Defining the ingredients of a healthy brand
At the core of all your marketing efforts is your brand. But the word brand is kicked around quite a bit these days, to the point where it may seem that everything you see, read about, and buy is a brand.
This is definitely not the case – and failing to understand what brands really are can lead you to make mistakes with your own marketing and IP.
A brand is something that can only come from one place, one maker. There may be multiple products or services under one brand umbrella, but they are all recognizable parts of the same family.
And a brand is more than just a logo; it is every experience that a prospect or customer may have or associate with your products. If your company is separate from your brand or brands, people may connect their experiences of the company with its brands. How you feel about Nike as a company, for example, will likely influence your impressions of Air Jordans – and vice versa.
This means that you cannot surgically separate the look and design and messaging of your brand – the parts you clearly control – from how people experience what you do in the real world, in situations or contexts that may be mostly unpredictable. If your company stock starts to tank and the Wall Street Journal chimes in with negative coverage, for example, your brands will almost certainly take a hit – unless they are so discrete from your company that people do not make the connection.
If you have a brand, guarding and curating it are essential. First, before you invest time and money, make sure your brand is truly unique; explore the possibility of trademarking – by researching if any similar ™ applications are already in motion – and try to secure relevant URLs.
Also, consider whether the brand imagery and messaging are in line with your future plans. Maybe your brand arose organically, almost by accident, but really does not represent where you want to go with your business. Think hard before abandoning any brand that has significant equity – but sometimes there is no avoiding the need for a change.
How else can you care for your brand? Here are a few suggestions:
Be sure the brand lives in your heart, not your head: Among those intimately connected with a brand, it should feel like someone they could talk to and would want to spend time with. If the brand does not have life, it is time to figure out what is missing and make swift repairs.
Be consistent: Use your brand name and logo in the same ways to mean the same things, so that no one couild ever be confused about what it is.
Consider all of the experiences that can be associated with your brand: Catalog and track all the imaginable situations and stories that could be shaping your brand in people’s minds, and do your best to manage them.
Stand for the benefit of your clients and prospects: Clearly associate your brand with an awareness of customer concerns and needs, rather than simple self-interest. If all of your LinkedIn posts are about your products, for example, and you invest little or nothing in thought leadership, your brand will likely become one-dimensional in the minds of prospects.
Live by your brand values: Just like people, brands have compasses that define them and help guide their actions. A key part of being consistent is understanding and honoring the values that consumers associate with your brand.
Get regular feedback: To be sure your brand stays in synch with clients, prospects, and the marketplace, use conversations, conferences, surveys, and any other opportunity to ask how you are doing and what could be improved.
Make everyone in your company a brand advocate: For a brand to truly come alive and stay fresh, it needs to be supported by the passion of employees at every level. If your colleagues are not bought in, the customer will feel it, even indirectly. “Selling” to your own teams is crucial.
Don’t be afraid to evolve: As much as consistency is important to a strong brand, so is responsiveness. You don’t want to be the brand that has remained the same for so long that people cannot imagine it any other way. To be alive means to change – not rashly or unexpectedly, but still noticeably,
What are your thoughts on brands and branding? I’d love to hear them — please share!
David Stanton is CEO and Principal of The Marketing Solver. He can be reached at this email.