Establishing your Brand Image

The goal of a business is for when a customer thinks of a product or service they offer.., is the customer instantly thinks of them. This is how customer loyalty and repeat business is established. It is also through this image that word of mouth and referral business is gained. Once it is well enough established even people that have never used your business will seek it out because of the belief you may meet their needs.

What is your image?

If you cannot answer that question without much thought then it is very unlikely customers or potential customers can either. Image is more than just how you want to be thought of like “trustworthy” or “good value”. You obviously want thoughts like that associated with you but there needs to be a “you” to associate that with. Branding is the process that enables people to associate those thoughts with your business.

Establishing an Image

To effectively establish an image you should engage the customer on as many levels as possible. When a person searches their memory for something the more ways to reference the memory the better the recall of that memory. If the idea is to make people remember you giving numerous points for them to reference is most effective.

The first and simplest is visual. This is the reason for a logo. It is a simple visual reminder to aid in recall. Many times people cannot remember the name of a company but can describe the logo with great detail. It also allows for ready identification of your company from a competitor making similar sales offers.

Auditory recall is the reason for the jingles you hear on radio and TV advertising. Ideally they will incorporate the company name and a primary service or product. Think how many times you have tried to remember the name of a company and did so by singing the jingle in your mind in the process. Though we all make fun of the silly jingles they are extremely effective.

It is more difficult to involve the other senses in media exposure however it can be done. If part of slogan or commonly used advertising references smell or feel then people will begin to associate. As an example might be a bakery that always mentions “smells of fresh baked bread” in advertising or logo people will begin to make that reference independently.

Making the Image Stick

Once you have determined a unique image you want to use as your branding message you need to make people identify it with you. This is done through repetition and association. Use the logo in all advertising and correspondence. Make sure the logo is not only used as the header of your stationary or webpages and emails but in a smaller form whenever your company name is used. If you have a jingle use it as the tagline under the image in headers and make it so it will play on your website.

For other associations such as scent or feel include it regularly throughout printed materials online or traditional print sources. It is far better for people to think it is a little corny than to not remember you at all.

Reinforcement of Image and Brand

As well as in advertising materials to get people to look at and buy your product or service make certain they see it again after they have purchased. Use it prominently in all after sale correspondence and on invoices. This not only builds brand, it establishes trust by implying you stand by the service provided.

Use of branded packaging materials makes the box they receive in the mail more noticeable and a reminder. As a bonus boxes often get reused or stored for long term reminders. Even more effective for this is through branded bags that get seen by many people and reused many times. You can buy plain or printed paper carrier bags with your logo for this purpose.

These simple tips will make sure that when your customer thinks of the service you provided to them they will be able to remember who you are.