Keys to Branding Your Growing Business
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, a rancher
would mark his cattle with a brand. This brand, depicting an
image unique to his ranch, distinguished his cattle from
another's in the event of a broken fence. Branding, in today's
modern marketing world, operates much the same way. It seeks to
distinguish a product or service from the competition and create
a lasting impression in a prospect's mind. Pay dear attention to
your branding programs from the outset because they work to
strengthen the "link of trust" between your company and its
buyers.
Shaping your brand image To start, consider first the
personality of your company. Is it sexy or sweet? Tough or
tender? Is it more like John Wayne or George Clooney or Andy
Griffith? And if you think all this is hooey, consider these
questions: Do Marlboros really taste better than other
cigarettes? Is H&R Block superior to the tax accountant down the
street? No, but a big reason these companies are leaders is
because they have successfully built a personality around their
brands.
Name: The first step How different would you be if your
name was Clem or Matilda? Your company name sets a tone for your
brand, right from the start. Names can be generated from
invented words (Xerox), initials (IBM) and founder's names
(Johnson & Johnson). Some of the best names though communicate a
benefit (U-Haul or Budget Car Rental).
Logo: Your company's symbol A logo is a distinctive
symbol or mark that visually represents your company. To get one
that passes muster with the quality police, I recommend hiring a
design firm. Because your logo is one of the first visual brand
elements your buyers see, put some time and money into it. If
your logo will appear on fax cover sheets, fax it to yourself.
If it will appear on billboards, enlarge it to 5 feet and see
what it looks like (don't laugh, I actually did this for a
client). Put your logo through the quality checking paces before
you use it. You will be glad you did.
Taglines: A memorable definition I am a big believer in
taglines. In 10 words or less a good tagline can communicate the
core essence of a brand to the market. And for small businesses,
it can be one of the most efficient marketing weapons in their
arsenal. A tagline is simply a short description of a business'
reason for being. It could incorporate elements of its
expertise, its target audience, even the markets it serves. A
tagline can be both direct and subtle--whatever it takes to get
the prospect to say to themselves "Oh, I get it." If you are
unfamiliar with taglines, work with a copywriter or marketing
consultant. In an hour or two, they can take the core essence of
your company's brand and translate it into a memorable and pithy
tagline. Once you have a tagline, always connect it to your logo
as a standard practice. Either place the tagline below your logo
or alongside it. But, wherever your logo appears, your tagline
should there with it.
Fonts and typestyles Using the proper fonts and typestyles also
define your brand. Try to standardize fonts and typestyles that
appear routinely in your marketing materials. Use only a select
few. Hint: If you are working with an advertising agency or
marketing firm, make sure their designs use fonts that are
readily available. A client of mine once worked with a designer
on some marketing materials. The problem was the designer chose
a very creative font that ended up also being hard to find. In
the end, the client had to shell out hundreds more dollars to
buy the font for its printer because they did not have it.
Colors: Creating a mood How do you feel when you walk
into a yellow room? When you see a sign with a red background
color, what is your first reaction? Colors generate emotional
reactions, and it is important to carry that over into your
branding program. So, here is a quick list of common colors and
the emotions behind them: Color Emotions behind the color Red
Stop, passion Yellow Caution, cowardice Green Go, safe White
Purity, virtue Black Luxury, prestige Blue Authority, calm
Orange Strength, stimulation Brown Warmth, comfort.
When deciding on a company color, pay attention to the colors
used by your competitors. You do not want to shoot yourself in
the foot by choosing a color already associated with your
competitor.
The sounds of your brand One company I frequently call on the
telephone plays rap over its on-hold system. I don't know about
you, but I believe there is more to music than 3 bad chords and
rotten lyrics. I hate being on hold with that company. And their
relationship with me suffers ever so slightly each time I call.
If your business has on-hold messaging, or your retail store has
background music, make sure it is appropriate.Publish some
guidelines as your company grows, consider developing a brand
manual. It can be as simple as a 3-ring binder that records how
you want brand elements to appear. It should cover the use of
your logo, type sizes/fonts/styles, guidelines for color or
black and white, and where certain brand elements should be
located on the page or screen. This is a great resource for
internal staff to follow and can also be used for new employee
training.
Remember... Your brand shows up in a wide variety of marketing
vehicles. To help you identify all the places your brand can be
found, I have developed a comprehensive Branding Checklist. For
a free download, go to www.emergemarketing.com/publications/articles/index.htm
In the end, hold your branding efforts to the highest standard
possible. Spend a little extra to keep your brand high-quality
and consistent across your company. Your customers (both current
and new) will thank you for it.
About the Author:
Jay Lipe is the president of
Emerge Marketing LLC,
a firm that helps growing companies focus their marketing. He is
the author of the books The Marketing Toolkit for Growing
Businesses (Chammerson Press, 2002) and Stand Out from the
Crowd: Secrets to Crafting a Winning Company Identity (Kaplan
Publishing, Fall 2006). He is also a sought after speaker and
seminar leader, and can be reached at lipe@emergemarketing.com.
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