Image is Everything

By: Aruna Inalsingh

Your company’s branding is symbolic of what your company represents. It can be as simple as your company name or a specific color, or it can be more like the traditional logo, slogan, or design scheme. Regardless of the form of branding you’re using, the key to your brand value is its consistent use. You want your prospects and clients to see your brand in everything you do, and when they see your brand you want them to innately understand what your brand means.

We tend to think of brands as visual items, prevalent on websites, business cards, and stationery. Don’t forget that your brand should also be on emails, proposals, and presentations –things that we don’t typically think about. Also equally important, YOU should represent your brand, as should your work. So if your brand represents high quality, then EVERYTHING you do should represent high quality. All of your phone conversations should be high quality – even to telemarketers! And when you’re budgeting for your marketing programs, you must make the tough decision of choosing FEWER high quality programs over MANY lower quality programs – a difficult decision because not having enough marketing repetition detracts from the high quality of your program. That’s why it’s important for you to understand what your brand really means. It’ll help you have realistic expectations of yourself and your organization, so that everyone can live up to your brand ideals.

Remember too, that things change. Branding images and company missions can become outdated. So it’s healthy to assess these business fundamentals on a regular basis to remind yourself who you are supposed to be, if you are meeting your expectations, and if it’s time for a change. There’s nothing wrong with a strategic shift that allows your business to grow – from both a company mission and brand perspective.

Brands are usually refreshed by creating variations of the original look-and-feel. For example, when start-up companies become more established, they change their branding by use rounder and heavier fonts. Or when companies go from brick-and-mortar to an online presence, they start using more square computer-like or forward-moving fonts. However, unless you’re experienced in brand design, it’s not expected that you would know how to refresh your brand. That’s why there are many tremendous brand resources for you to utilize. Three that I can immediately think of are brand consultants, graphic designers, and your competitors! Take advantage of these experts, and if it’s not in the short-term budget, don’t be afraid to copy and IMPROVE what’s already out there! And once you’ve got your re-energized brand, use it as another good reason to promote yourself and your company. And don’t forget to make sure that it is represented in everything you communicate.