When you think of any large company, its brand is most likely the first thing to come to mind. As a matter of fact, there are very few successful businesses that do not have a prominent brand and it's difficult to imagine how a company could become big and successful without investing in its image and creating an identity for itself.
Despite this, many small businesses and internet businesses do not take the necessary time to create a strong brand and a strong identity that they can use to drive their organization forward. Why? Often it comes down a lack of understanding. Not only do many businesses and entrepreneurs not understand how branding works; many also do not understand just how important branding is.
Companies With No Identity
It's not hard to find companies that lack brands when you look online – or that have not invested the right time or effort into their branding. These are the websites that look horribly bland and generic: probably with dark blue and black writing on a white background. Their company name is something like 'Johnson and Smith Co' and their logo is probably some dull blue writing spelling out that company name. Oh and it's probably a low res JPEG image too.
It does not exactly scream excitation and it calls to mind an image of a couple of burly blokes who put together an uninspired business with no aims of growing. They provide their service, no bells attached and then they move onto the next client.
It's actually kind of depressing …
Companies With LOTS of Identity
Now think about the companies that have become international house-hold names. These companies have exciting names like Apple, Adidas, Nike, Microsoft, Disney, Nintendo, Red Bull, Starbucks, and they have interesting and unique logos. Many of these logos have gone on to become almost cultural symbols and are now emblazoned on t-shirts and scrawled onto homework diaries around the world.
The websites are in-keeping with this, so are the adverts and even the products conform to an identity. People look for these brands now as a sign of quality and because they know what to expect. Some people even consider themselves 'fans' of these brands and get behind them 100%. People just do not feel that way about companies like 'Johnson and Smith Co'.
Brands make you recognizable, they make it far easier to monetize and they give your business a cohesive vision that will drive you forward and that will win you fans. This is the power of branding and this is what we're going to learn how to do for your own business.
