Brand marketing is these two simple words often put together, yet they have so much meaning. What is brand marketing, though?
Marketers and business owners talk about the term a lot. So, let’s look at what brand marketing is and how to ensure a successful strategy is in place.
Definition of Brand Marketing
Brand marketing is a way for a company to use its brand to promote its product or service. It comes down to when a company uses its brand to tell a story about the product or services that the business is advertising.
However, there is a difference between the words “branding” and “marketing.”
Difference Between Branding and Marketing
The purpose of knowing the difference between the two is so you can use them more efficiently together. Marketing is a way for you to build awareness around your brand.
Although, marketing is also the process of attracting your target audience through several channels of messaging. These channels can include search engine optimization, content marketing, social media, print, video, and more. The purpose of marketing is to get people interested in whatever product or service a company is offering.
Branding is about telling your story and what your company is all about. It is the process that gives meaning to your company, your products, and your services.
You can also look at branding as a strategy. This approach is to assist a business by positioning itself. The purpose of branding is also so consumers can quickly identify and relate to their brand. Overall, the objective of branding is to attract and retain customers.
Together, marketing and branding go hand in hand.
One example of brand marketing is Nike. The company uses its brand to make its customers feel empowered about being active. At the same time, they use marketing to get their loyal customers to be excited about buying a new pair of shoes.
How to Ensure Brand Marketing Success
You might think that brand marketing is only for larger, name-brand companies. However, brand marketing is for businesses of all sizes. You can ensure brand marketing success in just a few simple steps.
1. Know Your Brand Purpose
To understand your brand purpose, you need to know why your brand exists. Get a better understanding by asking yourself these questions:
- Who is my target audience?
- Why should they trust my business?
- How does my brand make them feel?
- What challenges does my brand solve?
- Who is my competition?
- What is my brand’s story? Why was it created?
Understanding your brand’s purpose is the first step to defining your brand’s look and feel. You get to choose the characteristics of your brand to create a persona. Defining your brand’s persona with color palette choice and brand voice are just a few characteristics that build an identity.
2. Understand Your Target Market
Research your target market so you can curate a customer persona. A customer persona is a strategy for describing your perfect customer. While this helps you to understand your target audience, it identifies a picture of your customer. This strategy suggests forming an emotional connection to your audience overall.
For instance, if you were to sell high-end camping gear, you might identify your target audience with a few of these characteristics:
- 25- to 40-year-old men and women who enjoy the outdoors
- They travel a lot, so they value durable camping equipment
You can go into further detail with your customer persona, but at least you have a primary picture of this target audience. To devise a customer persona, you should ask yourself these questions:
- What is the age range of your audience?
- What is their marital status?
- Where are they located?
- What is their job?
- What are their hobbies and interests?
- What is their education level?
- What other stores do they like to shop from?
- What do they value most?
- Why do they need my product or service?
3. Define Your Story
Define your brand’s story and make sure it sells by crafting the right message. Creating a brand story that sells must have a connection between your brand and the audience. A story must also be relevant and engaging.
Storytelling is the way companies can build trust and an online presence. A good story captures the attention of your audience and makes them feel like they are a part of your brand.
4. Understand Your Competition
To understand your competition, you need to know your competitors. Research plays a significant role in positioning your company. This tactic is essential for identifying your differences and focusing on them in your messaging. For example, if your competitors offer fast and cheap services, focus on serving your customers with high-end, quality experiences.
5. Cover Your Brand Guidelines
Once you have a deep understanding of your brand and audience, you can pull everything together. Branding guidelines will effectively tie into a marketing strategy. Guidelines include your colors, brand voice, typography, and more. This strategy is to ensure you carry out branding consistency. Plus, your team will be able to tell your brand story and messaging cohesively.
Brand Marketing Success
What it comes down to regarding brand marketing success is keeping the bigger picture in mind. What is your overall goal with brand marketing? Is it to increase recognition, or are you trying to build a new movement?
Whatever reasoning stands behind it, a brand marketing strategy will keep things simple during your marketing campaigns.
