Branding and its use in business

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What is branding?

Key term: Branding is the process of

creating a unique name and image for a

product in the consumers’ mind

A company’s brand is also reinforced by

other elements including: employee

behaviour, signage, fleet livery, web design

etc. Essentially anything that represents a

company to a customer base

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Which brands have you engaged with today?

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Some benefits of successful branding

Relationship building:

Helps build relationship with customer base

Increase customer loyalty:

To encourage repeat business / loyalty to the brand

Achieve stand out:

To differentiate the product / brand from competitors

To communicate quality:

To promote quality and price of the product

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Logos

Key term: Logos are images used by

businesses so customers can instantly

recognise that products and services belong

to that business. Logos tend to be used

across the business on everything from

letter head and vehicle branding to staff

uniforms

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Logos

Question: Why are logos important to a

brand?

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The importance of logos

Consumer recognition:

A well-recognised logo will connect the consumer’s mind to the

business without seeing its name

Brand values:

A recognisable logo will grow to symbolise the values of the brand

it represents

Differentiation:

A logo will differentiate a brand from its competitors and help it

stand-out

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Brand personality

Key term: Brand personality are a set of

human traits or characteristics which are

associated with a specific brand name (such

as trustworthiness, or reliability). These help

give the consumer something to relate to

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Question

What are the brand personality traits you

think Thames Water is communicating with

their branding?

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Brand personalityProactive

Enthusiastic, forward-thinking and always pre-empting customers’ needs. Not innovative for innovation’s sake

Personal

Human and genuine every day and turn transactions into relationships. Not intrusive or overly ‘chummy’

Effortless

Easy and hassle free for customers. Not laid back or forgettable

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Brand personality

Dependable

Reliable and provide a consistent service. Not static or old-fashioned

Transparent

Open, honest, straightforward. Not blunt or overwhelming

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Brand personality: tone of voiceTo make sure the Thames Water brand attributes are always reflected, all communications follow these principles.

Bright

Warm

Simple

Straight-talking

Open

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The Thames Water ‘brand’ goes far beyond our logo or how we look. A brand is who you are as a company, what you do, the quality of your product

and service and your reputation.

In April 2016 we refreshed our brand following insight from 5,000 customers and employees. We learned that they want us to be ‘refreshingly clear’ in everything

we do and say. This means ensuring we treat people as individuals, we provide an effortless service, we are proactive, we are transparent and customers can depend

on us.

Every interaction we have with our customers, from what they read in the newspaper, to what we send them in the post, to the conversation we have at their

doorstep has an impact on how our brand is perceived.It is really important we have a strong brand that is well thought of, as we know

this influences a customer’s overall satisfaction.

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Old logo versions vs new logo

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Updating a logo

Questions:

What changes can you see in the three logo

variants?

How do you think these changes impact on

the look and feel?

What brand personality do you think is

conveyed by the new logo?

What impact do you think these updates

had on consumer perception of the brand?

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Updating a logo

Questions:

How frequently do you think a brand should

update their logo?

What benefit do you think this has, if any?