So you’ve heard the importance of branding and brand recognition. You’ve been told that it’s one of the most important business aspects of your business. But, what exactly is branding? And wait – is branding the same thing as a brand?

If you do a quick Google search on these questions, you’ll be sure to find a ton of articles, definitions, and explanations. But in my humble opinion, branding is the both the personality of your business and the overall feeling that your customer or client experiences from all points of interaction with your business. This includes the visual elements and the voice of your business.

WHY BRANDING MATTERS:

• First impressions matter, but it’s also important to provide consistency through all stages of your customer’s journey with your business
• It builds trust, which in turn increases the value of your service/product
• Makes your content and products/services recognizable
• Builds confidence in both your customers and you as the the business owner

NOW WAIT A MINUTE, WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BRANDING AND A BRAND?

Well, branding is the strategy and development stage that goes into the final creation of your brand. I know, I know, you aren’t supposed to use the word itself within its explanation, but just follow me here. Branding is the strategic process and a brand is the final product.

Now, an effective brand identity isn’t just the logo on your business card or the colors on your website. Instead, it’s a strategically developed system of visual and written elements that all work together with one goal in mind: to attract and build the trust of your ideal client.

WHAT GOES INTO AN EFFECTIVE BRANDING EXPERIENCE:

• Understanding your target market
• Defining a brand strategy
• Creating a visual identity (this is my favorite part!)
• Defining your brand voice (this blog post is a great place to start)
• Developing brand standards to maintain consistency

When you book a branding package with me, we start out by first defining your target market and building the backbone of your brand strategy. We then take that information and use it as a guide to create visual branding elements (logo, typefaces, colors, website, etc.) that communicate the story of your business. If you’re looking for that extra help developing your brand, I’d love to hear from you!