What Is a brand? And How Can We Create One Worth Bragging About, Buying From And Truly Loving?

If there is one thing every business should have, it's a brand. Ok, yes, every business should also have customers – but what is it that will drive those customers to you? Yes, you’ve guessed it, your brand.

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But what is brand and why do you need one?

Well, branding can mean different things to different people. For some, a brand may be a logo or a name, a set of assets that customers can recognise you by. For others, brand is something that tells customers about your products or services, a way of expressing your unique selling proposition. A brand can also be something that helps assist you in growing your business.

All these things are true to a certain extent, but a good way of thinking about your company’s brand is to liken it toa reputation of sorts. It isn’t necessarily something tangible – something to be grabbed hold of – it’s what you stand for, where you came from and the reason behind why you do what you do.

Essentially, it’s how you want your company to be perceived.

So, what are the benefits of a great brand?

Develop and build a brand correctly and you’ll have a number of benefits on your side when it comes to serving your customers, launching new products and services or growing your business.

Set yourself apart

A good brand will give you a way to set yourself apart from your competitors in the industry. Spend time getting your brand right and you will create a level of trust with customers that will be the stepping-stone to a long and rewarding relationship. Yes, your competitors may do or sell a similar product to you – maybe even for a slightly more competitive price, but your customers know you and trust you, because of your brand. In a crowded marketplace, having a strong brand, one that your customers love, means you’ll be thought of first.

Make yourself instantly recognisable

If we were to say, think of an innovative tech company, the likelihood is Apple would spring to mind. Likewise, if we said search for something online, you’d be forgiven for saying ‘lets Google it’. That’s because these companies have a strong brand presence – they are known as Challenger brands.

Ok, yes, these are big companies offering services or technology that we, as consumers, use daily – but your brand, if built and developed correctly, can do the same for you in your industry. And being at the forefront of your customers’ minds makes you the preferred choice.

Be the first choice

When it comes down to it, the products or services you offer can easily be replicated – your brand can’t. Having a strong brand will build loyalty among your customers, which simply put, means they will be more likely to choose your company first. Brand loyalty is an emotional connection that customers make when working with, or buying from you, and that emotion during the buying process can influence up to 70% of purchasing decisions.

Help you grow your business

A strong brand means you are likely to already be in the forefront of customers’ minds. This ensures that your brand precedes you, and that your business is already known and respected within your industry. This makes it so much easier to move your business goals forward and promote new services or products. New opportunities are also more likely to come your way, because others want to work with you, rather than you having to seek them out.

Lets you set your pricing

It may sound silly but having a genuine brand in place means you can ask for a premium price across your products or services. Your customers already know and love you, and because they trust you, they’ll pay what is asked because they want to work with or buy from you.

So, this all sounds good and you want in. What do you need to do?

Let’s start by establishing your brand. Ask yourself, why do you do what you do? What’s your mission? What was the inspiration behind starting your business in the first place? And remember, the why isn’t just about having a product to sell, it’s about providing a solution to a problem.

With this in mind, put together some brand values that you think match your mission – these will help you shape your brand strategy and communicate it to others. Think about the big picture too – do these values support any plans you have to expand, or new products or services that you would like to introduce?

Storytelling can be a big part of putting your brand together, so don’t be afraid to explore the history behind your business when deciding on your brand values. Just bear in mind that these values need to be real, they need to echo how you actually feel as you’re going to need to live and breathe these values – they will become the base for everything you do.

Let your customers emotionally connect with you. Whether it’s identifying with your company history, or simply liking how your products fit their lifestyle, how customers feel about your brand is important. You want to keep emotion at the forefront of your mind throughout the process. Consider the customer journey from start to finish, knowing that the experience they have can shape the perception of your brand. Would your customers think you have an authentic brand because you do as you say you will, or does the reality not match up with the theory?

Where can you do things differently or make the experience better? Customers may forget the time it took, or even the cost, but they won’t forget how interacting with your company made them feel.

That’s why it’s really important to get to know your customers and how they might interact with your company. Known to some as Neuromarketing, this is a relatively new way of looking at customer behaviour and why consumers make the decisions they do – but it’s an important one and one that could affect how people connect to your brand. It will benefit you to understand your customers from the inside out, to know what they might want or need, even before they do! Again, think about how they feel when they come to you, but also how you want them to feel once they’ve done business with you.

Knowing your customers well and anticipating their every move helps you grow your business and your brand. It will promote trust within your customer base, as they can see that you really understand their needs and wants – that you ‘get them’.

Once you have your brand values in place, don’t just keep them to yourself! Share them with your business partners if you have them, but most importantly, share them with your staff. Make them a part of your company culture, because those people who are part of your business will need to live and breathe these values too. Your brand needs to be a part of EVERYTHING your organisation does – it’s not just about how YOU deal with customers but how your staff do too.

Make sure your chosen brand values run consistently through everything you do, because consistency is key to building brand loyalty. Everything your company does or says will impact your brand. Whether your customers enjoy face-to-face interaction, or they come to you online, the experience they have with your company needs to be the same either way. The way you speak, act, communicate entertain or educate will all affect the emotional link you build with your customers.

This consistency needs to run through into your marketing plan too. When you put together your marketing strategy make sure your activities and communications sit side by side with your brand values, the two will need to complement each other.

Get these initial start-up branding steps right and then going forward you’ll have a strong, authentic brand that your customers can connect with and truly love.

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