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We unconsciously promote brands every day.

We aspire to own Armani suits and that sweet Ferrari.  We love Android because it’s open and Apple because it’ exclusive. We ask for a Coke at fast food joints, settle for Pepsi when we don’t get it and Google places that serve Indian food.

Although we associate a bird with Twitter and four interlinked circles with Audi, a logo doesn’t make the brand. Make no mistake, a spot-on logo is a great thing to have, but it’s not going to brand your company for you.

Identifying a Brand and Differentiating It from Identity

Your brand is how you’re perceived by your target audience. It’s not a tangible feature of your company, but the feelings and emotions that it evokes in people. It’s what pops into their minds when they hear of you and why they think of you when they’re looking for something.

A few things that brands convey are security, expertise, punctuality, happiness, grandeur, status, taste, comfort and health.

branding

Your identity, on the other hand, is what people can see. Like your letterheads and design and use of colors. It is merely a way to differentiate you visually from other companies. A brand is something more lasting.

How Do You ‘Discover’ Your Brand?

A lot of people say that market research is where your branding process must start, but it really starts with the clients and the business owners. The people who have started the business or created the product must have a specific vision for its future.

Understanding what you want to achieve is the first step in building a brand. In other words, product clarity is where it all begins. Clients, entrepreneurs and designers must first ask themselves what are the characteristics of the product that are likely to beat the competition and find a niche in the market.

Building the Brand

Once you’ve understood what you want your brand to convey, it’s time to make sure that your target audience feels the same way. Market research lays the groundwork for the branding process. If your ideas don’t match what people are thinking, you need to make appropriate changes to your brand to suit the market.

If it’s clear that your target audience perceives that say, your travel gear is lighter than and as durable as the leading brand in the market, build on that positive note. Reinforce it in your brand image so that the next time someone goes trekking and doesn’t want to be weighed down with heavy gear, they’ll think of you.

There are also other elements that you’ll need to decide on like:

  • Personality
  • Tone of voice
  • Content

After you’ve finally come up with content that expresses your brand best, make sure all future communication and marketing material is consistent with the first set of assets that you’ve created. The best way to do this is to set up a style guide and perform audits.

Creating a memorable brand takes insight and a lot of elbow grease, but guess what? It pays off.

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