A brand is a funny thing. It’s normally not something you can hold in your hand, it is nearly impossible to directly tie to ROI and yet branding is the bread and butter of any business. Without a stable, consistent, visually appealing, story driven brand, your company growth will no doubt take a nosedive. And I’m not joking because 75% of my clients come to me when their brand has taken that inevitable hit and they are in a tailspin and they need help with re-branding, all because they didn’t take their initial branding efforts seriously (or hesitated to spend the moolah).
You have to understand the value of where you want to go with your business, and realistically place a dollar value on your destination. This is why I go out of my way and then some in my conversations with potential clients as well as in all of my presentations to state that the “heady” work MUST be done and done well.
Figuring out what your brand’s story is and then massaging that story into solid, clear and unique messaging, yes positioning is a beast, is paramount before you begin the “fun” stuff of creating a stellar logo, user-friendly website, and one-of-a-kind packaging, collateral and other assets.
If you can’t tell people why they should work with you or purchase your products/services over someone else, well, guess what, they will work or buy from/with someone else. A brand is not something you can force upon others. A brand is something, if done well, lives and breathes in the minds of your customers.
Brand is ultimately defined by the sum total of impressions a customer has, based on every interaction they have had with you, your company, and your products. Did you know that on average, 5 to 7 brand impressions are necessary before someone will remember your brand by name? That leaves a lot of potential for error.
That speaks to why having consistency in tone, voice, look and feel with everything your brand does is vital to it becoming and remaining top of mind with your audience and desired demographic. We all know someone that peddles their many talents (or widgets), but appears inconsistent with their brand online, in print, via their website and through other marketing mediums. Don’t be that person.
Here are some interesting statistics around brand recognition and the how, when, why and where those initial 5-7 touch points can make or break your brand’s value.
- Color increases brand recognition by up to 80%. (University of Loyola)
- 50% of people follow 1 to 4 brands on social media, 26% follow 5 to 9 brands, 22% follow 10 or more brands, and 3% follow no brands. (BuzzStream)
- 52% of consumers expect brands to know when the right moments are to communicate. (Cube)
- 72% of marketers think branded content is more effective than advertising in a magazine; 62% say it is more effective than advertising on TV; 69% say it is superior to both direct mail and public relations. (The Content Council)
- 45% of consumers will unfollow a brand on social media if their platform is dominated by self-promotion. (BuzzStream)
- 32% of consumers learn about products/services from brands’ websites or social media accounts. (Consumer Goods)
- 90% of consumers expect their experience to be consistent across all channels and devices used to interact with brands. (NJIT Online)
- 12 – 20% of a startup’s budget should be spent on marketing for the first five years. (Entrepreneur)
- 6 – 12% of an established company’s budget should be spent on marketing, more if launching a new product. (Entrepreneur)
Surely those stats give you data supported reasons to give a boost to your brand from the get-go. If you are rebranding for whatever reason, growth, evolution, acquisition, or the proverbial “how do I put out the fire?” consider taking the time to do the legwork to ensure that what you are putting out there is actually resonating in the first place.
