Where does branding fit into your marketing plan?

In this digital age, branding forms an integral part of any marketing plan. Branding is the process of creating a certain image in the minds of the customers which helps the firm to sell its product and services. One of the best examples of excellent branding is Coca-Cola, rather than their product being the focus, Coca-Cola focused on their brand. This worked splendidly as people are now more likely to try new flavors of soft drinks if there is a Coca-Cola label on the can.

Why you need to focus on branding

One of the biggest reasons why branding is so important within this age of social media, is that consumers are being introduced to new brands on a daily basis, so having a strong brand image will help distinguish your firm from your competitors. Strong branding is how loyal customers are formed, more people will take note of it and won’t easily forget your brand. So, when they are in the market for a new product or service, they will probably pick the brand that had the most memorable branding.

Having a strong brand can also help the firm to build trust with their audience. Gaining the trust of your audience is one of the most important things that you can have as a business. Branding helps the business to come across as a well-established and credible brand, proving that they are trustworthy and ensuring that customers try their products or services, and become a loyal to the brand.

Advertising is an essential part of the marketing process of a business, and is responsible for creating brand awareness, but if the business hasn’t paid attention to branding then then potential customers won’t stay for long. Businesses can come off as untrustworthy and customers won’t feel the need to buy the products and services of your business.

6 elements of branding

Now that we’ve established why branding is important for any business, there are six elements to consider in order to pull off a successful rebrand:

1. Brand voice

According to Sprout social, brand voice is the distinct personality a brand takes on in its communications. The reason why your brand voice is so important is that it helps your business to stand out. Just the logo and a catchy slogan is not enough, the way the brand presents itself in front of customers is very important. Your brand voice can give customers better insight into who you are and needs to be consistent and recognizable. Who your ideal target audience is will determine the tone of voice used, healthcare or financial institutions may require a more formal and professional tone of voice whereas the latest dating app will be much more informal.

2. Brand identity

Investopedia states that “brand identity is the visible elements of a brand, such as color, design, and logo, that identify and distinguish the brand in consumers’ minds.” The reason why it is important for a business the pay attention to brand identity is that it is essentially the mascot for the business’ brand, it encompasses how a company expresses and describes itself from the images on its marketing materials. A strong brand identity helps in strengthening a company’s popularity and presence in a competitive market.

3. Brand promise

The third element is Brand Promise and according to Adobe “a brand promise is a value or experience a company’s customers can expect to receive every single time they interact with that company.” The brand promise articulates the unique value that a business provides its customers and includes the mission and vision statements of the company which tells the customers what the business wants to achieve in the short and long term. The more aligned the business’ actions are with the brand promise, the more trust and loyalty the business will cultivate from its customers.

4. Brand values

According to The Branding Journal, “brand values can be defined as the foundational beliefs that a company stands for.” By aligning the brand and its values to something bigger than the brand, the customers will find them to be relatable, this will help the business to create and deepen the trust between the business and its customers leading to a higher degree of customer loyalty.

5. Brand targeting

Investopedia defines a target market as “a group of people that have been identified as the most likely potential customers for a product because of their shared characteristics such as age, income, and lifestyle. Brand targeting allows the business to segment and target the ideal group of people the business wants to appeal to.

6. Brand positioning

The last element is Brand Positioning, according to Kotler brand positioning is defined as “the act of designing the company’s offering and image to occupy a distinctive place in the mind of the target market”.  Brand positioning involves strategizing the marketing efforts to make sure that the business’ tactics are effectively reaching the targeted market segment and position themselves in the mind of their target audience accordingly.

Conclusion

Branding plays an important part in a business’ marketing plan especially in the age of social media, it allows a business to stand out from the crowd and make an impression on the customers allowing them to gain the trust of the customers which can be converted into brand loyalty. Need a more in-depth analysis of branding personalized for your own business? Contact Robotic Marketer to find out how we can assist your company to establish a strong brand identity.

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