How To Make Your Marketing And Brand Management More Effective Than Ever Before

Building a brand is often a little-known but equally important aspect of marketing. Commonly underrated due to the intangible quality of most of the elements. In this article, we explore why brand building is often overlooked in marketing, why it is especially important in modern society, and how small businesses can level the playing field by building and nurturing their own brand. is focused on

Building a brand as the hidden side of marketing.

Perhaps one of the main reasons brand building gets so little attention is the lack of readily available metrics by which companies can measure its effectiveness. Compare this with advertising. Because the system is highly digital, the success of individual advertising campaigns can be easily evaluated based on metrics such as impressions, views, engagement, and the campaign's impact on overall company sales.?

On the other hand, the metrics used to measure brand success often require intensive, dedicated and usually costly research. To make matters worse, branding issues can be traced back to many different factors and encompass all of a company's public activities.?These factors can lead to a lack of information or even confusion about which strategies to change, maintain, or encourage. Corporate bureaucracy usually results in less attention being paid to the holistic aspects of brand building. This is especially true for smaller or newer businesses that may not have the resources or expertise to tackle such broad aspects.

Why building a brand matters.

While companies themselves often don't focus on brand building, marketing agencies have long emphasized the importance of brands to companies looking to differentiate themselves from their competitors. Especially in the modern world dominated by the internet, a well-managed brand can only benefit from it.?

Traditional concepts like brand loyalty are fading away, but the pace and scale at which the online world disseminates information more than offsets these changes. A reputation enhanced by the global interconnectedness of the Internet can make or break a brand's success or failure in an instant.?

Many modern brands have eschewed traditional forms of marketing to become successful or top players in their respective industries. Zara, a top fast fashion brand, is widely known for spending just 0.3% of its annual sales on advertising. The famous sriracha hot sauce brand focuses on quality and sells 20 million bottles a year. American technology company GoPro sells cameras worldwide with minimal effort through user-generated content.?

Although these three companies operate in very different industries, the common denominator of their success is their brand reputation, which speaks for itself. Their customers then act as motivated ambassadors to continue promoting and supporting the many products they release. Their market endorsements and positive word of mouth spread rapidly through various online channels such as positive articles,?social media advocates, and positive comments and reviews of the brand's products and services.

Levelling the playing field for branding.

Brand building is doubly important for small businesses that don't really need market positioning or differentiation yet. Potential clients often inquire about the expected return on investment (ROI) in building their personal brand. I always tell him that revenue from branding can take at least 12-18 months, but his ROI, in the end, will be very valuable.?

Branding can act as a force to enhance your direct marketing efforts and pay more and more dividends over time. For example, I once helped a client grow his Instagram followers to 100,000?by providing consistent quality content. The same client was then booked directly through his Instagram for a $25,000 speaking deal.?

There is a Chinese proverb: The next best thing is today. ” I think this perfectly sums up the importance of growing your own brand. Established brands like Nike, Coca-Cola and Mitsubishi have deep roots built on decades of careful nurturing. Today, with a little care and a little help, your brand can plant and grow its own tree.