We procured and contracted a branding company to design and create our new brand for home accessories. A great shining team presented two options for the new brand. This was when my client and the new business owner asked the critical question: which should I choose for my new business? My answer to this was the one that helps you find your seat among other strategic brands. Building a brand can’t be taken lightly, so it’s essential to have a firm idea of what you want to accomplish and how. Let’s walk you through what you need to know about strategic brands and how to build yourself one to set your business up for success.
What are strategic brands?
A strategic brand gets recognized easily and quickly by customers. As Vice Chairman David Aaker puts it:
A strategic brand is one with strategic importance to the organization. It is a driver of reputation, differentiation, loyalty, sales and cash flow.
David Aaker, Vice Chairman
A strategic brand is one that has a powerful identity, boosting the overall brand perception and performance. Take Coca-Cola as an example. Wherever you go, you can smoothly identify and spot the products Coca-Cola labels as strategic.
When you construct your business to form strategic brands, you build an audience that automatically associates with your brand. Also, your customers choose you among other competitors within your industry.
Why aim for strategic brands?
But why is it essential to aim to form strategic brands in your business?
Your strategic brand will help you achieve a couple of things:
- Consistency: your marketing strategies and campaigns will set the guidelines that tell the same story every time you are out there in the business market. This eliminates any confusion for both your team and customers.
- Differentiation: your value proposition will surely be the core of your strategic brand and this sets you apart from other actors in the same industry.
- Customers’ Perception: your unique identifiable brands will consistently build a strong relationship with your customers. They will feel associated with a well-founded identity they can gladly tell others about. Needless to say, your customers will keep buying your new releases and unique pieces with this in mind.
The Recipe
So, what now?
I will help you know the ingredients of strategic brands to get you on board. As a business owner, you need to understand the elements of strategic brands when you are out there in the market. However, I also encourage you to seek help building your strategic brand! I will reinforce that in the last section of this post.
The ingredients of the strategic brand recipe can change from one groups to the other. The below elements are what I told my client to focus on (the one I told you about earlier in the post when we had our first brand identification meeting)
1. Tagline: The few magical words associated with your brand
The few keywords you choose to add under your logo can do magic! Using these words that align with your logo, tone, and campaigns stick in the minds of your customers. Your tagline is strongly connected to your brand story (we will talk about that few lines away). In our meeting, both brand identities that the service provider was proposing to us had the same tagline. Why? because the story remains unchanged.
2. Persona: Where’s the human element in your strategic brand?
Always give your customers a HUMAN element to relate to. Your brand needs to display this human element in a unique and differentiated way. Your business aims to create value for people and you need to showcase this when planning your branding.
3. The Story: How can you help me remember yours among other strategic brands?
Your story is the solution you provide to the customers to solve their problems. Turning your brand to a story that customers will remember and relate to is vital in creating a strategic brand.
“If you can harness imagination and the principles of a well-told story, then you get people rising to their feet amid thunderous applause instead of yawning and ignoring you.”
Get help!
As an entrepreneur and business owner, you must create a strategic brand to ensure continuity and sustainability. I want you to know that I constantly encourage you to learn more about the topic or steps you intend to follow in your business. However, I would like to encourage you to seek help designing and creating your strategic brand. Brand developers and designers are really beneficial in helping you achieve that. They hear you out and understand your vision and goals very well. Then, they innovate in their way and come up with brand-new ideas that are worth spending all the money on! You should find someone friendly and professional to help you develop our strategic brand. Also, please remember that brand developers must be very aware of your business industry’s context to be most helpful.
If you need any help understanding more about strategic brands and how you can benefit from it as a business owner and entrepreneur, we can help!
Meet The Author Of This Article
I’m Jenny Ayman, a project manager in the development field with specific knowledge and experience in capacity building and entrepreneurship programs. I aspire to transfer the hands-on experience I gain in my professional career through writing.
Also, if you need help planning your business, I recommend checking out some of our freelancer’s business plans or pitch decks!