A strong Brand name and talented employees are the two most important assets of any organization. Brands attract new employees who rejuvenate the existing brand and help in the creation of newer and stronger brands. A brand is not just another logo. In the words of the founder of Alice McCall, ‘A brand is about reputation. It is about what people talk about you when you are not in the room.
The importance of brands can never be minimized. According to Nielsen research, 59% of people surveyed said they buy new products from brands they love and trust. Thus, it is easy to understand why are companies always investing a lot of their time and energy in refreshing and rebuilding their brands. While launching a brand is a really difficult task, more daunting is to sustain it.
So how do companies launch their brands? What are the key steps to be followed?
Audience
The first step is about finding your target audience. This means identifying a fairly large number of people who will probably buy your product or service. But this is easier said than done! What if those people also buy other brands too, and in greater numbers?
So, you need to identify a set of people who are likely to buy your product for a specific reason. This reason could be a greater voice clarity on phone calls as in the case with Telstra, an Australian telecom giant. Telstra’s USP isn’t the same cliche points eery network provider claims. Telstra promises voice clarity and delivers that above all!
It is important to offer specific things, and know exactly who is looking for those specific things! You can subdivide your audience into many parts hereon. Who will buy your product- men or women? What’s going to the age profile? What about their income levels? When would they buy your product? Which area are they living in? In marketing lingo, this means finding the right niche.
Profitability
You also need to find out whether your niche is profitable. This requires calculating your projected profits, your production and other costs, and your selling price. Your brand can be successful only if it is profitable.
Mission statement
Why should your brand exist? What is its purpose? A mission statement answers these two fundamental questions. If you are in the travel business, your mission statement should reflect why your company is there in that business at all. The same goes for all other businesses. Your mission statement will reflect in your promotional content- pictures, text, video, audio, etc.
Communication strategy
The next step in your brand building strategy is to develop your communication strategy. What is it that you want to say, to whom, and when? Obviously, you would like to reach out to your target audience while selling and promoting your brand. But which medium should you choose?
Let’s say you are in the business of selling chocolates. So, which medium is your buyer consuming the most? Is he watching tv, listening to the radio or generally browsing the internet? Once you have answers to these questions, half your job is done. The next half is about deciding what you want to say, and how often? How much would you need to spend to show your brand’s prowess? A good branding agency would not only communicate the message right, but it would also shape the way your brand is perceived. To get the best help, click here!
Showing up
A good brand is one that always shows up. This means it is always there at the right place at the right time in front of the right people. Great brands are always persistent in messaging, they understand that branding is largely about continuous messaging.