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Keys to Branding for Small
Business
During the 19th and early 20th centuries,
a rancher would mark his cattle with a brand. This brand,
depicting an image unique to his ranch, distinguished his
cattle from another’s in the event of a broken fence.
Branding, in today’s modern marketing world, operates
much the same way. It seeks to distinguish a product or service
from the competition and create a lasting impression in a
prospect’s mind.
Pay dear attention to your branding programs
from the outset because they work to strengthen the “link
of trust” between your company and its buyers.
Shaping your brand image
To start, consider first the personality of your company. Is it sexy or
sweet? Tough or tender? Is it more like John Wayne or George Clooney
or Andy Griffith? And if you think all this is hooey, consider these
questions: Do Marlboros really taste better than other cigarettes? Is
H&R Block superior to the tax accountant down the street? No, but
a big reason these companies are leaders is because they’ve successfully
built a personality around their brands.
Name: The first step
How different would you be if your name was Clem or Matilda? Your company
name sets a tone for your brand, right from the start. Names can be generated
from invented words (Xerox), initials (IBM) and founder’s names
(Johnson & Johnson). Some of the best names though communicate a
benefit (U-Haul or Budget Car Rental).
Logo: Your company’s symbol
A logo is a distinctive symbol or mark that visually represents your company.
To get one that passes muster with the quality police, I recommend hiring
a design firm. Because your logo is one of the first visual brand elements
your buyers see, put some time and money into it.
If your logo will appear on fax cover sheets, fax it to yourself.
If it will appear on billboards, enlarge it to 5 feet and see
what it looks like (don’t laugh, I actually did this
for a client). Put your logo through the quality checking paces
before you use it. You’ll be glad you did.
Taglines: A memorable definition
I’m a big believer in taglines. In 10 words or less a good tagline
can communicate the core essence of a brand to the market. And for small
businesses, it can be one of the most efficient marketing weapons in their
arsenal.
A tagline is simply a short description of a business’ reason
for being. It could incorporate elements of its expertise,
its target audience, even the markets it serves. A tagline
can be both direct and subtle—whatever it takes to get
the prospect to say to themselves “Oh, I get it.”
If you’re unfamiliar with taglines, work with a copywriter
or marketing consultant. In an hour or two, they can take the
core essence of your company’s brand and translate it
into a memorable and pithy tagline.
Once you have a tagline, always connect it to your logo as
a standard practice. Either place the tagline below your logo
or alongside it. But, whenever your logo appears, your tagline
should there with it.
Fonts and typestyles
Using the proper fonts and typestyles also define your brand. Try to standardize
fonts and typestyles that appear routinely in your marketing materials.
Use only a select few.
Hint: If you’re working with an advertising agency or marketing firm,
make sure their designs use fonts that are readily available. A client
of mine once worked with a designer on some marketing materials. The problem
was the designer chose a very creative font that ended up also being hard
to find. In the end, the client had to shell out hundreds more dollars
to buy the font for its printer because they did not have it.
Colors: Creating a mood
How do you feel when you walk into a yellow room? When you see a sign with
a red background color, what’s your first reaction? Colors generate
emotional reactions, and it’s important to carry that over into
your branding program.
So, here is a quick list of common colors and the emotions
behind them:
Red - Stop, passion
Yellow - Caution, prudence
Green - Go, safe
White - Purity, virtue
Black - Luxury, prestige
Blue - Authority, calm
Orange - Strength, stimulation
Brown - Warmth, comfort
When deciding on your company’s color, pay attention to the colors
used by your competitors. You don’t want to shoot yourself in the
foot by choosing a color already associated with your competitor.
Publish some guidelines
As your company grows, consider developing a brand
manual. It can be as simple as a 3-ring binder that
records how you want brand elements to appear. It should
cover the use of your logo, type sizes/fonts/styles, guidelines
for color or black and white, and where certain brand elements
should be located on the page or screen. This is a great
resource for internal staff to follow and can also be used
for new employee training.
In the end, hold your branding efforts to the highest standard
possible. Spend a little extra to keep your brand high-quality
and consistent across your company. Your customers (both current
and new) will thank you for it.
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