Branding Is Not Just For The Big Boys

By Bob Francis

When we talk about brands or branding we frequently think of Coca-cola or Microsoft or Intel. Indeed these companies pour huge amounts of money into their brands to grow their business and become a worldwide symbol. However branding is not just for the big boys-every company should develop their brand and it need not be expensive.

Let us look at what we mean by brand. One definition is that branding is a means of differentiating your product or service. The aim of the process is to encourage customers to identify with the product, service or even company. A brand therefore promotes an identity and an image that sets it apart in some way from its rivals.

What a brand is not is logos and letterheads. And a brand does not need to relate just to a product it can relate to the company. The Intel “Intel inside” tag line is an example of this. Intel makes thousands of different microprocessors but they all use the tagline Intel inside.

So how do we create a brand?

A number of steps need to be taken to create a brand. The first is to segment your customer base to understand what their needs are and how your product or service meets those needs. You need to understand how this benefits your customers and how you differ from your competitors. If you feel that there is no difference then you need to create a difference. This can be done through your image, product or service, partners or strategic alliances or even how you handle your customers. All and any of these can be differentiators but they need to be defined in terms of what it means to clients, what values they perceive in order to create higher perceived value than your competitors.

Brand experience must equal brand promise. This means that if you pride yourself on customer service, you must ensure that your personnel for instance are not ‘abrupt’ with clients when they phone at an inconvenient time. The banks are prime examples of this. They say in their ads and literature that they have good customer service and they treat you as an individual. But just ask them to close an account and you get the telephone shuffle as you are passed from operator to operator and probably, half way round the world, before you get any satisfaction.

To create a good brand image your messages must be consistent, written as well as verbal. The values behind your brand must be reflected in the way you run your business, how you interact with customers and staff your image and much more.

Ultimately customers must be able to recognise and identify you in a crowded market place and you need to stand apart from your competitors.

(All trademarks are acknowledged.)

Bob Francis is an experienced business consultant spending most of his time helping clients with sales and marketing issues. He can be contacted at bob@abio.ltd.uk

If you would like to review your branding or positioning contact us and one of our consultants will contact you.

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