Branding—A Necessity To Stand Out & Prosper
Everyone is familiar with different brands, especially from larger companies such as Starbucks, Nike, Coke, Pepsi, Domino’s, and Levi’s. Many people, however, are confused by the term and tend to think that branding is just advertising. This is where they are wrong. Branding is much more than advertising.
Wikipedia defines branding as:
“a name, logo, slogan, and/or design scheme associated with a product or service. Brand recognition and other reactions are created by the use of the product or service and through the influence of advertising, design, and media commentary. A brand is a symbolic embodiment of all the information connected to the product and serves to create associations and expectations around it. A brand often includes a logo, fonts, color schemes, symbols, and sound, which may be developed to represent implicit values, ideas, and even personality.”
According to the article, “What Is Branding and How Important Is It To Your Marketing Stragey,” found on About.com, there are several objectives that a good brand will achieve:
- Delivers the message clearly
- Confirms your credibility
- Connects your target prospects emotionally
- Motivates the buyer
- Concretes User Loyalty
What most people don’t realize is, that everything about your company sends a message. Whether it is a clean professional company uniform shirt an employee is wearing, a courteous greeting from an installer, a clean company vehicle driving down the road with a promininent logo and web address, a neat and tidy showroom displaying company products, an apology when a mistake is made with a resolution to the problem, etc. It is the combination of all of these things, and more, that create an emotion and perceptions in the mind of your customers.
It is also important to keep your branding consistent. Visuals, such as display ads, or a website should have the same feel along with a signature logo, color, font, etc. and be displayed where ever possible. Repetition is key.
I know, at PGC, we work hard everyday to create a positive perception and imprint for our customers. How does your company stack up in the branding department?
Thanks for reading!
Barb
Posted in Company, Business, Marketing on June 14th, 2007 by Barb | |
