Brand Identity Basics
Brand Identity Basics
Your company brand is the foundational component which incorporates all the characteristics of your company including your vision, mission, goals, the tone in which you engage with your customers, the relationships that you wish to build with them strengthened by the promises you make. It also guides your brand in terms of product branding, sales and how you wish to be perceived across platforms. Getting the brand identity basics right from the beginning will guide your branding strategy and corporate identity as a whole later on and make the entire process easier.
Often business owners skip this which leads to gaps in their over-arching ethos and can lead to brand confusion. If you wish to build a strong brand, whether it’s personal or corporate, it’s not enough to know your product – you need to have the set principles in place that will ensure coherent and consistent messaging, group alignment and buy-in of all stakeholders.
This is also a good opportunity to see where there may be gaps or where your brand components could be improved and strengthened.
The exercise of Brand development is simple enough and consists of nine key elements that all either touch or overlap depending on the company itself.
When developing your Brand Identity ensure that you don’t overcomplicate the exercise by following these guidelines
Length
There is no need for these to be long statements or paragraphs, they are basically a snapshot of your core brand identity
Complexity
Keep it simple and easy for anyone to understand.
Distinction
While answering, try to highlight the traits and characteristics that stand out from the competition. Keep it real and Down to Earth.
Legacy
Do not think just about your business as it stands now – think about the legacy that yo are building that if you can fast forward 50 years from now, you want to see these same core values and traits meaning something to not just the customers, but to the people representing the brand as well.
Integrity
Be honest about what you want your brand to be and also about any weaknesses that you may uncover while doing this exercise. If there’s a question that you can’t answer, then it should be used as an opportunity to strengthen your messaging, not detract from it.
Brand Identity
The nine core features of your Brand Identity
1. BRAND CORE
What are the values that we hold that govern all our interactions?
What is our promise to our customers?
What does our brand stand for?
2. PROPOSED VALUE
What is the value that we offer to our clients or customers?
How do our products and services appeal to them and other stakeholders?
3. RELATIONSHIPS
What are the values that we hold that govern all our interactions?
What is our promise to our customers?
What does our brand stand for?
4. POSITION
How are we wanting to position ourselves in the perception, hearts and minds of our customers and how will we strive to maintain that position?
5. EXPRESSION
What makes us unique in how we express ourselves and our brand?
How can we ensure we are distinctive and easily recogniseable?
6. PERSONALITY
What qualities, characteristics and values form our personality as perceived by our target market and customer base?
7. VISION AND MISSION
What are we aspiring to and how do we maintain our vision for the future of our brand?
What engages us and motivates us?
8. CULTURE
What kind of culture do we foster with our clients and with others that we interact with?
What are the behaviours that we seek to maintain and build on?
9. COMPETENCE
What do we offer that shows excellence and sets us apart from others in the same field?
What are our main strengths?
This process shouldn’t be rushed and may require some thought and contemplation or refinement depending on how you structure it. Just remember to keep it authentic and YOU!
I hope this has helped you get a snapshot of how to define your brand identity. As you go along your journey, remember that as your business grows and evolves, your brand should too. In the next post I’ll be discussing ways that you can define and refine your branding colours for your corporate identity and set up your brand strategy.
If you have questions or comments, please feel free to send them down below.
Always remember your W’s & H’s:
Why?
Where?
Who?
What?
When?
How?
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