Brand Building

1. Brand Building Suparno Sarkar

2. What is a Brand? • “A brand is the sum of all feelings, thoughts and recognitions - positive and negative - that people in the target audience have about a company, a product or service.”- Steve McNamara

3. What is brand building and why do you need it? Companies have personalities. Some companies, especially small companies, reflect the personality of the owner, the founder, or the CEO. Companies have a culture. And they have values, such as compassion, achievement, learning, or innovation. If you want to establish your brand then you need to highlight these things. Your brand image should reflect who you are, how you operate, and how you're different from your competitors. In essence, your brand image is a promise - a promise that must be kept.

4. Continued… Now as you have a clear idea regarding what brand building is, you may ask why do you need it? Think about a small business owner who is certainly aware of the fierce competition for market share. How do you rise above the crowd and competitors? How do you permeate and dominate the marketplace? The answer is pretty simple. Your brand. Developing a bold brand identity will build mind share – one of the strongest competitive advantages imaginable. As a result, your customers will think of your business first when they think of your product category. For example, what springs to mind when you think of fast food? More likely than not, it is McDonald’s.

5. Things to remember before creating your brand • What is your brand's vision? • What values does your company subscribe to? • What are the good and bad features/attributes of your brand (company, product, service)? • What are the bad aspects of your brand, and how can you dispose of them? • What are the practical benefits associated with each of the good features/attributes? • Can you extend those features and benefits to form emotional characteristics for the consumer? • What are the emotional reasons why customers might buy your products/services? • How can you use the brand personality to attract and retain more customers? • How can you deliver on the promise of your brand? • How are you going to generate more trust in your brand-customer relationship?

6. How to create a brand? • There is a difference between a company and a brand. For example, You have heard about Classmate notebooks and Sunfeast biscuits. But do you know who manufactures these products? The company is ITC. But what is ITC’s main product? Wills cigarette! They kill people silently but highlight that they donate a share of their profit they earn from Classmate notebook sales!

7. Continue… • So what is the moral of the story? You can be a devil, but hide that and highlight your “Godly” face. The thing is, it never matters who you are but how people recognize you. If people have a good perception about your product or service, even if you are not the best, you will sell more than your competitors, and remember the core reason for creating a brand is sales!

8. Continued… • Now as you have a clear idea what brand is, why its important and how tricky the process is, I will share some simple steps with you. Follow these and over times you will create your brand. Remember that brands are never created overnight, so be patient and keep up the good work.

9. 15 tips you can follow • Logo Reinforce the relationship and trigger recognition with consistent visual symbols. These symbols can include everything from a color scheme and logo to a brand character, or images of the president or founder of the company. • Tagline - A tagline is a short phrase, not a sentence, that conveys what your company does. Include a action verb and clarify what product or service your company provides. • Personality Create a personality for the company, the product or service. Just as you would for a real person, reflecting aspects of the actual reputation, attitudes and behavior. Choose the way that you wish to speak to your customers. Do you want to project an strict image using only formal, stilted speech? Would you rather be informal and relaxed? Talk to your customers like they would speak to you.

10. Continued… • Relationship Build a relationship with your target audiences based on the brand's personality, history, and benefits of the relationship. • Advertising Build this relationship consistently over time, using advertising in addition to all other communications. • Brand story Be sure to craft a brand story, whether short or long, that introduces the brand and communicates brand values and history.

11. Continued… • Know your audience You must first have a clear understanding of your audience, especially before you begin creating content strategies and communication plans. • Identify your reasons-to-believe Your brand promise is irrelevant if your customers do not believe it. Therefore, your promise must be supported by reasons-to-believe. This will automatically add substance to the promise and define specific expectations for the customer. Don’t promise something you are not capable to deliver. • Determine the most influential touch points. All touch points are not created equal. Some will naturally play a larger role in determining your company's overall customer experience. For example, if your product is ice cream, taste is typically more important than package design. Both are touch points, but each has a different effect on our customers’ experiences as a whole.

12. Continued… • USP When creating a brand, you do not want to imitate the others in the field. You want your brand to stand completely on its own, so there will be no question of what the customer thinks of them they think of your company. Stand out above the crowd. • Design your social media blueprint What types of interactions do you want your customers to have with your business? Is Facebook right for you or is Twitter more up your alley? It’s important to start by listening and observing who is talking about your brand. If no one is, spark up the conversation. • CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) It’s an excellent tool to create your brand. Everyone notices a company instantly when it does some social work. You can donate money for an orphanage or organize “plant a tree” campaign. You may just plant one tree in the whole year but that hype and exposure to media will make you “noticeable”.

13. Some more tips… • Organize press conference Have done something great? Organize a press conference and share it with others. The more you tell, the more you sell. We designed Sudan FA website. It was inaugurated by FIFA President Blatter! Does anyone in Kolkata know? • Participate in corporate events (Quiz, Seminar etc.) If the company encourages the employees to take part in corporate quiz or seminars, they will get media exposure. You can be 3rd in the quiz but your company name is somehow echoed in the corporate world. • Organize events You may not be the best at what you do. But if you start meeting the best in the business and start developing connections then you will learn and earn at the same time. You will learn where are your shortcomings and how you can reach the “numero uno” spot. Also one you start organizing an event it gives you a large platform to impress your future clients.

14. Final words… • Branding is the ability of people to associate a business with a word or a visual symbol. Example, “Just do it” or Apple’s logo. The end result is to get customers to take action and choose your business. It’s a time taking process that needs dedication and honesty. Keep your promises and fulfil the expectations you have created, constantly. Because if building a brand is a tough job then maintaining a brand is even tougher.

15. Resources Links to the sites http://www.brandingasia.com/ http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/about/ http://thesocialrobot.com/