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Most people, once they hear the term branding, think logos – however, branding is really a lot more than that. A brand involves blending the look, purpose, and concentrate of your business, together with your core marketing message, and coming up with a thing that will stick in the minds of people who encounter it. Like a business or an independent professional, it is what you are and that which you do, packaged neatly, clearly, and memorably. A logo is only a tangible representation that works to strengthen a brand.

So – what type of personality does your company have? Is it conservative and solid? Outgoing and fun? Or robust and strong? And, what is your company focused on doing? Whom would you like to use? So how exactly does your business differ from the competition? And what makes it stand out, in the end? Do not try to name every special quality or unique selling point – it is possible to build a brand on only one unique quality! Once you can answer these questions, you can begin to create your brand. The question is what you want YOUR brand to leave behind in people’s heads.

Practically any business or professional can benefit from a powerful brand. But branding is much more important for micro businesses and independent professionals because they face tighter competition. A properly executed logo and identity can help them compete on a larger playing field, appear more professional, and stand out from the hordes of competitors.

Once you determine how you want to be remembered, your image as well as your message will need to communicate that. The look can easily be a consistent look used in all your correspondence, a logo that marks everything that comes from your company, and the identity you utilize on your site and brochure. The content can be a tag line, your 30 second “elevator speech,” and woven through the content on your site.

A logo is only one symbol of brand identity, accustomed to produce a memorable impression, but it is useless if you haven’t clearly defined your audience and the focus of your business. There are plenty of clearly branded businesses using only consistent fonts or colors in their marketing collateral. But whoever you hire chose one image to stay with through all of your business communication, and make sure that image is professional. Quite simply, if you do not have the resources or finances right now to possess a professional image produced for you, work with less, rather than using badly formatted clipart or perhaps a layout that makes you look amateurish or cheap. That approach can only hurt your business as well as your brand, so discover the level that Works for you with no negative effect.

Once you figure out what get you noticed are thinking about creating, and also have developed a name to accompany it, the job just begun. You will need to vigilantly reinforce your brand every moment you’re in business. Your brand needs to affect everything your business does, everything you and your employees say, and every little bit of information that comes out of your office. Letterhead, invoices, proposals… these should all consistently market your brand. Inside your voice mail, inside your email sig, and each time someone says, “What is the next step?” your brand should come out to shine. Domains and site content should, again, reinforce your brand. Everywhere you use your brand with consistency, you’re emailing the voice of your company.

Be aware, though, this does not occur overnight – your brand will have to build with time. Develop a strong brand, and use it consistently, and more and much more often, your brand will pop into people’s minds whether they have a necessity that you could provide.

Branding has been defined, explained and examined extensively. There are books, articles, publications, seminars, and groups all focused on going through the meaning and use of brand today.

Interestingly, with all this wealth of information, some of it developed by the best minds in the market, I still hear “but what’s branding?” Considering the large number of sentences that begin “branding is…” this is an understandable question. Things i believe people are looking for isn’t another definition, but rather understanding, and an concept of why and how this tool fits into their business.

The Brand Equation

Visual + Verbal + Experiential = Brand Perception

That which you show, what you say and what you do adds up to what people what you think and what they think of your service, product or company.

Imagine a person you realize. When asked to do that, first of all , pops to your head is definitely an picture of that individual. If that person walked your decision, you’d recognize her, and if known well, recall her name. If you were describing that individual to another you’d list her features, leave her with name and describe what she is as with both factual and subjective information. “You remember my friend Tracy from college, the main one using the dark hair and the big smile? Now she’s married and lives in Maine. She’s an incredible photographer and thus enjoyable, I truly miss having her around. You’d love her.”

The image you recognize, what you recall and also the references that comprise your experience all add up to an impact. That individual you considered — along with her face, name as well as your mutual experiences — you also recalled the feelings you had about her, your impression. That’s brand.

A visual image, a verbal message and knowledge about something leads you to form an opinion. So, in reality, brand exists whether we address it or not. Every interaction brings about an impression. In business, however, crafting and controlling that impression mean the difference between reaching your goals and missing the mark.

It is sometimes believed that an excellent logo like the Nike “Swoosh,” a catchy tagline like “Got Milk” or a well-known product like Coke is the brand. However, each of these famous labels has well planned the 3 areas of their impression to guide their audience toward their ultimate goal — loyalty. You recognize them, you can recall what they do and what they say and also you know how you feel about the subject. Should they have done their job you will refer them “You have to try Coke, it is the best,” affiliating your choice for their company “I only wear Nike’s.” This is actually the power of “Brand.”

Brand Value

What is the worth of “impression?” Huge international brands are utilized as examples because of their recognition, however brand is valuable to companies large and small, product and repair, for profit and charitable. What’s inside it for you:

* Identifying your specialty enables you to a specialist inside your niche.
* Creating a unique quality separates you against the pack.
* Crafting the sense you want helps customers see all you can do on their behalf.
* Maintaining a constant message builds long-term recognition and recall.
* Attracting customers through referral is the cheapest and best marketing around.

If you’re clear, consistent and creative you’ll attract the right business. Why waste time handling interest from unqualified buyers and receiving none from ideal contacts?

Who’s Using Brand?

It’s not only industry giants with multi-million dollar ad budgets. The strength of brand is being harnessed everywhere. Our local school district launched a brand initiative not too long ago. Their mantra “Above and Beyond” is woven into assemblies, included in all written communication and demonstrated in curriculum changes. The most recent email announced a 22% improvement within the standardized test scores of disadvantaged students.

Whether your aim is greater sales or better reading skills, brand provides a focus, streamlining your effort to attain your goals.

Getting There

You cannot prepare a highly effective image, message or experience before you decide what unique quality you’re selling and also to whom. Getting the right individuals to recognize, recall and refer your company is a process.

To start, let’s define “Brand Identity,” which is the combination of consistent visual elements that are used in your marketing materials. A fundamental Brand Identity Kit includes a logo, business card, letterhead, and envelope. It can be extended to incorporate a website, brochure, folder, flyer, or any other professionally designed pieces.

Having a Brand Identity is incredibly important to your business’s success. However, many business owners have some misconceptions about brand identities that can damage their businesses, and I’ve discussed those below:

My cousin can design my brand identity (logo, website, and ads)
There are some very significant areas of your business that needs to be left towards the professionals.

To begin with, while your cousin might have been “great in art class,” it doesn’t imply that they have the data and expertise required to create great graphic designs. Designing a logo, business card, or website is a lot different than painting a picture or making a collage. You have to make a brand logo scalable, meaningful, and symbolic. See my article on the “9 Keys to an Effective Logo” for more information on what things to consider when creating a great logo.

Second, by having a professional designer in your business marketing team, your projects will be a main concern. I have many prospects who start their designs having a friend or relative, who are then “put on the back burner”, and then get their project drag on for months. After much frustration, they come in my experience and therefore are surprised about how fast situations are completed. Like a professional, I make your projects the most important items on my small to-do list.

Finally, can you trust a buddy to behave vital requiring unique skills for your business? Make an important client presentation for you, or provide a speech? You most likely would not, unless they’re a sales professional or perhaps a professional speaker. Can you trust a buddy who’s “good with math” to complete your corporate taxes? If you wouldn’t trust an amateur with an important business function, then why would you trust an amateur with your brand identity – the key for your marketing success?

Designing a custom brand identity is too expensive
So having your marketing materials designed is definitely an high-priced undertaking. But, it may be even more expensive lacking a high-quality, custom brand identity professionally designed – when it comes to lost business, insufficient respect from your clients, not being taken seriously in business. The list continues.

A powerful brand identity quickly will pay for itself. For most businesses, if just a couple – 2 or 3 – new clients call you during the period of your business because of the equity that the brand identity develops, this new business would invest in your logo and brand identity design package. New clients will contact you because they remember your logo, keep your business card, or are astounded by your brochure. The chances are a lot more clients compared to required few will contact you, as well as your business will grow from the (relatively) small energy production within the brand identity.

Consider also that a brand identity is a sustainable expense. Once you’ve had a timeless logo and group of ads designed, you can use them for a long time. And, once you have a strong logo, then creating consistent, targeted marketing pieces and programs is a straightforward addition for your existing system.

I don’t require a brand identity
If you are a professional in business, you need a brand identity. You would not imagine operating without other important business essentials – home, perhaps, or a business name or banking account. A brand identity is another of these basic business essentials – it is the central piece to the marketing and promoting of your business.

My professional experience has educated me in that there is nothing that looks rogue than not having a professional brand identity. If you do not begin a clean, high-quality, and consistent feel and look to your materials, you will have a a lot more difficult time gaining the trust of a potential client – and signing them on to use your services. All the Fortune 500 companies have a logo, as well as for a good reason – it makes them look more professional. If you want to be regarded as offering a high-caliber service, you need to look polished and “put together.”