Lawrence Medina

Welcome! To April the Month of Branding. Where we’ll go over the importance of your “Brand.” I would like to start by saying this… Your brand is about more than just the image.

In fact, your image should probably be the last thing you focus on when you begin to create your brand. I digress… Since I haven’t even begun to tell you what “Branding” is.

“Branding” has quite a few aspects to it, but its key element comes down to how you are perceived by consumers, employees, the public, and of course other brands.

Of course, we’ll be going into the different aspects involved with branding this whole month. So, let us begin with…

Importance of Branding

You won’t know why you need to focus on branding if you don’t know what it is important. Your brand will often be the first thing your consumers/clients see. As we all know, first impressions matter. If you can’t leave a strong impact on your consumers, then they will simply move on to the next company.

This is where you brand steps in. We can boil down your brand into a simple word for right now… Which is “Story.”

Your brand is the story you relay to your consumer. Your story will be the driving force that compels any consumer to stick with you. Some stories resonant more with different people, but the main thing you want to keep with… is consistency.

You shouldn’t change your story to match with a new market, simply for the sake of potentially getting new people to hop on board. That is a quick way to lose your original consumer base. It can be seen as a betrayal because they got to know who you were.

This story… Is what connects you to your consumers. Once someone knows your story they will feel a connection to you… Which means they’ll feel a connection to your brand.

Now… What aspects are involved in creating your brand?

Elements Involved in Branding

Here I’ll break down the elements of Branding. How many elements are there? How you can utilize them (at a later date)? And finally, where you implement them.

Branding Elements:

Voice:

What is your voice? When it comes to branding your voice will impact everything you do from the moment you decide what it is. It will be what heralds your advertisements, it will inform and comfort your audience. The industry you are apart of should not dictate your voice, nor should trends. Your voice should be what you want from your company. Your voice should yours and yours alone.

Your brand lives and dies by your voice.

Image:

Your brand image boils down to your style. Your image should enhance your brand voice. Essentially let it be an embodiment of your voice. This includes your logo design to your brand colors. This will be the physical representation of your voice. Create the image that would carry that voice.

Image can change. Let it reflect your voice.

Culture:

Brand culture can be quite confusing. Your culture will not be for your consumers or clients… Unless you have the type of brand that is fully accepting and completely public. Your culture is one you share with your employees. Remember beyond their employment… Your inner working will be talked about. Create a culture that makes your employees happy… Or be sure to hire those that can thrive in your culture.

Create the environment that will allow your culture to thrive.

Audience:

Now branding around your audience is a bit trickier. You never want to force your brand onto to people, but you can’t completely ignore your audience. You will need to nurture it… whether that means with products catered specifically for those that are really into your brand. Your audience is your community, don’t neglect the branding they’ve come to know… And you should always have someone by your side.

Now… What happens if you ignore your brand and focus simply on product/services?

Lacking a Brand in a Sea of Competition

Your product and/or service is… Sadly… Not completely unique. You will always have competition. If you lack proper brand building… then you will lose out on possible clients.

Ultimately your brand is your main marketing tool. If you lack a brand, then you lack marketing power. If you have no voice… Then you have no story to tell.

How could you expect to capture anyone’s attention?

There is this one story I’ve heard… Quite some time ago. It was about a purple cow in a field. If you see one purple cow among many regular cows, it will be bound to take your attention. You might find your eyes gravitating towards it. What if you started seeing more and more purple cows?

The wonder will be gone. It will no longer be something amazing. It will be the average. It will be normal.

Essentially, you want to be the purple cow. But one that will always stand out in the crowd.

With the cursory information out there… We can start going into further detail about branding.

Proper Platforms for Branding

What is a good platform for your brand? Well, anything can work, but it is best to find what works best for your brand. If direct mail suits your brand, then excel in creating a voice that captures attention and turns it into sales. If you must have a digital presence, then create a voice that is the epitome of brevity and style.

These are just a few… For the time being.  We have a whole month to go further into these topics.

Join the conversation. Tell me about your brand—no, tell me your story.