes it. The image is connected with the feelings and perceptions of customers. It’s the way they see it.
In the beginning, there is an identity
It is the brand creator who decides what it should be like. Its purpose is to affect the senses and stand out from hundreds of similar brands. Identity collects various elements that are to characterize a brand and brings them together. It is during its creation that it gains the value of the brand with unique, characteristic features and emotions.
When identity turns into an image
The next step is to introduce the brand to the market. It is also the moment when brand identity is faced with reality. It is then influenced by numerous factors influencing the reception among customers. They decide what image value the brand will get.
How to build a brand identity?
When building a brand identity, its owner must remember that the brand should have several key features:
- Solid and does not raise any doubts
- Its existence is needed in the marketplace
- The product branded serves a need of the consumer
- Takes advantage of the shortcomings and weaknesses of the competition
- Accepted by the company’s employees as an element of the company’s culture
What is the value in brand identity
You already know that brand identity is important for building the value of the brand. It needs to be created in order to be able to enjoy a strong, distinctive product. You should also be aware that the brand identity becomes evident at every moment of contact between the product and the brand. An investment in identity is needed.
Simplify the purchasing process for your customers
In the world of ubiquitous brands, choosing the right one, perfect for us, becomes a torment. By building brand identity, we allow this process to be significantly simplified. Thanks to a suggestive and convincing identity, the customer knows what product they are dealing with. He also knows what to expect from her. Looks no further. Finding a brand that meets all your requirements just got easier.
Increase the value of the brand
A strong brand is a measurable value, valued and influencing the importance of the company that created it. Having a strong brand in your portfolio ensures higher profits, stabilization, easier promotion, and customer and shareholder satisfaction. A strong brand requires investment. Brand identity combined with effective marketing efforts will make a big return.
Selling has never been so easy before
A good and strong brand is very easy to sell. Once promoted, it gains many loyal fans who are often faithful to it for many years. This is a huge capital for a company that achieves high sales profits without the need for intensive promotional activities.
What is a brand?
There is no single definition of a brand or brand. A brand is both the name, pattern, and logo, as well as its mission, values , and associations. According to Walter Landor, “Products are made in the factory, but brands are created in the mind” – “Products are made in the factory, but brands are created in the minds of consumers.” This is the definition of a brand that, in my opinion, best reflects the purposefulness of its creation. To create a brand, it is not enough to have a name and a logo – you have to offer some specific value.
Value Proposition is the brand’s promise, what the customer will gain by choosing its product or service. Of course, the company must realistically fulfill this promise, otherwise, it will lose its credibility. If the brand promise is attractive enough, it will be remembered in the mind of the recipient.
What is brand identity, i.e. the secret identity of a brand?
Brand identity is the elements that we (marketers and entrepreneurs) create and communicate to recipients. Therefore, I have full control over the brand identity and we can design it freely, of course with the aim of building brand awareness among the recipients.
The concept of brand identity is often used to refer to the visual, graphic components of a brand. It concerns elements of the brand book, selected typefaces, logos, colors, etc. However, it is a much broader term. It should be treated from the point of view of your marketing strategy. The graphic layer of the brand is only a supplement to the brand identity, a certain way of communication. And the personality, unique features, and values of the brand should be communicated – it is they who create its identity.
Elements of brand identity
- Brand Name
- Visual identification, i.e. logotype, colors, graphic elements
- Brand mission
- Brand values
- History of the creation and development
- Features, character, the personality of the brand
- Benefits for recipients and customers
Brand image
Brand image is what will reach the recipients’ consciousness after contact with the brand, that is, how the brand is perceived by customers and all recipients of the company’s communication. It is therefore clear that image is not the same as brand identity. We can work on the brand image, but we do not have full control over it. It is influenced by the consistency of communication, the level of customer experience, opinions on the Internet, the way of building relationships with recipients, the quality of products and services, sales channels, visual identification, etc. All the elements of the company with which recipients come into contact affect the brand image.
What is branding?
According to the definition, branding is the process of building brand awareness, and the aforementioned brand image. The implementation of the branding strategy aims to create certain feelings, associations, and values that will be associated with the brand in the minds of the recipients. Building brand recognition along with building awareness of its distinguishing values and features is an effective sales tool. A strong brand attracts customers by itself.
Strategies for brand positioning
First of all, what is the brand strategy, you need to create value that your brand will have to offer. A brand should have its basic mission – it determines everything related to the brand. The name of the company, brand, or product is very important. It should be unique, but at the same time clear to the recipient. The name itself is the first step in the process to develop a brand strategy.
Do you even know your target group?
There are no strong brands without their audience. You absolutely need to define who the target group of your brand is. There are many types of brands and each one has to find its target audience. Learn as much as possible about this group, incl. where they live, how old are they, how they make purchasing decisions, what their purchasing process looks like, what values are close to them, do they use social media and what communication channels you will be able to establish relationships with, etc. All this information will allow You to build a persona.
Brand visual identity
In order to communicate the brand, carry out advertising campaigns, or even take care of the creation of communication channels with customers, it is necessary to prepare the visual identity of the brand, which begins with the logo and the brand book.
Branding For Business
Think about why your products and services are better than the competition. By knowing what your competitive advantage is, you can use it in your branding strategy. A very important step is to create brand promises. Of course, they must be met.
Tools and methods of communication
Communication should be tailored to the audience. First of all, the brand must be present where its target group is – that is, on the same social media, at the same cultural or entertainment events, supporting the same social initiatives, etc. of voice brand.
Branding In Marketing
Marketing is changing – it evolves, following the changing needs of customers – recipients of our brands. In Philip Kotler’s marketing 1.0 concept, product focus was key, in marketing 2.0 – customer orientation, and in marketing 3.0 Philip Kotler emphasized the idea of focusing on values. Companies that believed in this concept took care of the coherence of their mission and values, creating activities aimed at changing the world. The customer was no longer a “conscious consumer” but a “human being with mind and heart”. This is an extremely important moment in marketing from the branding perspective. Building brand awareness began to be based on common values - the customer and the brand.
Roles Of Branding in Social Media
From the concept of marketing 4.0 (mandatory reading for marketers!), We learn about new trends, the growing role of technology, social media, and content marketing. However, the key thing is to change the brand’s communication with the customer, which is important – mutual communication. Thanks to social media, customers began to interact with brands, share opinions, and recommend or criticize products, services, or the companies themselves. Those who noticed these trends built a strong, loyal community, which has become another element that builds brand awareness. Anyone who has not read Marketing 4.0 should catch up with it as soon as possible and learn about the evolution of the 4P marketing mix concept and the change in the customer’s purchasing path.
When creating a concept of a marketing strategy and branding for your brand, do not forget about key trends, technology, and your target group – that is, customers who are constantly changing.
The role of clients in building the brand image
Building a brand image does not end with writing on our website that we are a leader in the industry, our products are of the best quality and we call back the fastest among the competition. For the recipients to believe in the brand’s mission and values, it is not enough to write a few sentences in communication channels. Customers, sharing their opinions and building a community of loyal customers around the brand, become the most reliable and effective branding tool.
What Is The Brand Management
Branding is not a project that we will do once. It is a complex process that must be constantly developed, improved, expanded with new activities, and, above all, involved in it. And it is not only about the involvement of the team of managers or the marketing department but of the entire company.
Each of its employees has a different impact on building the brand and its image. It is not enough to assume that the company’s mission is to provide customers with personalized customer service if the team responsible for sales and after-sales service is not properly informed about it and does not implement the correct procedures. The way they work and communicate with customers and potential customers should reflect the company’s mission.
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