Defining The Objectives Of Your Brand Strategy:
It’s critical to define the goals and objectives you wish to accomplish when developing a brand strategy. Keeping those in line with your overall brand image will enable you to create a narrative that upholds your fundamental principles. But if you don’t know what you hope to achieve with your brand, it can be extremely challenging to develop a successful strategy and determine how well your efforts are working.
Let us guide you with some steps towards defining the goals of your brand strategy:
- Identify your target audience: Before you can specify your objectives, you must have a firm grasp of your target audience. Along with demographic data like age, gender, income, and geography, this includes psychographic data like values, hobbies, and things they are lacking. Setting goals will be easier when you know what is pertinent and important to your target audience.
- Define your brand’s purpose: The purpose of your brand is the reason it exists. It should reflect the values and missions of your organisation, and must be told to your target audience through a story they relate to. This can be a crucial driver of your brand strategy and can aid in the definition of your goals.
- Define SMART goals: Once you’ve determined your target audience and the purpose of your brand, it’s essential to set SMART goals. SMART refers to goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. This might range from raising brand awareness to expanding your consumer base to generating sales. Set strategic goals that are consistent with your overall business objectives and can be tracked and measured.
- Define key performance indicators (KPIs): It’s critical to establish Key Performance Indicators that are in line with your objectives if you want to assess the effectiveness of your brand strategy. Metrics like website traffic, social media engagement, conversion rates, or customer satisfaction are some among them.
- Constantly track and evaluate your progress: Setting goals is only the first step. It’s critical to regularly monitor and assess your progress in relation to your goals and KPIs. This will enable you to pinpoint both your successes and potential improvement areas.
However, a well-thought-out branding strategy is more than simply a logo or tagline; it captures the spirit of a company, defining who you are, what you stand for, and what makes you different from your competitors. In this cut-throat business world where customers are constantly bombarded with valuable options, how do you make them choose your brand?
The key element to brand strategizing is crafting an interesting brand personality. Here’s how you can start with it.
How To Create A Brand Personality?
Defining your brand’s personality entails figuring out the eccentric traits and qualities that make it stand out from the competition. Not only that, your brand must have, as we like to call them, the 3 Vs — voice, value, and vibe.
The term “brand voice” describes the language that a company employs on its website, in its marketing materials, and while interacting with both present and potential customers. A brand voice also speaks of the message your company wants to send out. By combining a brand’s personality with its basic principles, it frequently plays the biggest part in establishing connections with a client base.
Think of it as your mom’s catchphrases or your childhood friend’s laughter. I’m sure something distinct comes to your head. That’s how clear a brand voice should be that it instantly draws your attention, makes a connection and then sticks to your memory.
For example: How “Durex” employs a fun and playful voice to interact with its customers, which goes flawlessly with its brand image.
- Brand Value: Your “Brand value” refers to the reason your company exists. Ask yourself why you are on this path, why you started your business, and where you want it to go. Were you trying to provide a service that no one else was? Were you selling an innovative version of a valuable product? Is your business dedicated towards a cause?
Brand values often determine the criteria you use to decide whether a choice or collaboration suits your company’s objectives, and whether it connects with your community. It can also identify potential clients who have similar beliefs and values. As your brand value most certainly will be distinguished from other companies, it would be one of your brand’s defining factors.
Example: Beliefs and values of “Tata” are: Integrity, Responsibility, Excellence, Pioneering, and Unity. Not only are they well-defined but also visibly reflected in how the brand interacts with the market.
- Brand Vibe: The “Brand Vibe” is all about the emotions you make your customers feel when they are engaging with your products or services. It includes what general aura your website, social media channels, packaging, offices etc. has.
It also consists of the narrative you convey about your brand on pivotal occasions. The art of storytelling is a powerful tool, one you can use to your advantage to align your brand’s sentiments about social issues with your audience’s.
Most brands prefer to create a comforting and warm vibe as that establishes trust. But in the digital age where most customers are young, a more playful and fun-loving vibe is being used by the smarter brands to create the relatability factor, even if that means sometimes going against their overall brand image.
For example: The way “Mumbai Police Department” shares funny memes and witty posts to convey their serious messages.
Apart from turning your brand into a living, breathing entity that your audience cares about, there are some more ideas you can draw on to add to your brand strategy.
One of them is to always be genuine and open with your consumers. In the modern digital era, it is more important than ever to be transparent with your customers. People are more cynical than before and are adept at detecting dishonesty. Being open and sincere helps promote loyalty and trust among your target market.
Lastly, consistency is key. Whether it’s delivering your product and services in its highest quality, or reflecting the same image in every element of the brand to keep them thinking of us. Like the way McDonald’s has us thinking of it every time we see an “M” stamped on anything yellow coloured.