It’s no secret that good branding means good business.
Most of the time.
An effective and successful brand will attract and retain loyal customers, sell products like hot cakes and help build a team of employees who are proud to work for their employer. What’s more, effective branding is a fantastic way to catch the attention of investors and secure hot deals.
But what does successful branding really look like? Surely there’s more to business than getting your tone-of-voice down and choosing an eye-catching colour palette.
And when you’ve got your brand story sorted, does this really affect your overall business success?
The answer is yes. But don’t just take our word for it.
What does a successful brand look like?
A great brand looks a lot different now than it did several years ago.
No longer are consumers content to be bombarded with constant advertising or targeted campaigns that verge on creepy. We all know the tricks - we are looking for something deeper.
We’ve discussed at length the importance of challenging the status quo and thinking outside of the box when it comes to branding. Old tactics just aren’t working anymore. Younger generations are losing trust and are looking for brands that align with their values.
Having a good brand is a hard thing to pull off. But if you crack it, you’ll instantly make your company more memorable, your products more desirable, and increase your companies resilience to the ever-changing consumer landscape.
Be memorable
What does this mean?
This one shouldn’t be a surprise and it’s not a new concept. However, as more and more new brands pop up, being able to stand out in the crowd is more important than ever. Of course, this applies to brands who have been around for donkey’s years. Take stationary supergiant, Staples. Going head-to-head with online retailers means they needed to come up with something quite spectacular - and rather OTT - during their 2019 relaunch.
However, that doesn’t mean you need to pull wild stunts to attract new audiences or create campaigns that go against everything your brand stands for.
You need to be memorable (and relevant) to the audience you are targeting, whilst staying true to yourself and your values.
Why is this good for business?
It takes people just 0.05 seconds for a user to form an opinion about your website and, since the web is where most consumers go to look for new products, this is a pretty important stat to keep in mind. So, being memorable will be key to get them coming back for more. The more they come back, the more likely they’ll become a customer. It’s a no-brainer.
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Be transparent
What does this mean?
As we’ve already mentioned, people are falling out of love with brands. Trust is becoming an issue, so ensuring you’re clear about your goals, audiences, and - in some cases - your weaknesses can really pay off.
Thursday is a new dating app with thousands of users across London and New York. We all know dating apps are a dime a dozen, so standing out in the industry is never easy.
Their unique selling point is the idea that nobody wants to be on a dating app. So they only open on one day of the week. (Can you guess which day?)
On the lead-up to launch day, Thursday had around 110,000 users who had signed up for the app in advance. There was a lot of hype about this new brand that promised to change the shape of online dating.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go to plan. Technical issues meant developers were unable to launch which led to a tonne of unhappy singles.
In this instance, transparency was the only cause of action. They decided to showcase all of the criticism they received as a result of the delayed launch:
The tactic of being transparent has worked in Thursday’s favor. They now have 73.4 k followers on Instagram, their brand exposure went through the roof and they bagged a £2.5 million seed investment in June 2021.
Why is this good for business?
Transparency is a quick way to build trust. Be honest with your audience and tackle your issues head-on. By showing your audience that you are flawed and there are humans behind the machine, you’ll give them something to relate to.
So give them a sneak peek of your offices, offer insight into the way you work, and don’t be afraid to own up to your mistakes. Nobody wants to find out their favourite brand is harboring something sinister.
Be easy on the eye
What does this mean?
We know that looks aren’t everything - but they can certainly help. Ensuring your visual story represents your brand and connects with your audience is just as important as the products you’re marketing.
Remember the 2012 London Olympics logo? This got a lot of attention… and not the good kind. Not only did its jarring colours and bizarrely-placed numbers take away from the ‘feel’ of the games, but many critics also spotted bizarre connotations inside the logo which had clearly been overlooked by the designers.
Understanding what’s on-trend is important when it comes to successful branding. Stay away from nasty fonts (Comic Sans, anyone?), choose colours that feel modern and in touch with consumers and, most importantly, be consistent. As consistent branding can increase your revenue by 23%, you’ll want to make sure your whole team is sticking to the brand guidelines.
Why is it good for business?
The benefits of successful branding work hand-in-hand with the look of your brand. Sleek designs, careful colour choices, and a modern font go a long way when helping consumers remember you. When done right, your brand’s visual presentation can set you apart from the competition. It should tell a story about your company and make potential customers feel like they want to be part of it.
A short summary of the key business benefits of successful branding
Ensuring that the key elements above work together will set you on the path to branding success. In return, you can look out for some fantastic benefits that’ll reward all of your hard work:
Customer loyalty
This is probably one of the biggest benefits of successful branding. Customers will stay loyal to brands that are consistent, align with their own ethics and continue to give them value. In other words, successful branding will keep ‘em coming back for more!
Employee retention
It’s not just your customers that’ll want to stick around. Employees want to feel part of something worthwhile, so ensuring you’ve got your employee branding on-point is going to make for a very happy workforce.
Check out our Bright toolkit for building a better brand for your employees
Business growth
Successful branding creates more opportunities for brand awareness. If your product is a necessity, but not particularly exciting, a successful brand is a fantastic way to try new marketing activities and give something different to your audience. In turn, you’ll see more leads, more conversions and ultimately, more revenue. Kerching!
Become a leader in your industry
Once your brand is established, you can build on becoming a true leader of your industry. We can all name one particular email marketing solution or CRM tool that we rely on for our businesses. All these huge brands have had to work hard to get where they are today. But, if you keep at it, we guarantee it’s all worth it in the end.
