Customers today expect more than value for money from their purchases. They want brands to align with their worldviews and address their unique needs. If you want to capture the attention of your audience and turn them into a faithful following, you need to invest in brand marketing. Here are several benefits that brand marketing can bring.
Brand recognition brings sales
With so many products and services flooding the marketing, consumers are spoiled for choice. If you have a similar offering to another brand in the market, brand recognition is the main driving factor for your customer to pick your brand over another. A consumer survey shows that 71 percent of consumers thought it was important to recognize a brand before buying. Therefore, if you want to get ahead, you need to get your brand within the sights of your target audience. Brand marketing can help you to do that.
Brand values build loyalty
Brands that are in tune with the lifestyles and values of their target audiences are more likely to foster long-term loyalty and trust. On top of that, honesty and authenticity are becoming increasingly important to the cynical modern audience of millennials and Gen Zers. According to one study, 87 percent of Americans indicated that they would buy from a business that advocated for an issue that they cared about. Meanwhile, 76 percent said that they would boycott a brand that went against their beliefs. So, if your brand stands for something, you should make it known.
Brand communication aids engagement
Brand communication is how your brand speaks with your audience. If you pay little attention to brand marketing, you may find that your company varies in tone across different platforms. For instance, your social media posts may be friendly but your emails impersonal. Not having a consistent brand communication strategy can affect your customer relationships. A prospect who is attracted by an advertisement may lose interest when talking to a customer service agent. To ensure effective engagement, you must have clear brand communication guidelines.
Brand image builds on itself
If you maintain consistent brand marketing, you will start to develop a strong positive brand image. Brand image is how consumers perceive your brand and expect your brand to perform. For instance, if your brand is often marketed as being honest and reliable, these qualities will become synonymous with your brand. Over time, consumers will automatically associate your brand with being honest and reliable without needing your suggestion. As you enhance your marketing, you can reiterate positive qualities and reinforce your brand image.
Here is how to market your brand
Companies of any size—even solo entrepreneurs—can benefit from brand marketing. With numerous robust brand marketing tools available, you can undertake brand marketing on your own. After all, nobody understands your brand as well as you, its founder. These guidelines can help you to get started on brand marketing.
1. Understand your brand purpose
Think about the people are trying to help and the problems that your products or services hope to solve. This is the purpose of your brand. Now that you have your target audience, you should think about how you want to address them, how your brand should make them feel, and how you can persuade them to trust you. If you are struggling with these questions, look at your competitors and evaluate what they have done.
2. Define Your Audience
Knowing your audience is crucial to successful brand marketing. Research your current audience and develop a picture of your ideal customer to guide your marketing strategy. The data that you should consider includes age, marital status, education background, income level, online shopping behavior, values, and more. Once you understand your ideal customer’s persona, you can adjust your brand tone and strategy to reach and engage them.
3. Write Your Story
Your brand story can help you to connect with customers and give them a reason to believe in your value promise. A good brand story does not have to be dramatic, but it does have to be authentic. Think about how your company came to be and the challenges that you faced and overcame. What has your brand learned and how does this help your customers? Let your story be the foundation for your brand’s mission, values, and vision.
4. Create Brand Guidelines
When you have formulated your brand identity, you should create a comprehensive guide on how to apply it across all media platforms. Brand guidelines can help your employees and any agencies that you engage understand the type of tone, voice, visual style, and content to use with your brand. This will ensure that your message will always be delivered consistently and effectively.
Brand marketing is a powerful technique that turns your brand into an asset in itself. As you build up your brand, you will benefit from widespread recognition, deeper loyalty, and stronger engagement. Consistency is the key to successful brand marketing. Take the time to define your brand and ensure that all your marketing efforts contribute to boosting your brand image.