These days, it’s not enough to simply have a product, create a brand, and hope for the best. In the digital age, your business is now competing with hundreds if not thousands just like it around the globe. In order to make sure your brand stands out from the crowd and is successful, it is necessary to have some sort of branding strategy in place.
Having a strong brand is important for many reasons. It helps to make a business more memorable, it fosters brand loyalty, it helps to attract top talent, and it allows a brand to position itself in a distinct spot in the market. Essentially, it’s good for business in almost every way imaginable.
But creating a strong brand and achieving all of the above isn’t always easy. This is why having a branding strategy to achieve long and short-term branding goals is important.
If you’re ready to establish your business as a brand to be reckoned with, this guide can help. Read on to learn eight essential elements of a stellar branding strategy.
1. Clarity
When you’re creating a branding strategy, one of the first and most important things you must do is to decide what type of brand you want to be. It’s helpful to pick which attributes and values you want to portray and incorporate into your brand. Have a clear picture of how you want your brand to be and keep this in mind at every stage of strategizing.
Clarity is not only about knowing what your brand is about, but making sure that this is clear to your customers, employees, and stakeholders as well. Your branding strategy should make it absolutely clear who you are and what you’re about.
2. Consistency
Following on from the last point, for a brand to be successful, it needs to be consistent. Consumers are only likely to be confused or put off by a wishy-washy brand that says one thing and does another, or flip-flops on its image or opinions from one week to the next. It is, therefore, best to pick a lane and stick in it, as it were.
This applies to everything, from your brand messaging to your tone and appearance on social media. Make sure to keep things consistent across all areas to increase your chances of increased brand recognition and brand loyalty.
3. Customers
A brand can contrive its image as much as it likes, but at the end of the day, it’s what the consumer thinks that really matters. This is why consumers—their personalities, motivations, and values—should be at the forefront of any branding strategies you might have. Create buyer personas for each of your customer archetypes and then use these to inform branding decisions.
One of the best ways to connect with your customers is, of course, through social media. This is why it is important to make sure your social media accounts are consistent, engaging, and customer-centered.
4. Employees
Of course, customers are vitally important to any brand, but at the very heart of any company sits another very important group—the employees. Employees help to shape a brand narrative through their own messaging, in the way they are treated by employers, and the kind of work they do. By treating your employees with respect and keeping them happy in their roles, you establish yourself as a company with integrity.
This is good for a number of reasons. It should of course increase employee retention rates, but it will also help to attract top talent to your company, strengthening it further. As well as this, consumers are, in many cases, happier to shop with companies that are known to be good to their employees.
5. Aesthetics
Although a logo and look aren’t everything when it comes to branding, they’re not insignificant, either. Of course, the aesthetics of a brand should be a big part of any branding strategy. Establishing a look of your own helps to differentiate you from your competition, it can also help to change public perception if you’re looking to rebrand.
When deciding on what the aesthetics of your brand should be, there are a few things you’ll need to take into account. The first is your brand’s vision: make sure that your look isn’t at odds with your message. The second is your target consumer, what kind of aesthetics will they relate to and appreciate?
6. Personality
Branding isn’t all about spreadsheets and strategizing. For it to be truly effective, it needs to contain a human element too. It’s important to remember to inject some personality into all aspects of your brand.
This can be done in a number of different ways. From your brand aesthetics to the messages you share on social media to the way you interact with customers. Make sure your brand’s personality always shines through.
7. Positioning
One of the main things you can and should do with your branding strategy is to focus on brand positioning. This involves establishing the particular space your brand occupies in the market and in the hearts and minds of consumers. Brand positioning is a powerful tool that allows a brand to communicate its value, its message, and its USP effectively to customers.
To do this, look at yourself, your competitors, and your customers in order to determine what makes you unique and what you have to offer to consumers. Then try to integrate this into your overall branding strategy. The result should be a stronger brand identity and a stronger reaction from consumers.
8. Purpose
A big part of branding is establishing what your brand’s purpose is and how you can communicate this to the public. Do you have a good conception of your business goals and values? Why do you do what you do?
If you don’t, there’s little chance your customers will be able to figure this out either. Solidify your brand vision and purpose in order to be able to take this message to the public in an impactful and meaningful way.
Build a Better Branding Strategy Today
A branding strategy helps your business reach new heights. It can unlock new customers, attract top talent, and set you apart from competitors. If this all sounds good, why not give us a call today to see how we can help you create the best possible branding strategy for your business?
