What is Branding?

When being in the world of marketing, you are going to hear a lot of terms and phrases you may and may not know about. Some of these terms can sound scary… they may not make any sense… but we are here to help you. First up? Let’s talk branding!

The Oxford Language describes branding as ‘the promotion of a particular product or company by means of advertising and distinctive designs.’ That being said, the right or wrong branding can make or break your company. No pressure, right?

Having a unique and recognizable brand is ideal for your business so that it can easily be noticed right away and a sale can be made right away. Branding is constructed byways of art, copy, emails, social media, relationships and overall marketing messaging. These assets come together to shape your customers’ or future customers’ bond and experience with your company.

Branding is important for many reasons. For one, it will let your customers know who you are and how to expect a response. Branding will also allow you to identify and leverage your customers, knowing what they like about your brand and what more they want to see. A brand will also let you hone in on key personas and audiences so that you are only reaching those who know will like your business, rather than wasting your time or marketing strategy on those who wouldn’t care.

Branding is a complex process that can be more complicated than it sounds. It also can’t be done once and forgotten about. Everything you do has to be related to your brand, even if it’s a quick social media post or a response to a question. Carefully curate all your assets, especially your visual ones to make sure there is a clear and concise message. This includes but is not limited to, fonts/typography, color palette, logo, website design, vocabulary style, photos and the like.

As a business, you should have a rulebook of branding, aka brand guidelines. This is a set of guidelines everyone in the company should be aware of and know how to stick to in any situation, in any department. You can’t just throw together your company’s branding guidelines, it takes thought, effort and a plan to design just what style will fit your business.

Ready to start branding? Get going, you’ve got a lot to consider to make your business stand out!