The core of any successful business starts with its brand identity. Your brand needs to tell the story of who you are, what you’re known for, and most importantly- be memorable (for the right reasons!) Check out our top tips for getting started.

1.     Brainstorming

Perhaps you’ve just launched your business, decided to rebrand, or are only still in the “concepts” stage. Whatever stage you’re at, it’s essential to make a list of words and phrases associated with your products or services, audience, location, and image. These will be crucial for ensuring your message remains consistent. At this stage, we’d also add that it’s important to decide upon your brand’s name and logo, and separate how these two elements look. Many businesses often confuse these, leaving their audience with an unclear view of the brand’s identity.

2.     Research your competitors

Are there any companies offering similar products or services to you? Which businesses do you admire or want to emulate? And what exactly do you like about them? Perhaps they have a particularly attention-grabbing logo, or a message that extends to every part of their brand- from their website and social media channels, to their product packaging. Identify these, and see how you can incorporate similar qualities into your branding.

3.     Know your audience

Understanding “who” your audience is, is one of the key aspects needed before settling on your branding. From their age range and gender, to where they live, their habits, likes and dislikes, these are essential areas to decide upon, and keeping this customer profile in mind will help you know exactly what your online and offline personality should convey.

4.     Identify your unique selling point

What makes your brand stand out? You may have a revolutionary product, or perhaps your service addresses a gap in the market. Whatever it may be, this has to be fully conveyed across all your supporting material, from your colour scheme, logo, and website, to your social media platforms, products, packaging, and other offline collateral. If customers can easily see the benefits of your brand wherever they look, your marketing work is in part being taken care of!

5.     Get help from the experts

After you’ve researched and mapped out a plan, that’s where a design agency comes in. Creative businesses such as ourselves are spearheaded by a team of professionals who’ve spent years honing their craft. At The Practice for example, we’ve produced design and branding work for the likes of the Telegraph Group, Samsung, and DeBeers, as well as devised numerous integrated marketing campaigns for global and local small and medium-sized businesses. Unless you’re a trained graphic designer, we’ve found that the “DIY” approach rarely works- in the long run we’re sure you’ll save both time and money by outsourcing your project. With your brand overview and concepts, we’ll be able to build a comprehensive strategy and help your ideas come to life.

If you’re just getting started, need advice about your brand, or would like us to make your vision become a reality, then please do get in touch! We’ve just launched our new service, “We Are Leasing”, which has been designed with new businesses in mind. We think you’ll like what you see, so please check it out, and feel free to send any questions our way to leasing@wearethepractice.com. Our friendly team will be in touch as soon as we can!

What do you think about our top branding and marketing tips? And if you already run an established brand, do you have any tips to share that might help budding entrepreneurs? We’d love to hear from you, so please tweet to us @PracticeDigital and share your comments on our Facebook page.