When starting your own business branding isn’t the first thing on your mind. Although it might seem like something trivial at the beginning, establishing your brand ‘voice’ is an essential part of creating a memorable image and building loyalty among your customers. Your brand is how the public will identify your company, so you have to ensure it is as recognizable and memorable as possible.
Branding is difficult because you can’t afford to make any mistakes. One slight misstep might negatively affect your business for years to come. That’s why it is important to establish your brand from the start and continuously work hard at maintaining it.
This being said, I want to talk about 5 of the most common branding errors that small business owners have to deal with.
1. Being a Follower
One of the worst mistakes you can make as a small business is trying to similar to other business around you, whether that be a larger company or a local competitor. Consumers value a company’s individuality, so your company’s public image should be as unique as possible to ensure it doesn’t look like you are trying to copy someone else.
2. Wrong Name
A company’s name is everything. You want to ensure that you customers can easy talk about your business with out the name interrupting the flow of a casual conversation or being difficult to pronounce.
Furthermore, make sure that the name you pick for your business is unique and not easy to confuse with another business or worse, a competitor.
3. Be Committed
Ensure everyone at the company is onboard with the branding strategy for the company. You don’t want your sales team projecting an entirely different brand image then what the company is trying to establish. This means committing to a single brand identity and carefully cultivating it both within the company and with your customers.
4. Hold Yourself Accountable
There is nothing worse to a consumer then a broken promise. Don’t promise something you can’t deliver, the reputation of your company is on the line. Set realistic expectations so that your customers are never disappointed in your business or your brand.
5. Know Who You Want As a Customer
Don’t try to please everyone! Consumers are diverse and change their tastes quickly, so don’t base your brand around a trend that might be gone next week. The image you create for you business should be durable and able to stand the test of time.
Overall, the most important aspect is that you protect your brand. Ensure that every decision is made with your brand image and positioning in mind. Just because you’re a small business doesn’t mean you can leave your brand up to chance.
We know that it might seem trivial to go through this process, but once you are an established business it is much harder to shape who you are and what you are all about. So get it done from the beginning so you have a strong foundation for your business to grow and prosper.
Has this motivated you to get your businesses branding done, but don’t know where to start? We’d love to help you figure it out. Give us a call at (888)482-1313.