A recognisable brand is one of the most valuable assets that a company can own.

According to a survey by Neilsen entitled “Looking to achieve new product success,” 59% of those surveyed preferred to buy products from brands familiar to them.

This means you have to find ways to stand out from the competition with a solid brand building process of your own.

You need to build a brand, not just a business.

But, how do you build a brand?

What is a brand?

Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, defines a brand as “what other people say about you when you are not in the room.”

A brand is your customer’s perception of your business – which boils down to your reputation.

In today’s omnichannel marketplace, a successful brand has to be consistent in both what it communicates, and its customers experience across many channels, including:

  • Website and online advertising
  • Print collateral, signage and packaging
  • Sales and customer service
  • Content marketing
  • Environment (office or store)
  • Internally with employees

This is why branding is not a simple process, and it doesn’t happen overnight. It is a long-term ongoing process that needs to be guided by a well-thought-out strategy in order to establish a long-term relationship with customers.

The branding process is worth investing time and effort into as it can lead to an increase in leads, sales and referrals.

What is brand building?

Brand building is the process of generating awareness of your business in order to create a lasting and unique impression in your niche market.

There are three distinct areas of brand building:

  • Brand strategy
  • Brand identity
  • Brand marketing

#Brand strategy

Your brand strategy should map out how you are different to your competitors as well as how you will show your customers that you are likeable and trustworthy. It should also convey your purpose and how you will solve problems for your customers.

Getting your brand strategy right is the essential first step in creating a brand from the ground up – and it doesn’t matter whether you are starting from scratch or have been established for years – you need to get this bit right.

A comprehensive and effective brand strategy should include the following:

  • Brand discovery
  • Brand message and story
  • Brand voice
  • Competitor research
  • Target audience

Before you jump into marketing and design, you need to get this critical foundation in place.

Learn more about why a well-planned brand strategy is important.

#Brand identity

The identity of your brand influences how you will communicate with your target audience in terms of experience, messaging and visuals for the most impact.

All of the elements of your brand identity should be applied consistently across all of your marketing channels as it is the only way your business will become recognisable.

Your brand identity consists of:

  • Advertising
  • Colours and fonts
  • Content and messaging
  • Logo
  • Patterns and icons
  • Print and packaging
  • Website design

Find out more about why a unique and memorable brand identity is so important in 2021 here.

#Brand marketing

This is the way that your business will bring awareness to your products and services as it will connect your values and brand voice to your audience through the use of strategic communication.

There are various ways you can communicate with your customer, and these include:

  • Email marketing
  • Paid advertising (PPC)
  • SEO & content marketing
  • Social media marketing (SMM)
  • User experience on your website

So, when we are working with our clients to help them build a brand, what steps do we follow?

How can Zool help you build a brand that people love?

#Define your brand purpose

Every successful brand has a powerful purpose behind it – and so should yours.

You can define your brand purpose by answering the following:

  • Why does your company exist?
  • What differentiates your company from others in your niche?
  • What problem does your company solve?
  • Why should people care about your company?

The answers to these questions will help us to form the foundation of your brand.

#Look at what your competitors are doing

Now we are not suggesting you imitate your competitors – no one is going to stand out from the crowd doing that. But it is important to know what your competitors are doing so that you can evaluate what they are doing well and what they aren’t doing so well – then see how you can use this information to differentiate yourself from them.

Think about things such as:

  • Are your competitors consistent with their messaging and visual identity across all marketing channels?
  • Do your competitors use customer reviews or social mentions? If so, read what their customers are saying about them.
  • In what ways are your competitors marketing their business – online and offline?
  • What is the quality of your competitors’ products or services?

#Nail down your brand’s target audience

One of the critical parts of building your brand successfully is to nail down your target audience as early on as possible – so you can tailor your message to meet their needs.

It is important to be specific – after all, you can’t be all things to all people. Instead of thinking “mums,” you should drill down to “single mums who work part-time from home.” Or instead of “people interested in tech” you can drill down to “tech-savvy early adopters who manage large teams.”

Once you have a crystal-clear audience focus, you can ensure your brand message comes clearly across to them.

#Establish your brand mission and vision statement

It is important to have a clear expression of what your company is most passionate about and what value it provides to your customer.

Your brand mission statement should encapsulate your statement of commitment to your customers of how you are going to achieve your brand vision. Your brand vision statement will tell everyone what it is that your company is working to achieve.

Once you have these two statements nailed, then everything should reflect them – from your logo to your tone of voice and tagline.

A great example of these is Nike:

Nike’s brand mission statement “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world (If you have a body, you are an athlete)”

Nike’s tagline: “Just do it”

#Outline the key benefits your brand offers

There is one thing that helps you to stand out from your competitors and that is your products, your services and the benefits your brand offers.

You need to think clearly about what reason your customers have to pick your brand over others in your niche. This is not a list of features, rather a list of how your brand provides value that improves customers’ lives.

These could be things such as:

  • Offering them a better way to support productivity
  • Reducing their costs by offering them a more affordable option
  • More authentic customer service experience
  • Time-saving on daily tasks

#Find your unique brand voice

Your brand voice will depend on your company’s industry, target audience and mission statement.

It could be conversational, friendly, informative, promotional, professional, science-based, or technical. It depends on how you want to communicate with your customers and how they will respond to you.

Maintaining a consistent brand voice when publishing blog articles or social media posts is vital as it will ensure your brand image will be recognised on multiple platforms and help you build a community of followers.

#Consider your brand personality

Customers don’t want a company that offers them the same thing as everyone else, they want an experience that is tailored to their needs and is backed with genuine personal interaction with you and your employees.

One way of getting your brand personality across is to be consistent with sharing things such as:

  • Behind-the-scenes content
  • Stories about real experiences within your business
  • A conversational voice, using “I” and “you”

Now that you know some of the steps we go through to create a successful brand, why not talk to us about how we build brands for businesses like yours through the use of community building and marketing.

How to perfect the branding process

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A recognisable brand is one of the most valuable assets that a company can own.

According to a survey by Neilsen entitled “Looking to achieve new product success,” 59% of those surveyed preferred to buy products from brands familiar to them.

This means you have to find ways to stand out from the competition with a solid brand building process of your own.

You need to build a brand, not just a business.

But, how do you build a brand?

What is a brand?

Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, defines a brand as “what other people say about you when you are not in the room.”

A brand is your customer’s perception of your business – which boils down to your reputation.

In today’s omnichannel marketplace, a successful brand has to be consistent in both what it communicates, and its customers experience across many channels, including:

  • Website and online advertising
  • Print collateral, signage and packaging
  • Sales and customer service
  • Content marketing
  • Environment (office or store)
  • Internally with employees

This is why branding is not a simple process, and it doesn’t happen overnight. It is a long-term ongoing process that needs to be guided by a well-thought-out strategy in order to establish a long-term relationship with customers.

The branding process is worth investing time and effort into as it can lead to an increase in leads, sales and referrals.

What is brand building?

Brand building is the process of generating awareness of your business in order to create a lasting and unique impression in your niche market.

There are three distinct areas of brand building:

  • Brand strategy
  • Brand identity
  • Brand marketing

#Brand strategy

Your brand strategy should map out how you are different to your competitors as well as how you will show your customers that you are likeable and trustworthy. It should also convey your purpose and how you will solve problems for your customers.

Getting your brand strategy right is the essential first step in creating a brand from the ground up – and it doesn’t matter whether you are starting from scratch or have been established for years – you need to get this bit right.

A comprehensive and effective brand strategy should include the following:

  • Brand discovery
  • Brand message and story
  • Brand voice
  • Competitor research
  • Target audience

Before you jump into marketing and design, you need to get this critical foundation in place.

Learn more about why a well-planned brand strategy is important.

#Brand identity

The identity of your brand influences how you will communicate with your target audience in terms of experience, messaging and visuals for the most impact.

All of the elements of your brand identity should be applied consistently across all of your marketing channels as it is the only way your business will become recognisable.

Your brand identity consists of:

  • Advertising
  • Colours and fonts
  • Content and messaging
  • Logo
  • Patterns and icons
  • Print and packaging
  • Website design

Find out more about why a unique and memorable brand identity is so important in 2021 here.

#Brand marketing

This is the way that your business will bring awareness to your products and services as it will connect your values and brand voice to your audience through the use of strategic communication.

There are various ways you can communicate with your customer, and these include:

  • Email marketing
  • Paid advertising (PPC)
  • SEO & content marketing
  • Social media marketing (SMM)
  • User experience on your website

So, when we are working with our clients to help them build a brand, what steps do we follow?

How can Zool help you build a brand that people love?

#Define your brand purpose

Every successful brand has a powerful purpose behind it – and so should yours.

You can define your brand purpose by answering the following:

  • Why does your company exist?
  • What differentiates your company from others in your niche?
  • What problem does your company solve?
  • Why should people care about your company?

The answers to these questions will help us to form the foundation of your brand.

#Look at what your competitors are doing

Now we are not suggesting you imitate your competitors – no one is going to stand out from the crowd doing that. But it is important to know what your competitors are doing so that you can evaluate what they are doing well and what they aren’t doing so well – then see how you can use this information to differentiate yourself from them.

Think about things such as:

  • Are your competitors consistent with their messaging and visual identity across all marketing channels?
  • Do your competitors use customer reviews or social mentions? If so, read what their customers are saying about them.
  • In what ways are your competitors marketing their business – online and offline?
  • What is the quality of your competitors’ products or services?

#Nail down your brand’s target audience

One of the critical parts of building your brand successfully is to nail down your target audience as early on as possible – so you can tailor your message to meet their needs.

It is important to be specific – after all, you can’t be all things to all people. Instead of thinking “mums,” you should drill down to “single mums who work part-time from home.” Or instead of “people interested in tech” you can drill down to “tech-savvy early adopters who manage large teams.”

Once you have a crystal-clear audience focus, you can ensure your brand message comes clearly across to them.

#Establish your brand mission and vision statement

It is important to have a clear expression of what your company is most passionate about and what value it provides to your customer.

Your brand mission statement should encapsulate your statement of commitment to your customers of how you are going to achieve your brand vision. Your brand vision statement will tell everyone what it is that your company is working to achieve.

Once you have these two statements nailed, then everything should reflect them – from your logo to your tone of voice and tagline.

A great example of these is Nike:

Nike’s brand mission statement “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world (If you have a body, you are an athlete)”

Nike’s tagline: “Just do it”

#Outline the key benefits your brand offers

There is one thing that helps you to stand out from your competitors and that is your products, your services and the benefits your brand offers.

You need to think clearly about what reason your customers have to pick your brand over others in your niche. This is not a list of features, rather a list of how your brand provides value that improves customers’ lives.

These could be things such as:

  • Offering them a better way to support productivity
  • Reducing their costs by offering them a more affordable option
  • More authentic customer service experience
  • Time-saving on daily tasks

#Find your unique brand voice

Your brand voice will depend on your company’s industry, target audience and mission statement.

It could be conversational, friendly, informative, promotional, professional, science-based, or technical. It depends on how you want to communicate with your customers and how they will respond to you.

Maintaining a consistent brand voice when publishing blog articles or social media posts is vital as it will ensure your brand image will be recognised on multiple platforms and help you build a community of followers.

#Consider your brand personality

Customers don’t want a company that offers them the same thing as everyone else, they want an experience that is tailored to their needs and is backed with genuine personal interaction with you and your employees.

One way of getting your brand personality across is to be consistent with sharing things such as:

  • Behind-the-scenes content
  • Stories about real experiences within your business
  • A conversational voice, using “I” and “you”

Now that you know some of the steps we go through to create a successful brand, why not talk to us about how we build brands for businesses like yours through the use of community building and marketing.