What’s in a Brand?
March 22nd, 2009 Posted in Branding
“Branding” has changed definitions through the years. Thirty years ago, if someone asked what “branding” was, the response might be, “It’s when you mark a cow with a hot iron.” Nowadays, “branding” is defined more in terms of a marketing perspective.
Branding agencies are a type of marketing agency that specializes in launching specific clients by producing branding strategies that can be outputted via a branding campaign. Pfew! That’s a lot of “branding.”
“A brand isn’t just a logo.”
Read on to learn about:
Online Branding
A brand isn’t a logo. It has its own personality and identity. It’s more than just trying to get consumers to buy a product; it’s getting the consumers to buy in to the whole experience of the brand.
Online branding is the process of trying to distribute this personality and identity across the web. Because the Internet is so attainable, quick and easy, the world wide web is now the most sought after medium of circulating a “brand.” With online branding, companies have the ability to get their idea across through videos, music, articles, and blog posts as opposed to newspapers or magazine ads that are restricted to simply using words. Online branding has an elastic band of opportunities whereas old school branding doesn’t pull very far.
With branding, the relationship between the company and the customer through online navigation can be defined in the following way:
- How the customer is treated at the door (Home Page)
- What the outside of the product looks like (Web Site)
- How the cashier treats the customer (Navigation, Online Support, Online Orders)
- How the company handles complaints (Returns, Ease of Contact)
- How trustful a company appears (Media treatment, A combination of 1 thru 4)
How to “Brand”
Word-of-mouth is especially important with branding. If a video on YouTube strikes someone as humorous or interesting, they will pass it on to their friends. Hypothetically, this could start a phenomenon. Many videos have gathered steam on YouTube just by word of mouth (”Chocolate Rain” ). People will like a video and then wonder where it came from. “Chocolate Rain” made Tay Zonday a mini-celebrity.
Sometimes people just accidentally find success on YouTube. However, branding can use this medium to target audiences and create videos and viral marketing campaigns that people will connect with.
“Word of mouth is especially important with branding.”
The film Cloverfield is an example of excellent online branding. First, producer J.J. Abrams released a movie teaser before the film Transformers during the summer of 2007. The preview included a group of people at a party interrupted by an attack in New York City with the final image of the top of the Statue of Liberty being hurled into the street. While the teaser did not include a title for the movie being advertised, web sites started to pop up that hinted at what the movie might be about (Godzilla? LOST tie-in?), including slusho.com, 1-18-08.com, cloverfieldmovie.com.
The film wasn’t due to be released until early 2008, yet during the summer of 2007, most moviegoers were already looking forward to a movie that was nearly six months away. Abrams knew whom his target audience was, when to release certain bits of information, and how to intrigue and entice this audience. In the end, it paid off when Cloverfield raked in 46 million dollars in its opening weekend.
Here are 4 ways to effectively “brand:”
- Gain “fans.” Use online venues like YouTube to create supporters and people who will want to talk up your company and/or viral video.
- Make sure consumers know just who is behind the company – a person, not a robot. If a company applies faces behind names, consumers will connect with the company more. For example, people connect more with Orville Reddenbocker than Tony the Tiger because Orville was a real person; Tony was only a cartoon. Real people make for a more credible, trustworthy experience.
- Speak in a conversational tone that people understand. Consumers don’t want technical terms; they want companies to level with them. If a company speaks in a down-to-earth, easygoing manner, consumers are more likely to trust the company and do business.
- Say what you do, not who you are. Consumers want to know how they will benefit from a branding company; they don’t want to know what the company’s name is over and over again. If a company states how it will help consumers, with specific examples, consumers are more likely to be interested and feel connected. If a company’s cutesy name is simply plastered on something without any sense of identity or service, consumers are less likely to feel involved.
“To develop trust, a company should speak in a down-to-earth manner.”
Why Branding is Important
Because viral branding allows consumers to be targeted more directly (and quickly), consumers can make up their minds faster as to whether they like a product (or “brand”) or not. If a company defines who they are, what they do, and how they will do it in an online way that is easily navigable, then consumers will probably come back.
In an era of people becoming more and more environmentally-aware, branding is also economically important. While it still costs money, it also saves money. Word-of-mouth is a lot cheaper than hundreds of business cards (plus, more eco-friendly!). Rather than traveling across a state or country to do business, people can connect with each other at the click of a mouse.
In the nation’s recent tough economic times, consumers can’t afford to drop a lot of money on business ventures that might not work out. Furthermore, the environment can’t afford any more waste (gas, garbage, time). Branding is an all-around economic, environmental-saver.
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Megan McLachlan Megan graduated from Allegheny College in Meadville, PA and has been doing freelance work for newspapers and magazines since graduating. Her work experience has been very eclectic, having interned with two Pittsburgh television stations, performed photography duties for a USC fan football web site, and served coffee for Starbucks. Megan now works full-time and is a serious studier of Brands and the effect they have on people. Want content written for your Brand that shows up #1 on Search Engines and brings you new customers? Contact us. |