Building an Outstanding Brand

Why is branding important?

In this hyper-connected world with so much chaos and competition, branding and marketing have grown in influence and importance. Start-ups and mature businesses alike are seeking growth and long-term profitability—and it is indeed a herculean task to come by amidst the existing array of choices and options. Brands help people distil information, simplify choices, and make decisions. Infact today, branding is the most powerful marketing tool available for individuals and businesses alike. Establishing your brand can bring about a sea change to the scalability factor of your business.

The main aim of brand building is to generate awareness about your business using strategies and campaigns with the goal of creating a unique and lasting image in the marketplace. You will certainly witness growth and long-term profitability by offering a highly unique product or service.

According to a survey, 59% of consumers prefer to buy new products from brands familiar to them. Hence, as a small business, you may be competing against big brands with devoted customers and unlimited marketing budgets. That’s why you have to stand out—with a solid brand building process of your own.

Building a Brand is a Process!

I believe it is important to build a brand, not just a business; and this will result in establishing long-term relationships with your customers.  Building a brand is a process which requires strategy planning based on ‘what’, ‘how’ and ‘why’ of your business.

• What – are the products or services you offer to your customers. With the changing tides of time, customer requirements too change. It is thus important to be aware of customer needs and craft products/services relevant to these needs.
• Who – Identifying your target audiences is extremely important. You need clarity about the groups you are targeting to craft an effective marketing strategy that will speak directly to their unique needs and concerns.
• How – do these offerings differentiate you from the market competition. Your brand ‘persona’ should appeal to customers and articulate your most important differentiators and product benefits. Since your brand persona defines your image, it’s important to keep it simple, relevant and unique.

• Why – do you wish to launch your brand. You have to know where you are going and why, before you can get there. Building a brand image without knowing your short-term and long-term business goals is ineffective and a waste of valuable resources.

The ‘why’ part is perhaps the most important of all because your answer to it is the reason you are passionate about building your brand.

How does branding work?

After you have drilled down and laid the foundation for your brand image, you can ramp up your promotion activities to build a loyal customer following and generate sales. Documenting your key messages and aligning them with your audiences will help in making your prospective customers aware about the unique aspects of your business, with a dash of your brand personality. This will affect your business growth and sales in a positive manner and help you to build an outstanding brand!

How to Promote your Brand?

 By integrating the below points, you will be able to promote your brand on a wide scale:

• Develop PR – By positioning your company as a thought leader and expert source on breaking news and trends, PR can improve your brand image and raise awareness.
• Avail the power of social media. A robust social media presence can significantly increase website traffic and enhance your image with both new and existing customers.
• Curate powerful content: Content is the fuel that drives integrated PR and digital marketing activities.
• Opt for paid marketing: Paid marketing helps build brand awareness with your target audience on platforms they trust. A sophisticated paid marketing strategy can reach granular audience segments to directly influence purchasing behaviour.
• Roll out in-person events – these events can provide relationship-building opportunities that digital marketing can’t replicate.

Make no mistake about it: a recognizable and loved brand is one of the most valuable assets a company can ever own – so roll up your sleeves and build a brand that out-shines the rest!