Do you recall the famous advertising slogan – ‘It does exactly what it says on the tin’?
It quickly became an iconic phrase and made Ronseal a household name for very good reason. A considered brand should reach a target audience quickly. A business proposition can then be grasped and swiftly understood without any distraction or second guessing. Everyone ‘just gets it’, this is the true strength of brand consistency and clarity.
First impressions are everything and that is why a brand should always look its best. Now more than ever, in a fast-paced transparent digital world, a brand should always be ready to be seen and shared. If the outreach is consistent and clear, an exposed brand will remain credible at all times. Business respect will be built and brand awareness will be successful.
We’re all aware that people buy from people and a majority of purchases have a significant portion of emotion within the decision making. When getting to know someone, we have early opinions and assume certain things without actually knowing the facts. This is the same for a brand and allowing people to get to know and understand your brand and business will answer any assumptions quickly. A consistent brand will help authenticity and will avoid any confusion and block any preconceived thoughts and ideas.
Brand awareness is not as simple as getting a name or logo out there. Show people the way to get to know your brand and business on a personal level. Clear and succinct branding is synonymous with a business proposition along with the value that organisation offers. Familiarity with a brand and the assets that surround it, will offer engagement and a feeling of comfort through clarity. It’s why we are all drawn to certain brands from sectors such as fashion, technology and automotive. Advocates are built on customer experience, innovation, intuitive products etc. We’re loyal to these brands because of past experience, trust, respect and peace of mind.
Other attributes of a brand include an ‘expression’ – these are all the things that creatively wrap around the brand name and logo marque. It expresses what a business stands for, communicated through the way it looks, acts, feels and echoes the things that are important, including the true business values. Expressions have a large part to play in the perception of a business, aiding trust and, in turn, will attract and retain the best talent, engage an audience, entice a healthy business culture and increase respect for a business and its profile.
Building an expression will reward with loyalty through a human and honest approach and will evoke a consistent marketing mix through a variety of channels including social media, content, website, events, video, digital marketing, blogs, employee brand, etc. All of these enablers should have one thing in common – consistency.
Businesses come in all shapes and sizes and may have growing pains, restructures or a change in strategy, so I believe in a flexible and scalable branding process. Whatever shape and size, getting to grips with a business’s ‘Why’ is more important than the ‘How’ and ‘What’. Once a shared purpose has been established, the next step is to carve out guiding principles of a brand and marketing strategy to support the beliefs and overarching business strategy. Team capacity, time and budget all need careful consideration before any planning.
In my experience, keeping a brand and marketing clear and consistent will also simplify the process and streamline any time spent on development and any implementation. It’s vital to record and capture feedback and data for constant measurement of success and failure. This approach is progressive and will provide constant flexibility. There are three key questions you’ll need to consider to kickstart the thinking process; What do we want? What is stopping us? and What does success look like? If you can honestly answer all three questions, it will provide a solid foundation of clarity to build upon.
To maintain a consistent brand focus you should ask your audience; What do I offer? How could I add value to you or your business? and How do you engage with what I offer? These fundamental questions will put you on a path of clarity and appreciation of what your audience see and hear from your business and brand.
Ultimately, the importance of a strong brand encourages advocacy, builds credibility and will entice sustainable business success. If you would like to understand more about how I could potentially support your brand plans, please reach out for a conversation.
You can contact Martin Carmody directly on 07714 106187 or email: martin@corecreate.co.uk
