{"id":2867,"date":"2021-04-11T13:05:02","date_gmt":"2021-04-11T13:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bemoreyouonline.com\/?p=2867"},"modified":"2023-11-21T21:59:07","modified_gmt":"2023-11-21T21:59:07","slug":"what-is-a-brand-strategy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bemoreyouonline.com\/what-is-a-brand-strategy\/","title":{"rendered":"What is a Brand Strategy & 5 reasons you need one"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A brand strategy is like a roadmap for your business; it guides you every step of the way. It’s something that all businesses should have, regardless of size or industry type.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we’ll dive deep into what is a brand strategy and look at five important reasons why having one can help any business achieve its goals. We’ll also explore creating an effective brand strategy, even if you\u2019re a small business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’re stuck on where to start when creating a successful branding plan, don’t worry \u2013 this guide has got you covered. With these helpful insights and guidance, you can craft a powerful brand strategy fit for your business’s mission. So let\u2019s get started!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is Brand Strategy?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A brand strategy<\/a> is a plan for how you want your company to be seen by the world. It clearly lays out your company mission, vision and values, defines your market position, what you stand for and what makes you different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A brand strategy is the way that we communicate what our business stands behind and believes in, as well as who it wants its customers or clients (or both) to become over time with their products\/services being used by them on an ongoing basis.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\nAndrew Davis<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

A well-crafted brand strategy can be invaluable to any organisation that wants to stand out from competitors and make a lasting impact on its target market. It\u2019s not just the preserve of big brands. It can help businesses of any size create a clear and cohesive brand experience, improve their marketing efforts and generate more revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your brand strategy can help you deliver a consistent message across all channels \u2014 from your website and social media accounts to advertising campaigns \u2014 so that customers know exactly what to expect when interacting with your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can create customer trust by crafting an effective brand strategy by delivering a consistent and cohesive brand experience. This builds loyalty over time, leading to increased sales and improved customer satisfaction. A strong brand strategy can help your business achieve long-term success while creating powerful connections between you and your audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Definition: Brand Strategy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A brand strategy is a detailed plan that outlines how an organisation plans to position itself in the market. It defines target customers, their needs, and how the company can meet them while communicating its vision and achieving its mission and goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A successful brand strategy helps businesses differentiate themselves from competitors and attract new customers with a clear message about why they should choose them over other options available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In essence, a Brand strategy should clearly articulate What you do, how you do it, why you do it, who you do it for and what you want them to think, feel and do when it comes to your business.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By having a well-crafted brand strategy in place, organizations can ensure they remain competitive in the marketplace while staying true to their core values. Furthermore, developing such a plan can help preserve consistency across all communications channels and build trust among potential customers as they come to know your business better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The importance of brand strategy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As we’ve seen, developing a comprehensive brand strategy is key to a successful business. But why should companies invest in creating one? Your brand strategy will highlight ways to connect the dots between where you are and where you want to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without a brand strategy, you\u2019ll lack clarity and could get pulled off course. Decisions that made are often subjective or without clear reasoning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With a clear brand strategy, it\u2019s easy to see which decisions make sense for the business and which don\u2019t. Here are just some of the ways that a strong brand strategy can benefit your business:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Consistency<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Your brand strategy defines how your brand should look, act, talk and show up in the world in alignment with your vision and values. Adopting your brand strategy as rules to live by will create a consistent experience for your target market. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also use your brand strategy to achieve a consistent approach across your brand voice, brand visuals and all elements of your brand identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A powerful brand strategy allows you to easily develop elements such as logo design, typography, colours and imagery that serve as visual cues for customers to recognise your product or service quickly, among others in the industry. Furthermore, creating a style guide establishes clear rules about how these branding elements should be used throughout different communication channels, ensuring maximum effectiveness at all times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Developing clear guidelines on how each communication channel should look, feel and sound ensures consistency across all marketing efforts. This way, customers always know what to expect when engaging with your products or services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Building Trust<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Consistency builds trust, as do brands with strong values. Your brand strategy should lay out how you reflect those values through your brand and make it clear how you will deliver on your brand promise and meet and exceed expectations to build trust with your audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Gaining Clarity and direction<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There’s nothing worse than a business without direction. Without clarity, every decision becomes something to agonise over; once you have clarity around your vision and mission and a clear strategy to get there, it becomes easier to make decisions that align with your goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A comprehensive branding strategy ensures everyone within your business understands its mission and core values. With clearly defined objectives, companies can make better decisions while always staying true to their identity. Moreover, such plans create structure around launching new products or services into the market by providing an existing foundation upon which you can build.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Focussed messaging<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A clear brand strategy allows you to target specific customer segments more effectively with tailored messages. When done correctly, this will help your company stand out from market competitors and increase sales. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Translating your vision<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another benefit of having a brand strategy is how easy it makes translating what you want and need when working with copywriters, photographers, graphic designers, printers, interior designers, event designers and other 3rd party suppliers of your business. Your brand strategy provides both a written and visual guide to your vision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, investing in crafting a powerful brand strategy provides many benefits that far outweigh its costs over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 Reasons You Need A Brand Strategy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A brand strategy is essential for businesses of any size that are seeking to build and scale their brand and create an impact. For intentional and purpose-led businesses, it\u2019s the cornerstone of business and brand planning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not only does it provide a sense of direction for your business, but it also serves as a strategic plan that helps to guide decisions and activities moving forward. Here are five reasons why you need one:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Stand out from your competitors with a unique and memorable brand.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A clear and well-defined positioning will make it easier for your audience to see how you are different, whether it\u2019s what you offer, the way you offer it or just based on the values that your business stands for. When your visuals, messaging and brand execution focus on what makes you uniquely different, you stand out from the crowd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A strong, cohesive strategy will help you to create an identity that is recognisable from the outset \u2013 with consistency; you can create a memorable presence that lives in the hearts and minds of your audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Create a clear and consistent message.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Having a well-crafted brand strategy ensures consistency across all marketing efforts. Consistency builds recognition and trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By setting clear guidelines about how each communication channel should look and sound, you avoid confusing your customers while ensuring you always stay true to your core values. Additionally, this type of plan allows you to target different audience segments with tailored messages that appeal to them directly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Create a visual identity aligned with your vision, mission and ideal client.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Since most humans use sub-conscious visual cues to process information, it helps create a visual identity that differentiates you from competitors. You can create an impression of reliability and professionalism with the right branding elements\u2013such as logo design, colours, typography, and imagery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With a clear brand strategy, you can make decisions steeped in psychology and logic and remove the guesswork and subjectivity of design. This will help customers easily recognise your product or service compared to others on the market. When your brand delivers on your target audience\u2019s expectations, you become recognisable, credible and trusted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Craft a customer experience that is consistent and aligned with your mission.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When you allow your brand strategy to guide your customer experience, you create an environment where meeting your customer\u2019s needs is front and centre and in line with your shared values and your mission. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can use your brand strategy as a compass to guide your decisions, asking yourself questions like \u201cwill my clients value this?\u201d and \u201cdoes this align with the business goals and values?.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can censor-check whether your customer experience aligns with your mission as a business or if it detracts from the important work you\u2019re trying to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Future-proof your brand <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Finally, establishing a solid brand foundation makes it easier to develop long-term strategies, such as launching new products or services into the market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since customers already have an idea of what your company stands for, transitioning into new areas becomes less complicated as there\u2019s no need to reinvent yourself every time something changes within the business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By investing in crafting a comprehensive brand strategy, businesses can ensure they have taken every necessary step towards success without sacrificing their core values along the way. It\u2019s no wonder why so many successful organisations invest heavily in developing detailed plans before entering any market \u2013 because they understand just how important it is. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Knowing this now puts us in good stead for understanding what goes into making a solid branding effort; let’s explore further by looking at some key foundational elements of a successful brand strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Foundations of a comprehensive Brand Strategy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Creating a clear brand strategy is one of the most important steps for any business, as it serves as a roadmap to ensure success in an increasingly competitive market. Knowing and understanding the key elements that make up this strategic framework is essential if you want your company\u2019s branding efforts to yield maximum results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my next-level you brand strategy mentoring sessions<\/a>, I take you through my brand strategy framework to craft an intentional and aligned strategy for your brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whilst there\u2019s no definitive list of what should be included, here are some strong foundational elements to include in your brand strategy:<\/p>\n\n\n\n