Why is branding so important?
A company's brand is their promise to the consumer - a promise of a certain experience when using their product or service. The company's brand is reinforced by all touch points to the consumer - the name, logo, tag line, colors, package design, web site, collateral, etc. - encompassing all avenues where the consumer "experiences" the company and its promise.
Creating, developing and maintaining a brand (brand management) is an art. Advertising and design firms are hired worldwide to help companies determine their unique qualities or characteristics to align themselves in the marketplace whereby their personality is "branded" into the consciousness of consumers. |
A brand which is widely known in the marketplace acquires brand recognition. Some company's brand recognition is so strong that consumers actually identify the product by the brand name. For example, many consumers refer to all tissue as Kleenex®, or all copier machines and copies as Xerox®. These brands have achieved brand franchise, where a brand enjoys a critical mass of positive sentiment in the marketplace. |
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Our pop culture today is very brand driven. Most products have some kind of brand identity, from televisions to designer jeans. Even entities which supply ideas or promises rather than product and services (e.g. political parties or religious organizations) are considered "branded".
When a company is branded it adds significant value to the company as branded products or services command higher prices. In today's global and competitive marketplace branding is crucial for a company to differentiate themselves from their competitors in a world where consumers are very price conscious. Where two products resemble each other, but one of the products has no associated branding (such as a generic, store-branded product), people may often select the more expensive branded product on the basis of the quality of the brand or the reputation of the brand owner. Contact us today for your upcoming branding project.
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