TOPIC: BRANDING WHAT IS BRAND , A brand is an intangible asset that helps people identify a specific company and its products. This is especially true when companies need to set themselves apart from others who provide similar products on the market, including generic brands. Advil is a common brand of ibuprofen, which the company uses to distinguish itself from generic forms of the drug available in drugstores. This is referred to as brand equity. People often confuse logos, slogans, or other recognizable marks owned by companies with their brands. While these terms are often used interchangeably, they are distinct. The former are marketing tools that companies often use to promote and market their products and services.2 When used together, these tools create a brand identity. Successful marketing can help keep a company’s brand front and center in people’s minds. This can spell the difference between someone choosing your brand over your competitor’s. A brand is considered to be one of the most valuable and important assets for a company. In fact, many companies are often referred to by their brand, which means they are often inseparable, becoming one and the same. Coca-Cola is a great example, where the popular soft drink became synonymous with the company itself. This means it carries a tremendous monetary value, affecting both the bottom line and, for public companies, shareholder value This is why it’s important for companies to protect their brands from a legal standpoint. Trademarks identify exclusive ownership over a brand and/or product, along with any associated marketing tools. Registering trademarks prevent others from using your products or services without obtaining your permission. Types of Brands The type of brand used depends on the particular entity using it. The following are some of the most common forms of brands:  Corporate Brands: Corporate branding is a way for companies to market themselves in order to give themselves an edge against their competition. They make a series of important decisions in order to accomplish this, such as pricing, mission, target market, and values.  Personal Brands: As mentioned above, branding isn’t just for companies anymore. People use tools like social media to build their own personas, thereby boosting their brands. This includes regular social media posts, sharing images and videos, and conducting meet-and-greets.  Product Brands: This type of branding, which is also known as merchandise branding, involves marketing one particular product. Branding a product requires market research and choosing the proper target market.  Service Brands: This kind of branding applies to services, which often requires some creativity, as you can’t actually show services in a physical way. 7 Creating a Brand When a company settles on a brand to be its public image, it must first determine its brand identity, or how it wants to be viewed. For instance, a company logo often incorporates a company’s message, slogan, or product. The goal is to make the brand memorable and appealing to the consumer. The company usually consults a design firm, team, or logo design software to come up with ideas for the visual aspects of a brand, such as a logo or a symbol. A successful brand accurately portrays the message or feeling the company wants to get across. This results in brand awareness, or the recognition of the brand’s existence and what it offers. On the other hand, an ineffective brand often results from miscommunication.1 Once a brand has created positive sentiment among its target audience, the firm is said to have built brand equity. Some examples of firms with brand equity and possessing very recognizable brands of products include Microsoft, Coca-Cola, Ferrari, Apple, and Facebook. If done right, a brand results in an increase in sales not just for the specific product being sold, but also for other products sold by the same company. A good brand engenders trust in the consumer, and, after having a good experience with one product, the consumer is more likely to try another product related to the same brand. As noted above, this phenomenon is often referred to as brand loyalty.3 Benefits of Brands Creating a brand provides numerous benefits, whether that’s to a corporation or an individual. Successful branding leads to a lot of impressions. But what does this mean? A company that can get its message across is able to induce and evoke emotion within its customer base. These consumers develop unique relationships with these companies, allowing the latter to capitalize on their loyalty. Companies also rely on these customers to help draw in other, new consumers.1 This helps companies build trust and credibility. After all, people are more apt to purchase goods and services (or brands) from companies they know and trust. This gives companies a competitive edge against their competition. Keeping brands in the minds of consumers means a bigger bottom line.93 It also helps corporations introduce newer products and services. Since consumers are going to stay loyal to brands they know and trust—and with whom they already have a relationship—they’re more likely to spend when new products are released, even if they’re more expensive.9 Let’s use Apple as an example. The company has built a hugely loyal customer base that is willing to overlook the price tag associated with an iMac, MacBook, iPad, or iPhone because of their loyalty to the brand. Many existing customers are completely willing to replace their existing electronics when the company releases new ones.3 No firm has an unlimited marketing budget, no matter how big it is. Your branding plans depend on your long-term growth in combination with the short-term results. Every business needs to be aware of the importance of branding in marketing. Branding requires vast sums of money, but once invested your business can yield tremendous benefits. This article is targeted towards individuals, such as business owners and people in management positions, who are not sure of whether they should invest in branding or not. The Importance Of Branding 1. Creates Consumer Preference For The Product Or Service Behind The Brand A wide variety of products leads to confusion. One way purchasers manage these issues is by leaning towards brands they know and trust. Genuine and widely known brands are viewed as less risky to buy from. Hence, customers believe that the products from brands that are intensively marketed would always perform better. And it is true as the results reflect that. The more you give importance to Branding, it helps in the longer run. 2. Generates Increased Revenues And Market Share When a firm does extensive marketing or branding, its revenues and market share increases. This means that the firm can become stronger than it was before. It can use its power to enter new geographical markets, do co-branding and gain new distribution opportunities. Branded firms are well looked up to. Branding gives you wings to experiment with different sectors of the market. 3. Helps The Company Survive Temporary Crises Toyota, a brand with the best quality, has had some genuine product quality issues in 2009, which created a PR nightmare. However, the company has spent numerous years conveying its “quality” image, which has helped the organization oversee the crisis and re-establish trust in their products. Brand recall is a big part of marketing investments. people realizing that the brand stands for a particular thing is very important. 4. Expands The Organization’s Estimated Worth An organization’s physical resources and the number of workers do not contribute much to its market value. What actually matters is the brand’s equity. John Stewart, the previous CEO of Quaker says “If the business splits up and I give you the land, bricks, and cement, and take the goodwill and trademarks, I’d still stand better than you.” The company’s worth shows the importance of branding. 5. Keeps New Competition Away A market segment that is targeted by popular brands is a huge hurdle for most new competitors. If you are the first one to create and target a segment, you will gain tremendous benefits. Gaining a first movers advantage is a big deal. This helps in making a place in the consumer’s minds and staying that way. 6. Increases Employee Productivity When your brand is well-known, people will want to work for you. This opens your company up to the top talent and provides you with the most qualified and skilful employees for your company. Once you have the best people for the job, your company’s productivity level will increase as well. 7. Increases Profitability By Commanding A Higher Price This is one of the most important reasons for the significance of marketing. Clients tend to be more willing to pay a premium for a well-established brand’s product compared to a similar item from a brand that isn’t as well-known. When you are a huge firm and the biggest customer of your suppliers, they will never want to lose you. You can use this power to insist that quality products are on time and to bargain over prices as well. Often they will take a pay cut just to keep working with your company. 9. Helps The Company Attract New Distribution For Its Products A popular brand with known customer loyalty has little issues discovering distribution partners, on a local and global scale. Everyone wants to work with a brand where the client demand and return on investment are high. When employees work for a well-known brand, they showcase a sense of loyalty and purpose. This means that the employee turnover rate would drop dramatically because employees believe in what their company is doing and are proud of it. 11. Makes A Remarkable And Unique Brand Image A brand goes well past the offering of a tangible product. If your business is unique from the rest, you will attract a market in which your competitors are not able to compete. Investors always go after brands that are strong enough to inspire their target audience and genuine enough to gain their trust. An investor would never want to invest in a weak brand that only showed potential risk. When you invest in your company’s branding efforts, the opportunity for growth is limitless. The most important aspect to keep in mind is how you will execute your branding strategy so it can have the most impact. Types of Branding Strategies There are several types of branding that may add value to your company depending on your target audience, industry, budget, and marketing campaigns. Here are seven types of branding strategies that have the potential to build brand equity for your business. Personal Branding Personal branding describes branding that is used for an individual person, instead of branding for a whole business. This type of branding is often used to establish a person’s character, personality, or work as a brand. Celebrities, politicians, thought leaders, and athletes often use this form of branding to present the best version of themselves to the public. For example, Seth Godin, entrepreneur and author of over 20 marketing books, positioned himself as a business and marketing expert. Seth has a recognizable personal brand, and individuals now associate him with his short blog posts that pinpoint one idea at a time. People want to hear from Seth Godin rather than a company or organization due to the effectiveness of his personal brand. Product Branding This is one of the most popular branding types. Product branding focuses on making a single product distinct and recognizable. Symbols or designs are an essential part of product branding to help your customers identify your product easily. For example, Monster Energy drinks have distinct packaging and logos that make it easily distinguishable from Red Bull energy drinks. via GIPHY Corporate Branding Corporate branding is a core value of business and a philosophy that a business develops to present itself to the world and its own employees. Effective corporate brands often seek to display the company’s mission, personality, and core values in each point of contact it has with prospective customers, current customers, and past customers. For example, Nike’s core values and mission are recognizable across all of their platforms and products. Nike’s mission statement is “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world.” And its slogan, next to their famous swoosh check mark logo, is “Just do it”. As a corporate brand, Nike positions themselves as a brand for athletes, sports enthusiasts, and anyone who is passionate about fitness. They also make it clear that they believe anyone can be an athlete. Service Branding Service branding leverages the needs of the customer. Companies that use service branding seek to provide their customers with world-class service. They aim to use excellent customer service as a way to provide value to their customers. For example, Chick-fil-A is known for its excellent customer service – making it now synonymous with its brand. Co-Branding Co-branding is a form of branding that connects companies together. Essentially, co-branding is a marketing partnership between two or more businesses. This helps brands impact each other positively, and it may result in one growing its business, spreading brand awareness, and breaking into new markets. For example, Frito Lay and Taco Bell came together and made the Doritos Locos Taco that appealed to both audiences. Online Branding Online branding, also known as internet branding, helps businesses to position themselves as a part of the online marketplace. This type of branding includes a company’s website, social media platforms, blogs, and other online content. Most companies use some aspect of online or internet branding in today’s marketplace. No-Brand Branding This type of branding is also known as minimalist branding. These brands are often generic brands that seek to let their products speak for themselves without all the extras many others provide their consumers with. Some of the most noteworthy no-branding branding examples include Brandless and m/f people. As you can see on Brandless‘ website, their packaging, colors, and overall aesthetic is very simple. This aligns with their mission of providing fairly priced food to people without a typical brand. Despite the fact that Brandless recently announced its closure, it is an excellent example of no-brand branding that saw great success for several years. people adopts simplicity in everything, from their branding and packaging to their product designs. For example, their skincare products are packaged in bottles with black and white colors and a simple font. This decision to opt for simplicity aligns with their commitment to making gender-neutral products and pursuing their overall mission: “We aim to make life simple, so you can focus on what matters most.” They don’t need loud colors and flashy font. They want minimalistic appeal. Define Your Brand Identity. Before you select the proper brand strategies for your business, you should define your brand identity. This involves asking yourself and others involved in the marketing and sales process a series of questions, such as:  What are my company’s mission and core values?  If I had to describe my company in three words, what would they be?  What do I want to be known for in the marketplace?  What kind of difference do I want to make in my industry?  What do I want my brand to look like visually? Asking yourself these questions helps you to determine your goals and direction in the marketplace as a unique brand. Determine Your Brand Objectives. Once you identify your brand identity and answer the key questions mentioned above, you should be able to determine your brand objectives. For example, your objective may be to position yourself as an industry leader in a set period of time or to increase customer interactions through reviews, website visits, or online product purchases. This way, you’ll be able to select a brand strategy that aligns with your business goals and objectives