Amazon founder Jeff Bezos says, “Your brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room.” Like building a reputation, creating a brand means remaining consistent with certain core principles while communicating and defining your own uniqueness.
Learning how to brand your business is more than a one-time investment in a website or slogan. Branding your business means defining what makes you unique while building trust with consumers and employees.
Branding Definition
A brand is an intangible way to identify a particular company or individual.
Company branding adds value to your business beyond what you actually sell.
While your slogan or memorable name are critical factors in branding your business, brand building can also make you memorable, build loyalty, expand your market share, and more.
The Importance of Business Branding
According to a Nielson study, 59% of consumers would rather buy products from brands they already know. Product branding is a question of communication and trust between a consumer and a company. Some reasons why you should focus on building a brand for your business include:
- Better Communication: Something as simple as choosing a consistent color for your brand can increase recognition by up to 80%, according to Forbes. Other design elements can help customers understand what you do and remember you. Having a clear brand is a way to welcome consumers into your mission, as well as showcase your product.
- Trust Building: Have you ever tried a product, discovered you liked it and decided to try out another product from the same company? This is an example of trust-building based on branding. A consistent and trustworthy brand image is one of the most important assets in business. Consumer loyalty is predicated on being able to identify your business in a crowded marketplace.
- Streamlining Marketing: A good brand is the best advertisement for your business. By branding every element of the experience, you can maximize your company’s visibility and expand your market reach.
- Creating Assets: Branding your business is an investment in the future. Every time someone associates your brand with a quality product or experience, your company gains legitimacy. Having a popular brand is an asset all on its own and one that may come in handy should you choose to sell your business.
- Inspiring Employees: Your brand can be more than streamlined design - it can also be built around a sense of purpose. A brand identity can answer the question of “why you” or “why now.” It can distinguish you from competitors while attracting and motivating qualified employees. A good brand gives people a reason to choose your business and a reason to stay there.
How to Start a Brand - The Basics
Creating a brand can be simple if you’re willing to invest the time and energy to get it right the first time. Five easy steps to creating your brand are:
- Market Research: The first step in building a brand is to reach out to potential customers. Conducting market research can be as casual as having conversations or as formal as holding a focus group. Discover who your customers will be, as well as who your direct competitors are.
- Develop Your Positioning Statement: A positioning statement is a tool that helps you define and understand your niche. Unlike a mission statement, it’s for internal use only. The most important part of the positioning statement is finding your unique value proposition. What sets you apart? What do you do better than others?
- Choose Your Business Name (and Logo): While it might seem trendy to play with spelling or work in different punctuation, a business name should, above all else, help communicate what you do. Clarity is king, closely followed by how memorable your name can be.
- Create a Unified Design: Consistency is key in brand identity design. Choose the same or similar fonts for all messaging, cohesive color schemes, and matching filters on social media.
- Use Professional Content: Make sure everything you share is up to a certain standard. Use high-resolution photos, double-check grammar, and use professional graphic designers if necessary.
How to Build a Brand - Brand Development
If you’re ready to build up past the basics, there are some ways to push your brand to the next level.
- Personify: If your brand were a person, what five words would describe them? This simple exercise can help you hone in on what you want to communicate with your brand. Check to make sure your messaging is in line with those descriptors.
- Engage With Your Values: More so than ever, consumers are choosing where they shop based on their values. Assess every level of your business to ensure it aligns with your brand values, from marketing to manufacturing. As a custom contract manufacturer, The Pure Source is an industry leader with an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. The Pure Source offers American-made, USDA organic, cruelty-free, vegan, clean beauty, GMP certified products. Choosing a reputable, reliable manufacturer can help build lasting brand trust more effectively than anything else.
- Don’t Repeat Yourself: Your brand should be cohesive and coherent without being boring. Find ways to build an engaging narrative so your brand tells a story.
- Meet Your Audience Where They Are: Advertise where your customers like to spend time. Do they listen to the radio? Hang out in coffee shops? Meeting them where they are ensures that your brand is more likely to be heard, stay relevant, and be well-received.
- Share Good Content: Social media, webinars, email marketing, or events are all ways to showcase and share your brand. Find unique ways to reach out to consumers to keep them engaged with what you have to offer.
Takeaway
Creating a trustworthy brand is the best investment you can make in your business. When you build your business with The Pure Source products, you can rest assured your brand is backed by the highest quality products that will keep customers coming back time and again.
