A distinct brand is a fundamental part in your marketing communications, invaluable as the competition grows every day. Regardless of weather you are a large business or an organization of one, a well established business or a new one, having a well defined brand image will make you recognizable and set you apart from your competition, therefore helping you attract your target audience and gain presence in the marketplace.
Building your brand is the place to start for building a successful business, as it will determine how you’ll be perceived. It requires consistency in all forms of communications from the business, where the logo, colors, message, design layout of marketing materials, even place of work décor and everything else that has to do with your business, needs to have the same look and feel.
Sometimes it’s a good idea to update your brand ID to make it more appealing to your target audience or to bring it up to current times, as we’ve seen big brands like Coca Cola go through brand evolution. Showing there is no bad time to reinvent a brand, Walmart, a major employer and one of the businesses that remains strong in this crummy economy, has decided it’s time to create a new brand image. Walmart launched an aggressive TV ad campaign to introduce a new, more modern looking logo, prominently using a blue tote bag to display it. Not only they repeatedly show their new logo printed in the bag, but the tote is also used to reinforce their value proposition (savings, quality brands, family) and, additionally, to bank on the reusing-recycling growing trend. Brilliant, in my opinion.
Time for a brand check up
Chances are you have a number of marketing materials such as business cards, flyers, print ads, website, etc. If you didn’t have the same professional do all of your marketing materials or are mostly done by yourself, gather a sample of each piece and place them on a table. Take a good look at them; compare the logos, tag lines and colors, compare them to your website, signage and uniforms. Better yet, have a friend or partner take a look as well, paying attention to the following:
• Do you have different versions of your logo?
• Are the colors in your materials different?
• Do you see different types of fonts ?
• Are there stock images on your website, banners or print materials?
• Do you have different versions of the tag line?
The correct answer to all those questions is NO. If you have one or more YES answers you must take action ASAP. A yes means a weakness in your brand image, less chances of being recognized and remembered and an open door for your competition.
Not sure? Consult with an expert. Investing in professional looking marketing materials that work together will help your brand build momentum, and be top of mind , when the need for your product or service arises.
