Does your brand identity answer these questions about your business?

Some people think ‘brand’, ‘branding’ and 'brand strategy' are abstract, esoteric concepts. Some think that these are 'good to know' but not a 'need to have' for a business. Others think it’s all just fluff. And then there are those who know how vital these are to power a business ahead.

The truth is that a brand is built on the hard base of reality — the reality of your business and of the market. And for your brand to grow steadily, it needs a sharp identity and a strategy to take it forward, otherwise it will be like a boat adrift in the choppy seas — going nowhere.?

A good brand identity will answer certain crucial questions about your business, giving you, your team and the market a sharp picture about your brand. While brand identity comprises several aspects and elements, at its core, it must answer these three 'hard' questions about your business:

1. What do I offer?
2. Who do I serve?
3. Why choose me?
4. In the case of person brands, the brand strategy must answer another question - Who am I? - but more about this later.

For now, let’s focus on the first three questions.

What do I offer?

The products or services or both that you offer through your brand.

Who do I serve?

The definition of your target audiences, primary and secondary. Your primary target audience is the set of people who will buy the most from you. People of this profile will be the ones sustaining your business and driving its growth. It is their needs, pain points, challenges, emotions and expectations that you will have to understand deeply and engage with. Your product or service and your communication should be mainly meant for this group.

Your secondary target audience will also buy from you, but not as much as, or as often as, your primary audience. You need to understand this group too, though you won't invest as much time and effort in engaging with them as you will with your primary audience.

Why choose me?

The key differentiator of your brand; the most crucial factor that sets it apart from other brands with similar or identical offerings. In branding language, this is your unique value proposition (UVP). A well-thought-out and sharply articulated UVP acts as a protective moat around your brand.

It pays to remember that quality, timely delivery/turnaround time, etc. don’t make the cut as UVPs in most categories. You have to mine deeper to understand what truly can be a long-standing differentiator in the eyes of the targeted consumer, something that's important enough for them and different enough from competition UVPs. It should be difficult if not impossible for any other brand to replicate.

Who am I?

If you are building a person brand out of yourself (i.e., shaping your professional identity as a brand), you'd do well to answer this question too. It succinctly refers to what you can do for your target audience — how you can make their life better. You derive the answer to this question from the answers to the other three. It is rather difficult to arrive at this answer for organisation, product and service brands, though it is possible. However, this question is most relevant and powerful in the case of person brands.

For instance, Ganesh Vancheeswaran sees himself as a 'catalyst for self-expression'. And my person brand is all about 'humanising businesses for growth'. Check Ganesh's and my profiles and you will see what they mean.

Chimmu Kutty , a friend of Ganesh's, has labelled herself ‘the confidence multiplier’ because she works with professionals in boosting their confidence and helping them find the growth path. Derek Mildred , a dear friend of mine, is a business coach who helps people in specific industries ‘talk to more people frequently’. See how these descriptors have become the monikers for the respective person brands? They are easy handles for people to latch on to and begin to understand the essence of their work.

Not just that. This moniker becomes a conversation-starter, a ready answer to the invariable question you get at conferences, networking mixers and other events: What do you do? Ganesh starts by saying, “I am a catalyst for self-expression”. This invariably leads to a conversation about what he offers, who he serves and why someone should choose him.

But finding the answers to these questions is easier said than done. It needs some research about your consumers, competition and industry. It needs insight-mining and creative thinking. It needs proper segmentation of your market.

Taken together, the questions sum up the essence of your business and set the tone for its growth. These are also the questions anybody is going to ask about your brand and expect you to answer well.

Check if your brand identity answers these questions for your business: clearly, sharply and thoughtfully. If you have a doubt, write to Joy or me, and we will help you evaluate it.

On that note, see you again, next week!

Joy and Ganesh

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Speaking of Brands is a weekly practical, no-nonsense primer on branding & communication for smart business owners. If you want your brand to fuel the growth of your business, subscribe to this mag now!