Introduction
Although there are few things businesses can do to directly influence their markets, branding constitutes a major exception. Beyond mere marketing, branding uses simple names, slogans and symbols to distinguish a particular product and company from competing alternatives. It affords a way for savvy business owners to compete by dividing the market. For anyone who has questions about how to build a brand, it is to be hoped the information here will be of value.
Targeting a market
The first thing you should know regarding how to build a brand is to determine your target market. That would be the group of consumers you hope to reach through your branding initiative. This group can be characterized by a number of criteria, including interests, location and demographics.
One commonly overlooked characteristic that often distinguishes a market segment is need — some use, taste or matter of convenience that unites disparate segments of the general population. For example, Post-it notes have become popular among people of many different backgrounds simply because they make life easier and are simple to use. They’re convenient for everyone!
Doing your homework
One of the central components to branding is how you distinguish your brand. That means you need to carefully study your chief competitors and learn how they distinguish theirs.
One option is to beat them at their own game, doing whatever they’re doing with some fundamental advantage of value, quality or something of the sort. Alternatively, you can launch a distinctive brand that appeals to a fundamentally different market segment.
Look carefully at competitors’ websites. Study their social media interactions, marketing campaigns, and public profile. Learn what people are saying about them online and how their products and services are reviewed. Study their product line and the logos, symbols and slogans they use to advance it. Then decide how you’ll do it differently.
Doing it differently
Of the two different approaches, finding a way to do it different is actually preferable to beating competitors at their own game. If you try to undercut your competitors too fiercely, you could end up in a ruinous brand war or a price war. On the other hand, if you come up with a truly novel idea that appeals to a distinctive market segment, there is a chance, depending on what your competitors are doing, that you can simply divide up the market.
Capitalism thrives on the division of labor. As Adam Smith, the great thinker of capitalism, said in the Wealth of Nations, “It is the maxim of every prudent master of a family, never to attempt to make at home what it will cost him more to make than to buy… What is prudence in the conduct of every private family, can scarce be folly in that of a great kingdom.”
In parlance, everyone needs a gimmick. Pick an area of unique specialization, a focus that sets you apart from the rest. If you try to outdo every competitor in every sphere, you will soon find yourself spread thin. Your expertise, labor and resources will be stretched to the max, and you may soon find that you are the one who is undercut, or that any victory you have scored is Pyrrhic and commands razor-thin profit margins.
Every brand is a distinct identity, a kind of personality unto itself. You can be the known source of casual women’s clothes, or a refined and elegant purveyor of luxury cookware. In fact, depending on the nature of the market and the activity of your competitors, you might want to narrow your focus still further, becoming, say, the go-to for casual attire for professional women under 40, or specializing in elegant, luxury stovetop cooking.
Decide what you want to be known for. Is it reliability and integrity? Creativity and raw artistry? Or value and affordability? Once you choose your fundamental traits, make sure they are consistently and repeatedly used in all your marketing and in all your interactions with your clientele.
Symbols and sales
Your brand’s name should be short, catchy, and memorable, like Kleenex or McDonald’s. Your logo should be distinctive and instantly recognizable, like the apple on Apple products or the Nike swoosh. Your slogan should be short, punchy, and instantly recognizable, whether it gives you wings or is like a good neighbor.
Conclusion
The distinctive persona you choose for your brand should be represented in all your marketing campaigns and materials. In fact, make it the heart of everything you do!
