Genesis…the first stride
Build your Brand, Build your Business
The biggest challenge faced by businesses today is that of gaining a sustainable competitive advantage in a crowded marketplace. To achieve this, each firm needs to make the most of its under-utilized asset – its BRAND.
The management of a firm must develop a strategy to move in this direction. It must find out ways to distinguish itself from its competitors in a way that is meaningful to the potential clients. A brand promise can be made simply by saying, “We will be easy to work with”. However, the tougher part is to deliver on the promise the firm has made.
A brand goes beyond being just an attractive logo, a catchy slogan, a trade name or a website. A firm’s brand touches all aspects of a business from market awareness to its reputation. A brand is the way in which a customer perceives and experiences a product, service or company.
A brand makes it easier for the firm to attract customers. They can easily recognize a firm’s products and services through the brand, which increases loyalty and hence, increases business. A brand also sets standards for the firm itself. The expectations of the consumers enhances due to brand building, and the firm, in order to survive, needs to provide that level of service as is expected by the consumer. In other words, a firm needs to achieve the consumer expectations set by it in order to be successful.
Maintaining a large and loyal customer base, however, is not the only impetus behind building a brand. A correctly framed and positioned brand pulls the right kind of talent to the firm. With the right kind of talent, the firm has manifold chances of being successful, as compared to a firm having not quite the required talent pool. Thus, the message sent out by a brand plays a huge role in the way potential recruits see the firm, its vision, values and culture, and has the power of attracting the best of the lot.
And, the importance of branding doesn’t end here. Whether a firm is launching a new product, revamping its strategy, entering new markets or collaborating with another firm, a brand’s role in all these situations is unequivocal.
Like all other coins, the coin of branding also has a flipside. Branding, though highly advantageous, has a plethora of challenges associated with it too. For one, building a brand involves huge costs. Building a powerful brand is of paramount importance and requires huge market research and analysis so that the brand reflects just the right message. Living up to the standard set by the brand is also an uphill task for firms. Finally, the brand must be consistent with the firm’s core vision.
Branding is, thus, a desirable as well as a challenging part of building businesses. Without question, brand building is critical for the success of a firm. After all, a brand is a promise to your customers – no business can afford to go wrong with that!
