Why Brand Matters?

No matter which industry you are operating in, you would be having competitors and you would want to stand out from them. We do understand that you can do that by providing the most amazing value proposition, at the best price point, and superior customer service. But the first step towards standing out and being recognized is branding.

Branding is your business’s unique identity. It is like a persona that represents your business and all that it stands for. Branding is not only with what your customers identify you with but what they experience as well with your product or service.

It is not limited to having a unique name or a colorful logo. It encompasses the tangibles such as slogans and brand jingles, as well as the intangibles that are your brand’s ethics, service style, etc.

Why Does Branding Matter?

In the photograph below, we all see a ball pen, a cup of black coffee, a cellular phone, two identical small pieces of paper, and one large paper sheet. Sounded too generic right?

What if the phone had a brand logo on it and the black coffee branded paper cup? Thinking of Samsung or Starbucks? This is exactly why branding matters and is needed.

Branding matters because it sets you apart from your competition. It aids in carving a forte for your business in the market. The purpose of branding is not only to set your business apart but also to make it a defined entity that has its niche.

Not only this, but branding also gives your customer a tangible reason to buy from you rather than your competition. Just like yourself, branding is like a persona that you build, so if the customer relates to your persona rather than the competitions’, then you have won half the battle.

Consistent branding efforts that are directed towards the business strategic direction, not only help build brand equity but add to your customer’s sense of belonging and relationship with you.

This is exactly the reason why branding is important to customers. Because with brands and brand identities, they try to find and build a connection which is of course the basis of the human psyche.

7 Benefits of Building a Brand for Consumers

Now that we know the importance and impact of branding, we shall see how using great branding work and techniques, creates different benefits for your business and consumers alike.

1. Identity for Customers

Your brand is like an identity for customers that helps them recognize your value proposition as something different from what other competitors are offering. Your brand puts down a differentiating factor for you, in order to make you stand out from the crowd.

2. Customer Loyalty

Building a brand helps in developing customer loyalty as well in relevance to customer satisfaction. If your product or service caters to your customer’s pain points, then they will remember it by the brand name.

Apart from the remembrance, when and wherever that need will arise again they will know which business to go, rather which brand to choose. Therefore, creating brand loyalty for you.

3. Decreased Price Sensitivity

Customers based on their psyche and different psychographic dimensions, develop relationships with the brand in the form of customer loyalty by relating to the brand persona.

Once that happens in case you decide to increase your price-point or a competitor decides to decrease theirs, the chances of losing out on customers become less.

4. Employee Pride

When your business is a great brand that embodies ethics and is also known for customer satisfaction, then your employees will also feel a sense of pride in serving in your organization. The sense of pride translates as a good word of mouth and employee loyalty as well.

5. Launching New Products

When you are a known brand in the market that is already recognized, then launching new products or ideas is easier. As customers already know your business and the product, by your brand name, they’re ready to try new product offerings while expecting the same level of satisfaction that they have received earlier.

6. Credible Reputation

Your brand helps build your credible reputation. As your products deliver pure customer satisfaction, your market repute reaches new heights, and with consistency in the product quality or service, you gain a credible market reputation.

7. Repeat Sales

Branding helps encourage repeat sales. When a customer is satisfied with your brand’s offerings, they’re likely to come back to you rather than trying a new brand. Sometimes brands also become a status symbol due to their market perception.

This also translates into repeat sales because people sense that moving on to another brand does not align with their personality, and how they want to be perceived by the people around them.

How to Develop a Brand or a Brand Strategy?

To develop a brand, you must have a few critical elements that are imperative to a brand’s existence. Some of those elements are:

1. Brand Name – Your unique identification
2. Logo – A symbol that means instant recognition
3. Tagline – Preferably your brand promise in a catchy manner
4. Color Scheme – Relevant to your brand personality
5. Website – Develop your website for easy contact and information dissemination
6. Positioning – How will your customer perceive you vs. competition?

Once you have developed the compulsory brand elements like the ones mentioned above you need to align your brand strategy with your business strategy. How you want to see your brand in the future should match with where you want your business to be at the same time.

Once you have built that alignment then you can execute your brand strategy by identifying your target customer persona and reaching out to it with your brand elements. Once you deploy the brand strategy, you will then have to keep on monitoring and tracking the results and even tweaking the strategy at times to ensure positive outcomes.

Examples of Great Branding

Let us now look at examples of great branding from around us.

Meta

Meta (formerly known as Facebook) is the ultimate personification of a brand. Not only was it able to bring all its products and services under one umbrella, aligned together on a similar brand positioning.

But it was also able to ensure a smooth transition during the renaming phase because its other brand elements worked in unison with its flawless brand strategy.

Apple

Apple is one of the leading brands in the world. Despite having a very simplistic approach in comparison to others in the industry, it is not only successful but stands out as well.

The reason behind this success is their exclusive brand persona and how well they have positioned themselves in comparison to their competitors. Due to this great branding not only does Apple have a knack for ensuring repeat sales but its new feature launches create hype, unlike anything.

Conclusion

The importance of branding cannot be ignored. But what must be done is a sensible investment in brand development as well as execution of your brand strategy.

Once you’re able to align both with your value proposition alongside customer satisfaction, you will have on your hands a brand that not only delivers on its promise but also has a special place in its customer’s hearts.