Considering that brand strategy is only about a catching logo and tagline isn’t a good idea. Marketing is not only about promotional activities. It is a brand’s position towards its competitors and selected markets.
Just think about what makes you stand out from your competitors. Apart from visual identity, it’s the way you communicate with customers, their thoughts and impressions about your brand. Developing an efficient strategy requires both time and thorough planning. Therefore, you should be familiar with basic guidelines for creating a brand marketing strategy that works.
Start with defining your current strategy
Developing a brand strategy isn’t that hard when you know where to start. The following steps are common for developing a solid base for any business:
- Develop your segment of the business. Marketing strategy directly depends on two main business objectives. It’s the development of the company and its optimization. Apart from that, you should take an updated Customer Journey Map into account. There you can see the conversion at each stage of the brand-customer interconnection. The base for brand strategy is the determination of what to focus on. Understanding what you’re good at gives you the direction and leads to a clear vision of your marketing strategy.
- Clarify your business and marketing goals. Think of how you would like to develop your business in a year or a few years from now. Which customer base is required and how to get it? Is it an enhanced advertisement on media or a customer loyalty program? Is the current location satisfactory? The answers will help you see clearly your goals.
- Learn your competitors’ experience. Of course, you shouldn’t copy their strategies. But you can learn a lot about how they work, the customers’ response to different tactics, and even what should be done in order to make the business more successful. Learning strategies of the existing brands gives you both the inspiration and understanding of how to stand out of the pack.
- A unique spotlight. Even if the product or services you offer aren’t unique, you can stand out of the herd. All it takes is customizing your brand strategy. Just declare your own mission and vision, describe your core values that you’d like to share with your customers. Focus on particular characteristics of your target audience, while offering them a unique customer experience. Let’s say, you develop an online translation service. However, yours is unique because your set of languages is uncommon and the rates are lower. Now put your existing business instead of a translation company. What will make you stand out from your competitors?
- Personalize your business. Every business is unique. To make an unforgettable brand, personalize it. Ask yourself: What makes it appealing? Is it serious or fun? How would other people describe it? Perhaps, friendly? Such descriptions can help you visualize the characteristics of your business that are worth highlighting in your brand strategy. Especially, if you plan to translate your website content into other languages, it is important to know all local features, customs, and traditions. Find a reliable online translator services for you. A localization expert will do the research and provide you with top-level translation.
- What’s new in customer service? Customers are the lifeblood of any business. If you treat them poorly, even cheaper prices and unique products won’t matter. People are keen on spending money on better treatment. So, your marketing communication with clients should take the form of dialogue, rather than a monologue. Allow them to share their opinions and ideas. Remember that satisfied customers can spread the word about your business. So, think about how you can deliver an unforgettable experience to them!
- Your community gives your main customers. Your local community consists of your potential customers. Don’t forget about it! Oftentimes, people prefer to support local businesses, rather than big names. They consider them more friendly and appealing. By running a small local business, you can stay in touch with customers. The advantages are plenty. First, it’s the right way to build relationships and gain a solid reputation, and make a good number of loyal clients. In return, they willingly spread the word about your business. Second, the more you communicate with your customers, the better you understand what they expect to get. This knowledge allows for developing better solutions. Third, by providing customized services you make your customers happier! So, don’t neglect attending local events, sponsor local children’s sports teams, or connect with your customers on social media. Stay closer and they will gladly support you.
- Stay visible online. Create your business blog. It can bring many benefits, including sales growth. Have no doubts – it’s a surefire way to improve your brand recognition. Blogging may turn out to be a great way to create a pass-along audience that will bring new loyal customers. Make your posts easy to read and don’t forget to add photos of your business. Try to maintain a light conversational style when writing your posts.
- Consider color psychology for your logo. Choose brand colors wisely. Different colors recall different emotions. So, you can use this influence to make your brand logo memorable. There are many things to keep in mind. From your logo to your website design and anything in between, make sure to choose the colors wisely.
- Use social media accounts. Social media accounts are easy to access. So, use them to represent your business online. In other words, your Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram accounts provide a prime opportunity to promote your brand and motivate the followers to make their first purchase.
Why work so much on brand strategy?
Whether your business is old or new, large or small, defining brand strategy every single year will pay you off in more ways than you think. Do you want wide communication with your target audience? Would you like to earn a better reputation? If so, pay thorough attention to this part of your annual business plan!
