5 Steps to Branding Your Business

by Guest Poster: Susan Gunelius

Today I am featuring a guest poster whom I have had the pleasure of working with for only a short while. She is one of my fellow bloggers here at b5media and is also a peer blogger of mine over at Know More Media. A very detailed and thorough writer, Susan Gunelius brings a fresh, innovative voice to the world of branding and marketing and keeps readers’ attention by weaving her own insights and opinions into the principles of marketing. Although Susan is a very busy blogger, author, writer and mom (to triplets!), she took time out of her very busy and hectic schedule to provide information on branding principles to us. I hope you enjoy her work as much as I do. Look forward to hearing more from her as we feature her here on Biz Chicks Rule. Enjoy!

Every business has a brand image attached to it. The role of the business owner is to determine what you want your brand image to be, and then define a strategy to make the brand image a reality. Following are five steps to help you get started with a plan to build a brand for your business.

1. Research the market: Before you can begin thinking about your own brand, you need to understand the state of the market in which your business operates. Until you understand the existing market, you can’t fully define where you want your brand to be positioned within that market. Take the time to investigate the market, your competition, threats and opportunities. Then sit down and evaluate where your business fits in the existing market and where you want it to fit going forward. That’s your business’ position in the market. Once you know your position, you can define a branding strategy to accurately reflect that position.
2. Define your branding strategy: Ask yourself how you want your business to be perceived by customers. The answer to that question determines the goal of your branding strategy. Next, you need to map out the steps to get to that goal. How do you need to present your business through marketing communications, employee communications, customer service, etc. to gain the reputation that will lead you to reaching your branding goal? Outline the tactics you need to take to build that reputation, and your brand image will develop organically in the minds of consumers.
3. Consider long term objectives up front: A dangerous error that is commonly made in the early stages of defining a branding strategy relates to being too short-sighted in outlining your goals. Take into account not just short term goals but also long-term, stretch goals as you develop your brand strategy. For example, don’t choose a brand name for your business or product that doesn’t allow for future growth to various target audiences. While a new company may only cater to female employees in the beginning, that strategy could change dramatically as the business grows. The Women’s Business might not be the right name for a company ten years down the road.
4. Be consistent: Strive to be consistent in all of your communications and business touch points. An inconsistent message from one day to the next or one department to another can destroy all the work you’ve done to develop your brand image. From the representation of your logo and the colors used in your printed materials, to the way employees speak with customers, each part of your business needs to accurately communicate your brand strategy.
5. Don’t give up: Creating a brand takes time. You need to be relentless in building your brand image and presence in the market. That means you have to be persistent in communicating your brand at every opportunity.

You can read more about building a brand in these posts on Brandcurve.com: Five Rules for Effective Branding, 3 Steps to Develop Your Brand Position Organically.

Susan Gunelius has over a decade of experience managing and executing marketing programs for some of the largest companies in the world, including divisions of AT&T and HSBC. Currently, she works as a published author, freelance writer and professional blogger. She writes three business-related blogs, Brandcurve, MarketingBlurb, and WomenOnBusiness. She is also the Guide to Web Logs for About.com (a New York Times company). Susan’s personal website is located at SusanGunelius.com.