Creating a Winning Brand

What is Branding? The American Marketing Association (AMA) defines a brand as a “name, term, sign, symbol or design, or a combination of them intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of other sellers.” Therefore, you want your prospects to view your company as the only one that provides a solution to their problem.

Why is Branding important?

Your brand acts as a promise. It is the cornerstone of you company; and is entwined into every point of public contact. You must understand the needs and wants of your customers and prospects for your brand strategy to work.

A successful brand will do the following:

1. Convey message clearly and consistently 2. Validate your credibility 3. Establish an emotional connection 4. Inspire the customer 5. Generate user loyalty

Benefit #1: Convey message clearly and consistently

Make sure you audience is clear on the message you are portraying with your brand. There should be

no confusion about what your brand represents. It is better for your audience have an opinion about

your brand, then no opinion at all. Be clear about what the brand is representing.

Example:

Subway stays true to their business model; we are all familiar with their tagline, “Eat Fresh”. They are

clear on their message; you can eat healthy and fast. They promote their low fat options and provide

the nutritional information for every sandwich. Subway is non-wavering in their brand message and

core competency, they stick with what they excel at.

Benefit #2: Validate your credibility

Foremost, you want your audience to believe your brand. Confirm your credibility by providing reasons

that your brand delivers the benefits it promises. These reasons to believe can include technical

benefits, functional benefits, and emotional benefits. These are referred to as reasons to believe, or

RTBs. It’s great to be able to support these claims through customer testimonials, product testing, or

awards and honors.

Example:

Jared Fogel has been the face of Subway for about 10 years now, having lost 245 lbs. with the help of a

Subway diet. He started the Jared Foundation to help educate parents and children of the importance

of a balanced diet and physical activity. He recently completed the ING New York 2010 Marathon and

continues to be the ultimate reason to believe for Subway.

Benefit #3: Establish an emotional connection

How does your customer feel? Discover your customers’ needs and wants. Knowing that information,

you can begin to shape your brand into the complete package that resonates at an emotional level with

your user. And that’s what important, people make buying decisions with the help of their emotions.

Example:

Subway wants to offer the best and the freshest food for their customers and to encourage healthy

eating habits. Customers respond to the positive energy of the Subway brand and trust the food they

are eating. It encourages them to make an effort to eat healthier and take care of their bodies.

Benefit #4 Inspire the customer

We already mentioned reasons to believe to validate your brand’s credibility. Giving your target

audience reasons to believe is crucial. People want to feel good about their purchase decisions;

therefore you want your brand to inspire them. This comes mostly from the emotional benefits of your

brand. People want to know about the good your brand is doing in the world.

Example:

Subway is a prime example giving back to the communities. Recently, they donated 600 sandwiches to

the Homecoming event of 180 Illinois National Guard soldiers from Afghanistan. Subway is also making a

substantial effort to create stores that are environmentally friendly. Their napkins save approximately

60,500,000 gallons of water and an additional 147,000 trees annually because they are made from 100%

recycled fiber processed chlorine free. These are large scale efforts, but take small steps first. Start in

your neighborhood or community of your business and continue to build upon contributions as your

business grows.

Benefit #5: Generate user loyalty

Integrate your brand strategies at every point of public contact and every customer touch point. Don’t

waste an opportunity to make your brand known to your audience. Once you’ve got the business of a

customer, how do you keep them coming back? People want options. They want the something that’s

perfect for their needs; they want to feel this was made just for them.

Example:

The answer is in variety and customization; you create your own sandwich. Subway offers several

choices of bread to begin along with the choice of designing your own sandwich. They also offer the

Subway Card, a re-loadable card which also functions as a rewards card allowing customers to earn

points towards free food.

Learning the importance and benefits a solid brand can provide, what can you do to better your brand?