The Importance of Branding
“Your brand is the single most important investment you can make in your business.” -Steve Forbes
Whether you’re an influencer, pyramid schemer, new entrepreneur, freelancer, realtor, or carpenter, branding is a key part to the success of your business.
For those who don’t know, branding is the wireframe behind your business. It is the underlying impression and the essential principle your company gives your customers.
Many people assume branding just consists of a logo, but in reality there is so much more. Now don’t get me wrong, a strong logo is super important as it is one of the first things a client will see, however there are so many other aspects that are responsible for the success of your brand. Some of which include:
your product
your logo
your images / photography
your website
your store and it’s atmosphere
your voice (written or spoken)
product packaging
your advertisement
your employees – how they interact, work, present the company
and many other aspects within your business
As you can see, there are so many aspects that fall under branding and I’m sure there are a few that I haven’t mentioned. A brand strategy is something that you can always fall back on and turn to when you are unsure of something. Go back to your brand guide, your mission statement and your brand principles and that will make your decision-making a lot easier.
It is the way your customer perceives you. It delivers a message. A brand confirms your business’s credibility, motivates the buyer to make a purchase and creates user loyalty.
Your brand creates an experience between your business and your customers, from your social media content to your brand colours. People learn to recognize your branding across all your business platforms whether that is social media, print advertisements, or even in-person events.
By gaining brand recognition you build trust and an understanding with your audience. If you aren’t 100% sure if your branding is strong and cohesive ask yourself these questions:
Are the colours the same?
Are the fonts the same?
Are you using the same brand messaging?
Are you using the same style of imagery?
Is the language & tone cohesive amongst all platforms?
The ultimate goal of all businesses is to gain clients and make sales, and your branding plays a huge part in that. Clients want to work with businesses that are professional, cohesive, and welcoming. If you saw your brand in the wild would you trust it? Would you want to work with it? Does your company appear to know what it’s doing?
By creating a solid brand and guideline you eliminate room for inconsistency and makes it overall easier on you! No more guessing games, you will know exactly what your brand looks like, which colours to use, which fonts, which imagery etc. Remember that even before your customer communicates with you, he or she gets to know your business through visuals. People love images and visuals and that initial glance will give them a feeling of your brand and idea of what to expect.
If you put time and energy into building a strong brand that really fits your business, it will have great positive impacts on the success of your company. Bottom line is that people will choose someone they trust and feel comfortable with. It’s about making people feel as though they can relate to you.
If you’re looking for more guidance and want to build a powerful brand, feel free to send me an email or submit a contact form and we can get started on developing a strong, cohesive brand for you!