Tag Archives: image building

Building A Brand

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Branding is still the leader for name recognition

Creating a branding campaign is more than doing one ad, or placing a tagline onto your web site.
It is a constant image builder of your company’s name/tagline.

The ultimate goal is to have your brand recognized by your potential and existing customers. But it is important to make sure that the branding is a positive image.

What makes a Brand?
First, you need to identify what makes your company, service or products unique. With Avis, many years ago they positioned themselves as being the #2 car rental company. While everyone was fighting for the top spot, Avis figured out that no one is proud of being second, so they took that position and it worked. The "We Try Harder" campaign is still memorable.

Also a few years ago, 7-up bottling company played on the fact that their product was clean (clear) free of any added chemicals like caffeine, The healthier campaign help to position the "brand" as an alternative to the different and unhealthier colas. The UNCOLA brand made a strong hit.

Build the brand from within the company
Before you get the image to the consumer, or to your B2B clients, you need to start the brand awareness campaign inside the company. This includes the top management from the CEO and President of the company to the receptionist.

Branding includes a variety of things from slogans, to pictures on the walls, how you answer the phone, and the email signatures used in daily correspondence.

Finding that special brand for your company
Building a brand doesn’t happen by chance. And you should not borrow another company’s slogan, or idea to make that your branded image.

Find what separates your company from the industry. What is your USP (Unique Selling Proposition)? Find that one or two points to help create your branding. Don’t go overboard and use this branding campaign throughout the entire office…there is a point of over saturation. Be practical and be proactive when using the branding campaign. It can be your chance in becoming the next 7-up.

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Publicity Can Be Good or Bad

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Make the right decisions

People tend to think that all publicity is great. Well, let’s think this through.

If you align yourself with as controversial subject, or company, or person, then you too will inherit that image.

Here’s a good example. In today’s paper, Cindy Sheehan was posing with Venezuela’s president while she continued to show her protest against president Bush’s war program.

I’m not here to judge her, only pointing out, like Dan Janal did in his blog this morning, that this association puts a major risk on her being compared to Jane Fonda during the Viet Nam war. Is this the type of pr you want for your company? If not, then re-think who you team up with and who your company associates with.

Let me go another step further.

Building a positive brand takes positive association. Begin to build a branding program with "co-op". This term means to align your company with a tie in that will garner you good pr and with a positive brand recognition.

Examples are when United Airlines decided to serve Starbucks coffee in-flight, it gained a lot of good pr and approval by the passengers. You also see this in automobiles that use branded names for their stereo systems to let consumers know they are a quality auto manufacturer. It’s the co-op and association that elevates your brand, or in Cindy’s case, lowers her position.

Build branding faster and in a positive pace by aligning yourself with companies that already have customer acceptance. Have a plan that includes co-op, but don’t just do this as a one shot deal. Have a plan that might include other co-ops throughout the year. Then one day someone will knock on your company door asking to co-op with you. It’s good PR.

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