Why is branding so important for marketing? You might think the answer is too obvious for such a question to be asked in the first place. But recently a friend and client of mine asked me just that. I wanted to share our discussion with you.
First let’s define “brand”. According to the dictionary, a brand is a marker that serves to identify a particular product.
In todays world how do you want to be remembered? Or a better question, without leaving a positive mark on your consumer how can you even expect to be remembered? The answer is short; you cannot be remembered without leaving a positive mark. And to leave a positive mark you must have a brand and brand identity.
So after we chatted about this for a while, and the importance of brand consistency, brand culture, and communicating this culture through to clients, he admitted to me that as far as he saw it, companies in Orange County all had fantastic branding and competing in this market would just be too difficult and too costly. Naturally, I disagreed. First of all, not every company has great branding. There are many companies that may seem flashy and attractive but they lack much, and one way or another, this will show, usually with poor sales. And secondly, you don’t need to spend a ton of money. You just need to know your company, product and customers well so that we can leverage your strong points. When you know your foundations, consumer branding becomes easy, even in a place like Orange County where there are so many successful businesses doing everything possible to get an edge.
You can run the best marketing program and find success with it but if you don’t have the right branding, long term success will be tough because the customer won’t remember who you are, or more importantly, won’t care to remember. They won’t exclusively associate you to your product so will have no reason to choose you over your competition. I can go on for hours on why branding is so crucial in a successful marketing campaign but you get the idea.
My friend was convinced; truth is, I think he was simply overwhelmed. And going through this seemingly basic discussion helped to break it down for him, revealing that his worries about competition and cost were not necessary. He decided to refresh his brand image and brand culture. Let’s see how it unfolds for him in the coming months. Stay tuned for another blog about the success of the marketing campaign we design for him.
Just keep in mind a few things; marketing is a long term activity and can change over time. But branding is something you should be consistent with. Create a brand message and stay true to it.
As always, if there is anything we can help with, even free advice, we’re a phone call or email away https://twelve12site.wpengine.com/about-us/