Branding Your Business: The Ins and Outs

Running a business? Chances are, you really do have a lot of work on your hands, day in and day out. There are so many different areas of operations that you can focus on that hold potential for maximizing sales and helping you to experience success. It is important, though, that you know where to focus in order to maximize those sales and profits. One major element that often gets neglected is branding. People tend to choose a company name, invest in some sort of logo and call it a day. But branding is what can really separate your business out from the crowd and keep repeat customers coming back for more. Here are some of the basics of branding that will help you to get your branding journey started out on the right foot!

Conduct research

The first step towards building your brand is to understand what you’re aiming for. Sure, you may have some ideas in mind. But you do need to make sure that you conduct research, which will provide you with insight into whether your ideas are likely to actually sell or not. You may think that certain branding is great, but if you are a 30 year old man and your target audience is 80 year old women, you may find that you need to alter your brand to better fit your target demographic, as opposed to doing what you think is appealing. A key step in this process is market research.

Market research is a process where you introduce a group that is close to your target demographic, or within your target demographic, to your ideas. They’ll be able to provide you with all of the feedback you need to make genuinely informed decisions on what to change and what to stick with. You may find that certain colors appeal to your demographic more. That certain fonts are more inducive to a sale. That particular logos perform well while others don’t.

Consider agencies and freelancers

Of course, you can learn a lot about branding online. You can read blog posts. You can read books. You can listen to podcasts. You can watch videos and tutorials. But chances are, unless you’re a natural when it comes to making good branding decisions and have experience working on brands for other companies, you’re going to fall short of the mark. Instead, why not leave this work to the professionals?

There are countless branding companies out there, ranging from agencies to freelancers, who pride themselves on their branding knowledge, expertise, skills and experience. You can get someone who has successful branding campaigns under their belt and who will be able to give you insight into branding decisions that you might not otherwise have even thought of. Look online for options that look like a good fit for you and your business. You may look for previous experience with similar brands, or you may base your final decision on others’ reviews of their service. Regardless of how you find your branding specialist, it’s important that you do find them.

Spread brand awareness

Of course, it’s all good and well spending a lot of time and money to come up with a brand that should appeal to your consumers and help you to make a name for your business. But if you don’t make this brand visible, you’re going to find yourself experiencing difficulty. You won’t reap the full benefits. This is why spreading brand awareness is so important.

Brand awareness is a term that describes how well a consumer can recognize a particular product you’re selling by its name, logo and other elements of branding attached to it. For example, most people who see a laptop with the Apple logo on the back will automatically know that it was bought from Apple. The vast majority of people will see yellow arches and automatically know that the building beneath is a McDonalds. A good brand can really maximize sales, as it gives people good faith in your product and also helps to develop a sense of brand loyalty. But what can you do to maximize brand awareness? Here are a few suggestions to get the ball rolling on this.

• Advertising - perhaps the most simple and straightforward way to really get your name out there and in your customers’ faces is advertising. This, of course, needs to be paid for, so it is going to come with a price tag. But there are options to suit all budgets and targeted advertising now means you can reach out to plenty of people who are looking for what you have to offer at a much lower price than you might originally anticipate. From TV ads to billboards, PPC and printed tote bags featuring your brand name, the opportunities are endless.

• Social Media - having a brand presence on social media, whether that’s through your own business profile or through an influencer, really is important. This is particularly true if you’re catering to a younger demographic. Most people are spending more time than ever online, so simply being on their screens and in places they’re looking or places that they’re recommended will help to create a space in their mind for your brand in particular.

• Word of Mouth - never underestimate the power of word of mouth. People telling their friends and family how great your brand is, how great your products are or how great an interaction with your brand is can really prove profitable. You can encourage word of mouth by delivering great goods and services that really stand apart from the crowd.

Managing and maintaining your brand

Once your brand is out there and doing its job, you need to make sure that you manage and maintain it. All too many businesses launch their brand and then dust off their hands, thinking that all of the hard work is done. But this isn’t the case. So many things can impact your brand that you need to make sure you’re managing everything as well as possible. This can prevent your business from finding itself at the center of any scandal or other issues which can negatively impact sales. You can also find that your target demographics’ tastes and preferences change over time. Here are some ways to manage your brand as best possible.

• Follow online content - make sure that you check in on what people are saying about your brand online. You may find that platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pick up mentions of things that are going well and are being appreciated, as well as mentions of things that need to change.

• Keep an eye on collaborative partners - nowadays, it’s easier than ever to end up with a scandalous collaboration on your hands. People often say and do things online that can be problematic and detrimental to your brand if your brand is associated with them. Make sure to track the reputation of anyone you’re working with, such as social media influencers.

• Deliver what you promise - you’re going to have a hard time maintaining a good brand image if your business is failing to deliver on what it is supposed to. This results in negative reviews, compliants and more. Make sure that you are doing what you are promising to your customers. This will boost your brand more than anything else.

Branding really is important to any bsuiness, no matter what you’re selling or who you’re selling to. Take some of the information above into account and you should be able to reap the benefits of your superior branding before you know it!