Branding is not a Surplus Cost but an Investment.
If you want to build a business that extends beyond the simple products/services you sell you need a strong brand. And, part of communicating that brand to the outside world is your visual business branding.
Yes, branding costs money. But it's an investment, not a business expense. In much the same way as you would create a business plan and seek professional advice to help grow and improve your business, professional branding will serve to strengthen trust from your audience and grow your market share.
"Branding adds spirit and a soul to what would otherwise be a robotic, automated, generic price-value proposition. If branding is ultimately about the creation of human meaning, it follows logically that it is the humans who must ultimately provide it." (David Aaker)
Why is professional branding so important?
It doesn't matter how much cash you toss into promoting advance down the line, every penny of it will be wasted if your logo, your symbol, site, and by and large brand personality are conflicting and eminently amateurish.
Before you start promoting your business and spending money on marketing, you need to have considered, consistent and compelling branding that instantly tells potential customers who you are and what you're about.
'Saving money' on professional branding will cost you money. It's true. It may sound backward, but it's true.
Poor branding efforts always lead to lower conversion rates, lack of engagement, and poor market positioning.
The immediate impression made by the appearance of your business can be just as or more important to your customers than the products or service you're selling. So, you have to get it right.
Even if your products are selling like hotcakes, branding should be at the top of your priority list because that is a long-term investment that will pay off big time.
Psychological implications
According to psychologists, people subconsciously believe that brands can make them become a better version of themselves.
Numerous examples are showing how strongly customers can be attached to an individual brand.
Choose your Customers
Branding permits you to control the sort of clients you need to pull in. Successful companies conduct branding research to collect information that will help them identify buyer personas.
This way it can generate precisely targeted commercial messages and reach customers interested in their products or services. By centering on a group of onlookers that offers a set of values, thoughts, and states of mind comparable to yours, you'll be able to be beyond any doubt that your commercial message will reverberate with them.
Instead of trying to appeal to a wider audience, and attract as many people as possible on a superficial level, branding enables you to aim at a more accurate customer base that is very likely to purchase your products or services.
Streamline your sales funnel
Today's market is oversaturated and competitive, so companies have to go the extra mile if they want to attract and keep customers.
Such a complicated situation, with lots of competitors breathing down their neck, makes them insecure, which is why many of them tend to generate tonnes of unqualified leads that only clog their sales funnel.
Simon Sinek says that "People do not buy what you do.
They buy why you do it", and this quote perfectly captures the essence of branding — it helps you explain why and provides you with a competitive edge.
Acquire new customers
It is much easier for brands to generate referrals and recommendations, not only because of their quality but also because they are recognizable and memorable.
As popularity heavily relies on word-of-mouth marketing, it is evident how important branding is for spreading the word.
There are three main types of referrals, and they are based on experience, expertise, and reputation.
Boost employee productivity
A great salary is one of the most noteworthy inspirations, but it isn't the as it is calculated that individuals take into thought when it comes to choosing employers. That is why companies attempt to attract and keep the most excellent employees using manager branding. Almost 60% of bosses say that this can be one of the foremost imperative portions of a company's HR technique.
Just like companies use branding to attract customers with whom they share similar values, and retain them, they also try to stand out among their competitors and show why their potential employees should choose them.
Although it seems that branding is an expensive investment that only big companies can afford, it is worth giving it a shot as it can be a game-changer for your business.