Brand Building

You may have noticed that branding has changed a lot in the last 10 years. Today, there are many more channels for marketing than before. A keyword today can generate millions of hits in search engines, if you are not on the first page then you are not visible. What does it take to make the brand a measurable positive effect?

A brand can be built and demolished just as quickly. Although tempting, branding “success overnight” is not a good strategy for a brand. A successful brand should be built over time, slowly and gradually. It provides the opportunity to reach more people than a fad that is gone tomorrow. To be able to get to that point you should find a differentiator. When a brand finds its differentiator, it becomes the brand’s trump card. A differentiator does not have to be unique but it does not hurt to stand out a little. No matter what channels you use; advertising, website, Facebook, LinkedIn or Youtube so you have to be consistent with your profile and message. In order to be consistent, one should create a brand strategy.

A brand strategy is a long-term plan to develop a successful brand presence and to achieve specific goals. When we talk about brand strategy, we are not just talking about logo, colors and names, it is much more comprehensive. The brand is often the feeling that separates one brand from another. It is the feeling that is difficult to grasp, that makes you choose one brand over another brand. You build this feeling by being consistent in your branding.

A logo is without a doubt the most memorable part of a brand. If you do not quite remember the name then you will most likely remember the visual expression of a logo. The logo gives customers an opportunity to automatically associate products or services with a given brand.

You can go a long way with one or more good colors. For example, look at Facebook, where the color blue along with the letter “f” makes you think Facebook right away. Another example is Instagram which uses multiple colors along with the camera logo. These logos are used across all promotional materials.

How do you appear in photos or in video? How do you sound? Are you dressed in black suits, are you smiling, are you funny? This can actually fluctuate between the channels, but you have to be consistent in all channels and you should think about what is accepted in the different channels. Participating in discussions about controversial topics can quickly damage or enhance the impression of a brand. It is therefore important to decide on the brand’s views and take the brand into account if you participate in such discussions. But remember; Sometimes the right choice may be to stay away from such topics even if it does not generate commitment or emotion.

It is not easy to find good domain names today that are short and especially vacant. The domain name can have a big impact on your brand. With long domain names / company names, there is a high probability of typing errors, and it is cumbersome to type in search engines. Spend plenty of time finding a good domain name so that you get more traffic to your website.

Today, everyone expects you to have a website. On the website, you get to promote the brand and tell about your products and services. After visiting your site, the customer should be left with the same feeling as in all other channels. It is your job to make sure that the website is up to date and provides the information your customers are looking for. This may include a blog, videos, e-books, reviews or other information that makes the customer get to know you. It must also be easy to navigate around the site so that the customer finds what he is looking for. If this is done in an exciting way, there is a greater chance that the customer will be on your website for a longer period of time, and will become even better acquainted with the brand.

One of the things that separates online marketing from traditional marketing methods is the ability to create two-way conversations with customers. You can actually get in touch with them, respond to feedback, ask your questions in real time, help them solve a problem or just let them know that your brand values ​​what they have to say.

This is what social media is all about for brands. Social media allows you to communicate directly with your audience and create an impression that will define what they think about your brand for many years to come.

To make yourself heard today, you must have the strongest, clearest voice in the room. The core of your voice must be your value proposition. That which differentiates your brand from the others and make you better qualified than the others in the competition. The value proposition must be seamlessly integrated into all your marketing channels with a promise of the value delivered.

Describe how you deliver your products or services. Tell me what you do. It is important that it is clear what you are doing so that the customer is not in doubt about the value that is delivered. Be clear about who you are providing your products and services to. Establish yourself as an expert in your field. Your customers will then know that you understand their specific needs and challenges, and that you are the right company for them.

Value proposition is why customers should choose you and your services / products over another competitor. An example is Kiwi’s value proposition. You’ve probably heard it before; Quick, safe and cheap. Here, Kiwi simply tells you why you should shop with them. Whether they live up to their value proposition can only be decided by you as a customer.

It’s your domain and you know the customer best, but not everyone has worked in the industry for 20 years and knows all their customers.

Then you have to do a few things:

• You need to find out who your customers are
• What needs and goals your customers have
• Find the best qualified people for the job

A good exercise to figure this out is to create personas:

A persona is a fictional personalization of a typical person your company wants to reach out to. A personas can contain information about who they are, what they want, what their life is like and what they want to buy. Other things that can be included are: demographics, job level, seniority, age and gender.

By creating several personas, you can combine these to find the customer’s journey on a typical day. You will then understand many of the things that occupy their time, and what is and is not important to them. Then you can adjust your value proposition accordingly.

With the help of personas, you can now put your brand into play.

• Place your content in the right channels.
• Develop highly targeted content that appeals to the buyer’s needs, goals and interests.
• Involve buyers with well-worded ads, with content that calls for action.
• Improve the quality of the persona over time by looking at the results and the feedback.
• Design products and services that are better suited to your customers.
• Monitor your brand so you can take the necessary steps