Whether you are plunging into branding for the first time or want to give your current branding extra attention, there are important factors to consider when molding the outside perception of your service, product, or business. Here are five questions to answer as you work on branding that can help you get the greatest ROI. Remember, branding needs to be well thought out, not complicated!

Have You Evaluated Your Brand Identity?

Your brand identity consists of all the details that lead to brand recognition and the image you desire. These visual and nonvisual elements need to get your intended message across, be uniform, and be displayed consistently.

Are You Connecting with Your Target Customer?

Knowing more about your target customer allows you to better tailor your message to them, specifically how your offering is the solution to their problem. Data you have on current customers or information you can gain about prospective customers can help you learn more about who your target customer is and what they want.

How Can You Outshine Others in Your Industry?

Study how your competition approaches increasing brand awareness and building its reputation. What areas are they excelling in that you could take one step further? What areas are untouched? An example could be that there are certain parts of your field that customers have questions about or are confused by, and you don’t see other brands addressing this. You could differentiate yourself by lifting this veil of mystery and providing much-needed information through blogs, videos, ads, and other mediums.

Do You Know What Does and Doesn’t Work?

You may have seen a business make its voice too casual or witnessed another get left in the dust because of a weak call to action. You may have even made similar mistakes. What’s most important is that you understand why an effort flopped and what you can do moving forward to make sure that doesn’t happen again. On the flip side, it’s essential to look at what is working and figure out why so you can capitalize on that to build a better bond with customers.

Do You Have the Materials You Need?

Conveying a message is hard when you have no professional photography to display, haven’t finalized a logo, or let outdated copy sit on your website. All your ducks have to be in a row to successfully brand your business, and that means not slapping any old photo, text, or graphic on your platforms. Plus, you’ll need to continually protect and cultivate the perception you’ve created.

CatMax Photography specializes in capturing the images creative entrepreneurs and small businesses need for their brand marketing, and I would be happy to assist you too. To learn more, click here.

Sources:

Keap, “It's time to strengthen your small business brand identity”; Olive & Co, “The Definitive Guide to Branding”; 99designs, “What is brand identity? And how to design and develop a great one.”; FreshSparks, “Business Branding: Top 10 Things You Need to Create a Brand”