Anatomy Of A Brand: A Crash Course In Brand Marketing

The post Anatomy Of A Brand: <br/> A Crash Course In Brand Marketing appeared first on The Founding Moms.

Lauren Jones | Contributing Writer

We’ve all heard the word “brand” and most of us have a general (albeit vague) idea of what it means. It’s thrown around a lot when we talk about a logo or an Instagram feed, but it’s so much more than that. As business owners, we need to know how our business can connect with our customers. It’s way more than just having a pretty logo. 

There are so many layers to brand marketing and more terminology than could ever fit into one blog post. But, once we actually know our stuff, we can implement it to grow our business and create lasting, impactful relationships with our customers. 

Here’s a down and dirty compilation of brand marketing terms– greatest hits edition. Grab a pen, you’re gonna wanna use these at your next networking lunch. 

Product

As a business owner, you have a product you sell. Whether it’s a physical product like a book or clothing, or a service like website design or business strategy. You’re selling something. It’s important to really nail down any offerings your business has so that you can strategize how to sell them to your target market. 

Let’s say you own a candle company called Om and Ember. Your product is the different types of candles and any candle-adjacent products you sell. We’ll keep this pretend brand throughout this post to see the branding terms in use. 

Brand 

Ah, “brand”. It’s a word we see ad nauseum on websites, social feeds, and Ted Talks. Its unrelenting presence has made it a Kardashian of the marketing world. But what does it really mean? There are A LOT of definitions for the word “brand”. Essentially, a brand is what consumers think or feel about your business based upon its visual and non-visual elements. 

Translation: your brand is what people take away from your business when they interact with it in some way. When customers see your logo or visit your website, they get an instant impression of who and what your business is–a feeling – and that impression is your brand. As Scott Cook, co-founder of Intuit, puts it: “A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is—it is what consumers tell each other it is.”

Example: Om and Ember has a modern website with a dark color palette throughout. The candles are given some provocative names like “Don’t Take Any Sh*t” and “Burn This Motha Down”. The website has high concept photography with the candles placed precariously on the side of a rock and in the sand with the tide rolling back. 

What feeling or impression would your customer have when visiting Om and Ember’s website? That’s a simple example of a brand.

The impression customers would likely have is that Om and Ember is trendy, modern, and playful. It may also turn off some customers who prefer the wholesome familiarity of Yankee Candle. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. It depends on the target market (niche)–which will be covered later on. 

Branding 

Here’s where it starts getting good. Branding is how we create the feeling we want our customers to have when they think of our business. Branding is the way we influence our customers to love our products and our business. It’s that je ne sais quoi that you can’t always put your finger on, but you know it when you see, hear, or feel it. 

A good real life example of this is the Budweiser Clydesdale Super Bowl commercials. We anticipate the Clydesdale horses making an appearance in their usual adorable fashion. But why? Horses have nothing to do with beer. It doesn’t matter. Budweiser took a great idea in creating an unofficial brand mascot and ran with it, and it’s worked really well. The original Budweiser Clydesdale commercial aired in 1986 and has been a fan favorite for over 30 years. It’s a prime example of how branding works when we tap into our customers’ needs and give them what they want.

Example: Let’s say you want Om and Ember products to represent luxury but also be relatable and down to earth. Like the Jennifer Lopez of candles. The ingredients can be high-end and feel exclusive, while the name of the candle is witty and irreverent. You want your customer to relate to your brand and want more of it. It’s the special sauce for branding. 

Brand Strategy

Brand strategy is the map of how your brand shows up in the marketplace long-term. It’s typically compiled of your brand voice, purpose, vision, and positioning. Once you’ve done the legwork of discovering all the nuances of your branding and who your target customer is, you can create and implement a strategy to get your product selling to loyal customers.

Example: It’s time to start selling Om and Ember candles to the masses, and you want to make it clear your candle is the BEST candle. How? Well, maybe Om and Ember candles are so amazing because the ingredients used are uncommon or organic. Or, maybe proceeds from each sale go to saving the rainforest. You have to give your customer a reason to love you more than the other guy. 

 

 “A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is—it is what consumers tell each other it is.”- Scott Cook, co-founder of Intuit

 

Brand Identity

This is the collection of all your visual branding elements like your logo, color palette, favicon (the browser icon someone sees when they’re on your website) and your overall design aesthetic. The more distinct these elements are, the more your business stands out in the market.  

Example: Om and Ember has a playful but not child-like personality. The target market is both men and women, so a neutral color palette is used for packaging. The brand identity is simple, clean and feels high-end. The typography is minimal but still differentiates itself in a very saturated market. 

 

Niche 

Once we know who our brand is, we can then figure out who we want to talk to about it. A specific group of people with values and goals that align with your business is considered your “niche”. Having a niche is paramount in growing and building your business because if you’re serving everyone, you’re really serving no one. We can’t authentically help our customers if we don’t know anything about them; we need to know what is missing in their lives or their business to truly serve them. 

Why Branding Matters

Now that you’re familiar with some of the most commonly used terms, it’s important to know why it all matters. 

Many times we get stuck in a branding rut with our customers –and if we’re being honest ourselves. This happens when we become complacent with where we are in our positioning and we think to ourselves “ Hey it’s been working so far, so why change it?” The problem with that thinking is that we can’t win over new customers, or surprise our existing customers, if we repeat the same campaigns, visuals, social media posts. It gets boring. 

To be clear, there’s a big difference between fighting “sameness” and maintaining consistency with your branding. You want people to recognize your brand but not scroll past it because they’ve seen it all before. Think about your favorite brands. Have they stayed the same for decades? Or, have they pivoted to keep things modern and fresh. Probably the latter. 

If you aren’t confident in your branding and you need an overhaul, consider investing in a branding expert or hiring a brand strategist. If you’re more of a DIY-er, there are lots of ways to help your business step out of its comfort zone and spread its wings a bit. You can refresh your logo or update your website. Whatever you choose to do, know that it’s always better to change and grow than to remain stagnant and never try anything new.

The post Anatomy Of A Brand: <br/> A Crash Course In Brand Marketing appeared first on The Founding Moms.