Branding – “Beyond Design”
May 9, 2024
Launching something new or just revamping is invigorating, stimulating and positively…stressful. You have a remarkable product or service that fills a need and you want it to stand out – we get it. We were, and are, still evolving as a company. That’s where the “B” word comes in. Get your minds outta the gutter!
You have to develop branding that supports communication to your consumers. Who the hell are they? Who are we? How do we bridge the gap? Creating a brand persona is how you are going to rock that bridge until the gap is filled.
A brand persona is a visual and vocal way to represent your company’s identity. It’s creating a fictitious personality really. Only, it’s not fictitious to you right? This is your living, breathing livelihood. It’s how you are going to stand out, talk to and capture your audience. This persona sets the strategic stage for your print and digital pathway. So let’s get down to brass here…
You need to identify not only your brand persona but also your targeted consumer’s persona. It’s more advantageous for the growth of your endeavor to identify both so we know what we’re really dealing with and every effort is calculated.
There are key elements to consider when developing your brand persona, and just think in reverse when creating your consumer personas (and there can be more than one on the consumer side):
-
- Purpose: The why. What problem are you trying to solve or how are you making an experience better for your consumer? (What’s your point?)
- Vision: (Long term) How does achieving your goal look? What does success look like to you, your customers, the industry. How will it impact others? (Who cares?)
- Mission: (Daily) How are you going to achieve your vision? What does your brand wake up and try to deliver everyday? (No commitment issues)
- Values: What do you stand for? Think of the key attributes (simple as picking 3 as a North Star) that best align with your purpose, vision and mission. (Do you even lift, bro?)
- Positioning: How are you different from the competition? What unique attributes do you bring to the table? (I’m not like the other guys)
These exercises, if properly researched and executed, are surprisingly challenging. Power through and you will be glad you did. And don’t be discouraged if you find your competition has much in common. In life, the best people we gravitate to have many of the same desirable traits, but that doesn’t take away from their uniqueness. If you have a clear, strategic direction of where you want to go and who you want to serve, there will always be a market that will resonate with your brand.
Give us a call. We’re worth it.
DESIGNTHIS! has spent decades assisting companies in exploring, identifying and actualizing their brand direction. Contact us for more information on how we can assist creating a clear road map for your brand growth!