If Your Brand Isn’t Your Logo, What Is It?

When we think of branding, most of us think of logos, colors, slogans and taglines. And while these are all important components to your brand, a brand is so much more than just a logo. It's a feeling. It's an attitude. A personality. It's everything that makes you, you — that makes your product or service you. Your brand is how you position yourself in the minds of your customers. It’s a promise you make to the customer to deliver a certain experience. Over time, this promise becomes ingrained in their subconscious mind as “this is what I can expect from [insert company name here].” This promise will eventually determine how successful your business will be in the years to come. Behind all successful brands several defining characteristics that help them gain a following. We’ve listed them below- let’s jump in!

Your brand is a promise.

Your brand is the promise you make to your customers. It’s a relationship that extends beyond what you sell. It’s who you are…or at least who you want to be.

Think of it as your reputation. You can have a pretty logo, an informative website and witty social media profiles, but if they don’t represent the real person or company behind them, you won’t connect with potential customers.

If you want to stand out in a sea of competitors and hold your customer’s attention, make sure that your brand reflects how unique and special you really are.

Your brand is important to your customers.

Think about the last time you bought something from a company. Did you instantly know its brand? No, most likely not. It took a little bit of research to figure out what the company does and why it's special. If you're like us, this process of finding out about a brand takes longer than it should, even though there are probably signs pointing you in the right direction at every step of the way. But once your customer has figured out your brand's story and personality, they can tell that they're buying into something unique and special.

So how do you make sure that your company's story is clear to customers? You start by having an idea of who your customer is—who their demographic is, what motivates them, what sort of values they might have—and making sure the language used in your website or marketing materials matches up with this person.

For example: instead of saying "we are excited to be able to offer our clients high-quality service," why not say "our goal is to help our clients achieve dreams." Or instead of saying "customers will always get top-notch service," focus on offering "a level of care that goes above and beyond what we feel as professional business owners."

Your brand is about your customers.

It’s best to think of your brand as the personification of your business. Your brand is how you connect with your customers. Your brand is how you communicate with your customers. Above all, your brand is about what the customer wants and needs, not what you want and need. In fact, it may be helpful to think of yourself as a servant, something we don’t typically associate with being in business for ourselves (or in any job for that matter).

Stop focusing on what message or logo or color or tagline you want to convey (unless those things really do speak truthfully about the value you are creating for others) and instead focus on understanding your customer.

Who are they? Why did they purchase from you? What problems do they have? What can you do differently to solve them even better? What experiences can you create that will make their lives easier or more enjoyable?

Your brand has to be authentic.

Authenticity: It's the basis of any great brand. Your brand has to be authentic in order to gain the loyalty of your customers. And without that loyalty, you have no brand. So what is authenticity? Authenticity is being honest with yourself and your audience; it's being consistent in communicating it; and above all, it's not trying to please everyone. There are tons of brands out there vying for attention, but only a select few can really capture that attention because they know who they are and communicate that message clearly and memorably.

Your brand should be bold and memorable.

If you want to create a brand that is bland and forgettable, then definitely follow the advice of many branding agencies who will tell you to be “loud” and “obnoxious”. That way, in your arrogance, you can start thinking that your brand is just not being heard by the public.

A better strategy would be to have a simple but bold design that lets people know what you are about instantly. You don't need any fancy tricks or gimmicks because your product speaks for itself. You only have one chance to make a first impression with customers so make sure it's memorable! And if someone asks about why they should buy from you, tell them the truth: because your company stands behind its product with great customer service and superior quality materials (or whatever reason applies).

Your brand needs a clear value proposition.

Even if you don't know what a value proposition is, you've definitely seen one. It's the reason why people buy from your business.

The classic example of a value proposition is "A diamond is forever," coined by De Beers in 1947 to make diamonds synonymous with romance. The idea worked: Decades later, millions of couples spend thousands on diamond rings.

A value proposition isn't just a tagline or an advertising slogan. A good value proposition answers three key questions:

• What do you do? Specifically, what do you do differently than anyone else? What makes your product or service special?

• Who is it for? Who are your ideal customers? This part of the value proposition should address their wants and needs, not yours.

• Why should they care? What's the benefit of your product or service to your customers?

  An effective value proposition can help you:

• Inform people about your product or service.

• Convince people to try it.

• Motivate people to buy it again and again.

Get out there and get started!

Your brand is a work in progress, but it’s never too early to start promoting it! The sooner you get started, the sooner you start seeing results. Here are some things you can do immediately:

• Make sure your business name is active on social media and that your website is up and running.

• Register your business with Google My Business and Bing Places for Business.

• Register with Yelp and other influential local directories (or ask clients to write positive reviews about your services).

• Add your business name, contact information, and a link to your website in all email signatures.

The words and images you use behind your logo are just as important as the logo itself when it comes to building a strong, recognizable brand.

It’s important to remember that your brand is not just about the logo. It’s about the overall impression you give customers through consistent messaging and visuals. Branding lets you build a relationship with your customers, so they come back time and time again. With consistent branding, your message will be clear and quickly recognizable—that’s how you create an amazing brand that people love!

At Slantics, we love diving deep into your branding strategy to make sure you’re conveying the right messages to the right people at the right time. Book your Strategy Session today if you need any advice along your journey!