Your brand identity is everything. To your customers, your brand is your reputation. It is what people say about you when you're not in earshot, and forms the building blocks of your success as a business.
With that in mind, take a beat and ask yourself: what is my brand?
Trust us-- you have worked too hard on your craft to let it disappear without notice. Get serious about building your brand and finally figure out the answer to this question with these five tips.
1. Be Genuine
Our number one recommendation? Don't try to be anything you aren't. Find a sincere mission that speaks to your purpose.
2. Determine What You Bring to the Table
Once you have established a basic mission statement, get granular with your intent. Understand the what, the how, and the why behind your purpose:
What – the services or products you provide to your customers
How – the unique process or way of doing things that make you stand out from your competition
Why – the reason you have chosen to pursue this mission
Once you've established both the general mission and the specifics behind your brand, you can dive into visual branding.
3. Stick to a Style Guide
Your brand is more than your logo. However, the logo and other aesthetic properties of your brand are essential to establishing brand recognition.
This style guide and its consistent set of assets will inform how you proceed with designing the "look" of your brand. This includes:
Logo design
Colors and font assets
Patterns and icons that suit your brand
Webpage design
Language, content, and all messaging - how you "speak" to your customers
Advertising strategy
Print or packaging
Though style, design, and branding can evolve over time, try to be consistent in the beginning. You want your brand to be immediately recognizable.
4. Research, Research, Research
Nail down your brand identity by researching your competitor as well as your customer. Kill two birds with one stone, and come out with a solid understanding of your loyal customer niche. Know your customer persona details, like:
Age
Gender
Location
Income
Education Level
Goals
Dislikes
Fears
Wants
Preferred brands/opinions of competitors
You don't need to pivot your mission to fit the drivers of your customer, but you should keep them in mind when improving your product or adding services to your catalog. This is how you create loyal brand ambassadors.
5. Establish Trust
An additional way to create brand ambassadors is to establish trust. Provide excellent customer service. Post trustworthy content.
If you are genuine and stick to the values you have communicated from day one, your following will become brand evangelists-- customers who are genuinely excited about your brand and product that they advocate on your behalf and share your story. It's truly the best form of advertising.
When "My Brand" Becomes Personal
In order to make your brand unique, it needs to be personal. If you are looking for more guidance on how to find that sweet spot, that's where we come in. We deliver winning digital marketing solutions that use your expert knowledge to truly understand your niche.
Ready for a results-oriented solution? Take a quick tour of our marketing services. We hope you like what you see.