From a website’s colors to the language in blogs, a company’s brand tells a story and helps people experience their products or services. When you think of big-name companies, you think about their products along with their logos, messaging, and the experience you receive when you interact with them. This is all a part of a company’s brand. For example, when you think about Target, you not only envision their red and white logo, but also the experience you receive when you shop in their store. Brands help create unique experiences between consumers and organizations, which can lead people to purchase a company’s products or services. They can also help people understand what a company values most and what a consumer will receive from an organization’s products or services. Every interaction a consumer has with a business should portray what the organization’s brand is all about.
The importance of branding
Branding as a whole has become a priority for many organizations. In a Nielsen survey, 59% of shoppers said they actively buy from brands they are familiar with, and 21% say they purchased a product because it was from a brand they like. A brand can help a business be more relatable and easily connect with their average consumers. It can also help a business stand out from the competition. If a company has strong branding, it can create a more desirable workplace, since people generally want to work for companies with positive identities. With so many benefits associated with strong branding, it’s easy to see why many organizations are choosing to either rebrand or brand themselves.
5 steps you should take to create a brand
Know who your target audience is
The first step you should take to create a brand is to identify your target audience. Think about who your ideal customers are, consider physical characteristics such as their age and gender. Think about who your current consumers are, and also what new consumers you want to reach. You may need to do some research to determine your target audience. Once you’ve researched and thought about who you are trying to reach, you can decide what your brand will look like based on your target audience.
Set a goal for your brand
Before beginning any design work, make sure that you set an overarching goal for your brand. This could come in the form of a mission statement. Make sure your goal or mission statement reflects what your brand values. One statistic even proves that your brand’s values matter: 77% of consumers buy from brands who have the same values as they do. Brand values could include authenticity and trust—86% of consumers say that authenticity is a key factor when deciding what brands they like and support, while 81% of consumers said that they need to be able to trust the brand in order to buy from them. After you’ve chosen your brand’s goal, everything you create should reflect it.
Create a brand style guide
Now that you’ve considered your target audience and set a goal for your brand, you can move on to the next step—designing your brand’s elements. The visual elements of a brand can include many things, such as the logo, colors, fonts, icons, and more. During the design process, you’ll want to develop a brand style guide, so that in the future all of your design work will be consistent and reflect your brand. In fact, being consistent in your branding has been shown to increase revenue by 33%. To help with the design work, you should consider hiring an in-house graphic designer or an agency with a graphic designer.
Determine your brand voice
After finalizing your organization’s brand style guide, the next step is to determine your brand’s voice. Although this may seem like a no-brainer, it is important to consider the tone of your written voice. Some organizations may opt for a fun and entertaining tone, while others will choose a more serious and straightforward tone. Make sure that the tone is consistent throughout all of your written content including on your website, in blogs, advertisements, emails, and social media posts.
Integrate your brand throughout your entire business
Now it’s time to put these steps into action. Go through all of your organization’s content, like product packaging, website, social media, and emails. Change or update anything that doesn’t reflect your brand by style, tone, or design. Everything should reflect your brand’s overarching goal.
Key takeaways
Your brand tells a story about your organization. It reflects what your business values, your company’s goals, and changes how consumers perceive your products or services. As a member of an organization, you should always have your brand image in mind and be striving to share it with others. Proper branding gives you a chance to tell your story in a way that will help people recognize your organization and believe and trust in you.
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