Branding and its importance

The term branding comes from the Old Norse “Brandr” which means to burn. Back in those days cattle, slaves, timber, etc were given a mark as part of the ownership rights or given a symbol of the owner with an iron rod. It was done to provide certain value, this practice dating back to 2000BC.

The transition from "This belongs to me" to "made by" started to evolve in the 1800s. In the new age of marketing, Branding is more than an identity. It's more than the experience with a company's product or service. More than a visual image, it's the human connection.

Some of the key things to keep in mind as you build an identity for your company:

1.   Being Niche: When you think of apple inc, you feel the product. It doesn’t matter what product you use, either iMac, iPhone etc, it’s the emotion you carry. That is called human connection. Apple has done an extremely good job since its inception.

 2.   Consistency is Key: Be consistent across all platforms you use. This will ensure that your customers identify your brand. The usage of visual identity, elements, language you use, the ad copy, the taglines are in sync. Make all your marketing collaterals carry the same message.

 3.   Relevancy – learn how to build buyers' persona, know your audience and learn what they care about. Make sure you sell what your customers need. Remember, your conversation should always carry a message about your audiences, not about your brand.

 4.   Offer – if you want your audience to remember you and buy from you, you always need to remember to throw offers at them. Not necessarily, offers are like 50% OFF or Ending Soon Offers, it could be your company offering then a great customer-centric service.

 Remember, offerings are like a boomerang. What throws out, comes back in again. It could be a great customer experience or a negative perception of your brand. Those experiences are recalled later when it’s time to make a purchasing decision.

You need to build a positive perception of your brand and maintain it.

Good Luck!