Every business needs to establish (and assert) itself as a brand. Whether this means trademarking a logo, patenting a product, or creating marketing material that speaks to a target audience, it’s an essential step in creating a successful entity.
In today’s commerce-driven world, branding is what sets businesses apart from their competitors. We’re going to explore why branding is so important, and how it affects the success of a business.
WHY EVERY BUSINESS IS ALREADY A BRAND
You may not think of your business as inherently being a brand, but the rest of the world does. Indeed, what the rest of the world see is your trademark.
The way that consumers, customers, and clients perceive your business has a huge influence over whether they trust you, how they relate to you, and whether or not they want to invest their precious time and energy with you.
Brands communicate an identity, an ethos, a message. And that message is crucial to setting yourself apart from competitors and attracting your ideal target audience. In addition to being a legitimate operation, your business is already a brand if:
- You have a logo or an emblem
- You have a website
- You have a vision for your business’ future
- You put effort into how your business is presented to the external world
If even just one or two of these components can be applied to your business, your brand already exists— and now it’s time to start curating an identity and mission that serves it well.
HOW BRANDING FORGES CUSTOMER CONNECTIONS
There are some surprising similarities between regular human relationships and the relationship that exists between a customer and a brand. Loyalty, trust, communication, and a healthy dose of connection makes them thrive.
Customers are just people, driven to connect with the world around them. If your business plays its cards right, it can become something people use to find that connection in their lives and hopefully share with others, too.
However, they’ll need some help with understanding who you are, and why you think you can play a role in their day-to-day lives—that’s where branding comes in. Branding helps to refine the appearance of a business, make it less distant or corporate and more relatable, comprehensible, and… well, human.
The more cohesive, graspable, and relatable your business’ identity is, the easier it will be for customers to connect with your mission and generate a desire to be a part of it.
Brands also need to understand how to connect with their customers to provide them with the value they both crave and expect.
The more you understand about your brand and how customers perceive it, the easier it will be for you to deliver relevant, high-quality products and services to them, ultimately driving up sales, customer satisfaction, and engagement.
THE EMOTIONAL IMPACT OF A BRAND’S TRADEMARK
Emotions and branding are closely intertwined. Marketers use the natural power of emotional provocation to influence buyer decisions and create content that appeals to their target audience’s ego, aspirations, needs, and general emotional state.
A 2022 study found that consumers who have an emotional connection to a brand have a lifetime value increase of 306%, and are likely to recommend that brand at the high rate of 71%, as opposed to the average of 45% pertaining to low-emotional engagement consumers.
The study went on to discover that 82% of consumers with a strong emotional connection to a brand will remain loyal when making future purchase decisions. Evidently, tapping into the subconscious mind of a consumer is one of the most effective ways to foster lasting, loyal relationships with them.
THE ECONOMIC REWARDS OF GREAT BRANDING
One of the many rewarding results of great branding and a strong brand name are the economic benefits. With the trust and support of consumers, your business can reap the following rewards, and more:
- Higher market share – Loyal customers recruit more customers for your business, widening the brand’s market share and building up resistance against competitive attacks.
- Lower cost of promotion – Happy, engaged customers will become natural ambassadors for your brand, lowering the costs of advertising and promotion
- Premium pricing – Consumers who have a strong connection to your brand will be willing to pay more for premium products, bulking up both revenue and public stature.
Aside from just refining your public image and ability to engage consumers, good branding amplifies the value of a company and drives economic growth.
CREATING A BRAND IDENTITY THAT IS FAMILIAR AND TRUSTWORTHY
Familiarity and trust are two important components of any brand identity. The whole point of branding is to create intimacy and a connection with consumers. Having the same branding on everything from your website to your invoice templates and packaging creates a familiar thread that resonates with customers and encourages this connection.
But familiarity and consistency aren’t enough. You also need to adopt a friendlier, warmer, and more humble tune.
If your business can display a sense of humanity, it will be much easier to win over the affections of consumers. Being openly inclusive, respectful, and honest will help people relate to you better and give you a much stronger competitive edge against other brands.
These factors become even more crucial if your brand is young. If you lack the time-honored reputation of an older business, people may have a harder time warming up to you. Creating a brand identity that feels safe, familiar, and worthy of the public’s trust is one of the fastest routes to reaching your goals.
A STRONG TRADEMARK ESTABLISHES CREDIBILITY AND CUSTOMER LOYALTY
It’s one thing to present your brand as familiar, trustworthy, and reliable. But delivering on those promises is another. Customers need to witness your brand pull through on its messaging.
Your business can wax lyrical about its ethos of value, connection, and trust endlessly and on multiple platforms. Unless you can back those concepts up with hard-earned, tangible credibility, you won’t reach the level of customer loyalty that you dream of. But providing exceptional service and products will.
When it comes down to it, your business needs the support of stellar services and a strong brand strategy. Together, they make up the formidable double-edged sword of business success that will drive your company into the future with charisma and strength.
If your business can display a sense of humanity, it will be much easier to win over the affections of consumers. Being openly inclusive, respectful, and honest will help people relate to you better and give you a much stronger competitive edge against other brands.
These factors become even more crucial if your brand is young. If you lack the time-honored reputation of an older business, people may have a harder time warming up to you. Creating a brand identity that feels safe, familiar, and worthy of the public’s trust is one of the fastest routes to reaching your goals.
Speak with a Trademark Attorney
Registering your trademark correctly from the start is important. Please feel free to reach out and request to speak with one of our trademark attorneys to discuss your idea. We’re here to help.
Have a question? We want to know. Contact a Trademark Lawyer today.
