Branding

Branding, it’s just your logo, colour and font right? WRONG!

Branding is an integral part of your business and in this short blog we will explain why it is vital to understand it.

Contrary to popular belief, Marketing is not the colouring department or the pens and mugs department, and a marketing strategy is not getting a few more likes on LinkedIn.

Marketing strategy is understanding which markets you operate in, which markets you want to operate in, your product mix, your customer profile and how you align marketing tactics to the overall business objectives. It’s about defining what sets you apart from your competitors and branding helps you deliver this messaging.

Branding is important to your business because branding is your business. It’s who you are, it’s your values and it’s your people. How you communicate is a representation of your business so make sure that it is ‘on brand’. Whether you are writing a press release, a social media post or simply talking to customers and prospects you need to have a consistent message. We’re not talking about a robotic script or sucking the soul out of your salespeople! If your team understand your branding, then they will naturally project the company values.

If you’re not sure how much your team understand your brand, then we recommend starting with an employee survey. This will help you gauge understanding and identify areas for development. If you aren’t sure yourself then start from the top. If your senior staff don’t understand what branding means to the business, then this won’t filter down to those on the front line. Arrange an away day with your senior team to brainstorm and agree what your Vision, Mission and Values are. Once you have nailed this make sure everyone in the company understands it. Arrange team building events to reinforce the message and develop a visual representation that is easy for everyone to understand and can be displayed in all areas of your workplace.

This might all seem like marketing fluff but if you get your branding wrong or inconsistent, customers and prospects will be quick to go elsewhere. After all, if you don’t know what your own business does then how can you understand what your customer does?

If you need any help on developing brand or practical assistance such as facilitating away days or an employee survey, then give us a call. Whether you’re new or an established company, we strip back the BS to get back to basics, helping you build your business.