Effective Branding – 5 Simple Steps to Branding and Marketing your Business

Effective branding is a must for every business. Using the right methods to advertise, market and brand your business will see your ROI (Return On Investment) increase.

This could mean that each time you spend £1 on a marketing campaign or other promotional activity, you could receive £2 in return. And getting these type of results aren’t as dficult as you may think.

Effective Branding – 5 Steps to Branding and Marketing Your Business

1. Review The Market Place
Effective branding begins with finding out in what market area you are positioned in. What are the strengths an where are the weaknesses? Sit down with colleagues, marketing department or design agency and brainstorm new profitable opportunities that could be researched. Effective branding is also achieved by researching to see if there are any dangers out there that could negatively impact your business model and position in the current market place.

Discover what the competition is doing!

2. Brand or Not a Brand?
A brand is the ‘identity’ of a product, business or service. It’s the identity or the image you expose to the outside world, your sales market. It’s the way people see your business, the feeling they get about your product, service or company. Effective branding means you need to be of promise and deliver to that. Create a positive ‘experience’ for your prospects. You’ve got to think outside the box. Be creative. Remember, your goal is to positively connect with the hearts and minds of your prospective clients. Its the total package you deliver that determines the perceptions of people and not simply a product.

3. Discover the Identity of Your Current Brand
Your next move to effective branding is researching and discovering your current brand. Where are you at? Take a closer look and see what it looks and feels like. How do you perceive it? How do others perceive and experience it? Is it really as attractive as you thought? Find out what other people think and ask them about it. Compare all of your current business literature and marketing material. Your company brochure, leaflets, flyers, the last edition to your company newsletter, the latest Ad you ran etc. Are they all in line? Do they portray a consistent image of your company? Do they truly expose your company, business product or service with an identity that will stick in the mind and heart of people? Who are your prospective buyers? What age group? What are their likes and dislikes? You need to know all this kind of information to truly and effectively brand and market your business.

4. Setting Your Effective Brand
Now that you have found out where you’re at with the business you need to determine where you want to go with your company. Every successful brand has a certain aspiration. So, first you need to set some goals. Where do you want to be with your business in one year’s time? What about five years time? Set some serious objectives you desire to achieve. Powerful and effective brands are relevant and authentic. Effective branding means you need to answer and deliver on what people really want. Seriously think about how you are going to communicate your company, product or service, the strengths, the passion, vision and benefits to your prospective clients or customers.

5. Delivering the Effective Brand Experience
When delivering a brand you need to be careful on how to put it ‘live’. How will you introduce it to the public? Is everything inline? Your logo(s), packaging, strap lines, catch phrases, the corporate culture, etc…. When you truly have set the ‘identity’ and everything is instilled from bottom to top, your brand delivery will positively and effectively impact and strengthen your position in the marketplace and see your sales go through the roof!

Remember – consistency is the key!