Jeff Bezos once said, “A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well.” When you hear the phrase “Just Do It” what is the first thing that comes to mind? I would guess you’re thinking about Nike. Nike has built a brand powerful enough to be recognized around the globe with three simple words.
Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight founded Nike in 1964; since that time, the company has been working hard to become one of the most recognizable brands in the world. Phil Knight has stated in multiple interviews that Nike is a product-oriented company. Product design and quality are crucial for the company’s success; however, the right brand and strong, consistent portrayals of your brand in marketing play an, arguably, more important role. The right marketing strategy will help build a recognizable brand that not only includes an appealing logo and design but also the right messaging that makes a lasting impression to build trust. The article “High-Performance Marketing: An Interview with Nike’s Phil Knight” talks about Nike’s success story and how the right branding and marketing strategies helped the company become the leader in athletic wear.
So, What Is Branding, And Why Is It So Important?
When asking this question, so many words and definitions come to mind. Having a good branding strategy does not start and end with a logo and a brand style guide. Branding involves several aspects that create the desired image, reputation, and emotion associated with a company. Having a brand that people recognize easily will bring a business to the next level.
A brand gives your business a personality that potential customers will look at when making purchasing decisions and turn one-time customers into loyal, repeat clients. A strong brand helps to distinguish a company from its competitors, strengthen its position on the market, increase revenue, and much more.
Branding will build trust between you and your customers. When a customer is looking to purchase a product or engage with a service, they will choose a company with a brand and personality they align with. It can be hard to build trust at first, especially if your business is new on the market and not many people are familiar with it. Brand trust is becoming more and more critical for companies, as purchasing power shifts from older generations to young generations. Millennial and Gen Z consumers are most concerned with working with and associating themselves with companies they trust – companies whose brand is presented openly and honestly.
The words you say and how you say them are important when trying to establish a good relationship with customers. A brand should always communicate a clear and specific message to the customers. Ask yourself what you, as a company, stand for. What is your mission? What is your vision? What experience can you promise your clients and customers? Just like relationships in your personal life, delivering on your promises is important to building trust.
A company’s branded messaging should always show care for and about their customers, authenticity, and dependability. Having a reliable product, delivering what is promised, having brand consistency, and offering a good customer service experience can help to build a brand that people will trust.
Let’s talk about Amazon for a moment. It was created with a specific yet straightforward messaging, “an everything store”. The brand was built around that idea. When looking at its logo, we can see the small arrow on the bottom of the text, which forms a smile. This represents that a business goal is to make people happy by offering a wide range of products, practically everything one might need. In the long run, trust will help with brand loyalty, engagement, and advocacy.
Consistent use of branding will increase your business’s recognizability. Think about the famous logos of such brands as Nike, McDonald’s, Apple, etc. When a person looks at these logos, the business name comes to mind right away. Can you picture them in your mind? People recognize these brands all around the world. Ensuring that your brand is recognizable will help you bring your business to the next level, increase sales and brand awareness. Your business should have consistent branding, a specific logo, and a brand style guide to follow. Work on making your brand stand out from the competitors. HubSpot has an awesome article that talks about tips and suggestions on building a memorable brand identity. Brand recognition comes with time and effort, but it should not be left out.
Branding plays a vital role in a business’s success. As we discussed earlier, there are multiple benefits to having a brand that is consistent with straightforward messaging and attractive, memorable designs. Coming up with an effective branding strategy requires time and requires research. The approach is unique for every company but creating a strong brand will make a huge difference for your business.
Here at Big Red Jelly, we have an excellent team of professionals who can help you elevate your business by choosing the right branding strategy for your company. Whether you’re a startup or an established enterprise, we can help you with logo design, brand style guide, targeted messaging, social media branding, target audience research, and much more! Check out our website to learn how Big Red Jelly can boost your branding efforts.
