You see a swoosh and you instantly think about Nike.
You hear the slogan “Because You’re Worth It”, and you think of L’Oréal.
You think about online shopping, and your mind goes straight to eBay and Amazon.
These are all brands that have become staples in everybody’s lives and if there’s one thing each of them absolutely nailed, it was creating their brand identity.
Now, as a small business owner, you might be wondering, what is brand identity? Why does it matter? How can you build one that is just as strong?
Read on and find the answers to all of these questions on brand identity and business branding!
What Is Brand Identity and Why Is It Important?
Brand identity consists of the different visible elements that a company develops in order to create a certain image in the minds of the consumers, from logos and wordmarks to color palettes, fonts, packaging, and more.
It is what sets your brand apart from the competition, and what makes it instantly recognizable by consumers.
So, why is it important?
Simple.
In a world overflowing with an ever-growing number of brands (over 500,000, to be precise), unless you do what you can to stand out, you won’t last.
The good news is, you can do so in five simple steps:
1. Establish Your Goals
First things first, you need to know what you want to achieve in order to figure which direction to take.
If you already have a strong and comprehensive business strategy, this step won’t be difficult to complete. Simply revisit your goals and remember to keep them in mind during the entire process.
2. Learn About Your Target Audience
Your logo, website, social media pages, and other communication pieces need to resonate with your audience.
Use powerful analytics tools to understand what your desired customer would respond to and create personas to base your decisions on.
3. Analyze Your Competition
As we mentioned before, you want your brand to stand out.
You’ll only be able to accomplish that if you’re aware of what your competitors are already doing.
4. Brainstorm
You know your goals, your target audience, and your competitors, so now it’s time to get your creativity going and start brainstorming ideas.
Remember that several brains think better than one, so it’s always useful to get your team involved in this process.
5. Create Your Brand Elements
Once you have strong ideas for your identity, you can finally bring them to life.
If you have a designer in your team, you can do this in-house. Otherwise, there are branding agencies that you can partner up with.
Creating a Powerful Brand Identity
Having a strong brand identity will help you stand out from the competition and become a top-of-mind name in the minds of your target audience.
Now that you know the answers to the essential questions, “What is brand identity?” and “How can I create one?”, there’s only one thing left to do… get creating and build your business branding!
If you enjoyed this article on brand identity and want to read more on all-things business, keep exploring our blog. Visit the Business and Marketing sections of the Everything Entrepreneur Blog to learn more about branding strategy today!
