Your brand is essential to the success of your business.
Your brand is essential to the success of your business. Branding can increase business by helping to acquire new customers, support advertising and improve recognition. Your brand represents the sum of the customer’s perception of your business, so should be enticing, memorable, clear and compelling.
But what’s the best branding strategy? First and foremost, in order for your branding efforts to bear fruit, you must know your target market. A business’ brand should always be based on the needs and preferences of its target audience, which will require the business to do its homework in order to determine what those needs and preferences are, keeping in mind that branding builds trust and emotional reactions are important influencers.
Furthermore, you must know the difference between a brand and a logo. Your business’ brand is comprised of all the visual elements as well as written, such as advertising, marketing, press releases, social media posts, etc. Your brand should extend well beyond your logo; however, an eye-catching logo is imperative, and should complement your branding and be instantly recognizable. Your logo is the visual representation of your business, essentially its face, and should consist of a number of key components, such as the proper color. For example, blue evokes a sense of trust (think Twitter and HP), while purple (e.g., Hallmark) conveys imagination and creativity. Furthermore, the font used for a logo should complement its color, and never be hard to read. Logos should always stand out and be timeless.
Finally, it is imperative to develop brand ambassadors. If you create a strong brand, customer loyalty will follow. These customers essentially become brand ambassadors and will promote your business via word of mouth and create buzz about your brand, which means free advertising. By championing their favorite brands, brand ambassadors recommend their favorite businesses to potential future customers.