Secrets To Building A Strong Brand Identity
In today's competitive business environment, there’s only one thing every business owner craves — that is standing out from the crowd, and if we’re being honest, it is a crucial step to attract customers. Branding is not just about having a catchy logo or tagline - it's about creating a unique personality that resonates with your target audience.
When it comes to building a brand identity, the majority of India unfortunately follows a copycat culture. We majorly look at International brands and try to imitate them in some way or another which in turn comes out in the visual identity of the brand. If you look around at some Indian competitors from your industry, it will most likely come as a surprise to you when you find how many brands have been formed just by copying their direct International competitors. It is often assumed within the country for the most part that if we copy their aesthetics, our brand will become just as successful. However such strategies may give you a marginal boost in the short run, rarely do they translate into successful long term brand strategies, as you may not have similar market dynamics, similar products or positioning or you may not be able to create a brand recall for you to stand out from the crowd.
So if not by copying others, how is it that we build an identity that resonates with your brand perfectly? Well of course you can go to a brand design agency in Delhi like ours but it never hurts to learn the process and get started on your own, especially if you are a new brand with limited experience or limited resources.
The key factor: When it comes to branding, consistency is key, because consistency plus authenticity creates brand recall that your brand longs for.
Your brand should be reflected in every touch point of your company — your website, marketing materials to your customer service and employee interactions. By establishing a cohesive brand, you can build trust and loyalty with your customers, while also differentiating yourself from your competitors.
While this blog may not be able to capture the entirety of our industry experience and knowledge as to how to build a brand, it will help you get started. It is easy to imagine what you want your brand to be and go with designs that you enjoy. However before you jump to execution, some of the things you should consider before you start designing your brand identity are as follows:
⦁ Brand Purpose
⦁ Brand Positioning
⦁ Brand Personality
These steps will guide you and make sure the designs you create are not just likeable by you but are right for your target audience and help separate your brand from competitors. Jumping straight to design more often than not leads businesses to spend a lot of resources on marketing activities trying to grab the attention of customers and trying to stand out from the crowd.
Brand Purpose
“Understanding why your brand exists beyond making money”
The brand purpose should define what your business will do for its customers and how it will impact the lives of people.
An example - A sustainable clothing brand’s purpose apart from making money would be to be as sustainable as possible. Their future decisions would gravitate towards choosing the more sustainable option even if it were to be the more expensive option. Customers would question each decision you would make and would ask for transparency. Writing about sustainability or merely saying we are sustainable will not do much for your brand. Therefore it is important to be authentic.
In order to figure out your brand's purpose you should ask yourself why you chose the industry you belong to? Why did you want to start a business? What’s the gap in the market you are trying to fill? Why do you think you are going to be successful in this business in particular?
Try to stay authentic. Customers are more likely to trust and support companies that are genuine and transparent in their communications. When you are just starting out, no one expects you to be perfect or all figured out.
Answering these questions will help you tell your original story. It will help you define your values and create meaningful connections with your audience. This exercise, if done well, helps build credibility and loyalty with your audience.
Brand Positioning:
“Creating a unique place or image for your brand in the minds of your customers.”
An example - Volvo is known for Safety; Mercedes is known for Comfort / driver driven; BMW is known for Power / driving experience.
This activity helps highlight the USPs of our brand and helps differentiate from competitors. This helps in market communication and business development as it helps increase brand awareness, communicates the value and justifies the price.
Majority of business owners think their business is unique, leading them to believe what applies to the market does not apply to them. However, if you question yourself about the USP's you will often hear the answers as Quality Product or Service as one of their core differentiators. Very rarely a business or an idea is monopolistic in nature therefore it becomes really important to closely understand the market, competitors offering, competitors perception and competitors audience (community and communication) to understand a brand's own USPs. It is better to adopt a blue ocean strategy as long as the market and business allow. This is one of those exercises that helps with an external consultant’s perspective as it helps to stay objective throughout the exercise.
While you should consider adopting a blue ocean strategy, brand positioning is not about being different from the competition. It is about being perceived as the obvious choice by the audience. Understanding your target audience helps create communication and go to market strategy as well. Here are some of the brand positioning strategies that may be useful to consider.
⦁ Customer Service Based Positioning Strategy
⦁ Convenience-Based Positioning Strategy
⦁ Price-Based Positioning Strategy
⦁ Quality-Based Positioning Strategy
⦁ Differentiation Strategy
⦁ Social Media Positioning Strategy
⦁ Other Positioning Strategies
Brand Personality:
“ A unique set of attributes, values, and characteristics of a brand that helps identification, recognition and loyalty among customers.”
It is the personification of a brand that gives the brand human-like traits to connect with the target audience while differentiating from competitors. Defining a brand personality could mean understanding how we want our customers to feel when they interact with us.
It forms the stepping stone towards building a brand identity, packaging design and UI / UX design from a visual point of view and on the other hand helps enhance the brand communication and messaging.
In order to build a brand personality and identity you can use the Aaker Model which guides how to build a brand further. After you have answered all of the questions above and have clarity on all the factors should one consider developing the brand's visual identity.
By creating a strong brand identity that is consistent, authentic, and engaging, you can attract customers, build loyalty, and ultimately achieve long-term success. So don't underestimate the power of branding - it could be the key to unlocking your company's full potential. A brand design agency like ours will not only help you navigate the entire brand building process step by step but also recommend where to invest resources to give your brand the best chance of success.
Pranav Savlani
