Building a brand's recognition takes time and effort; a unique brand that captures the essence of your company requires a lot of careful consideration and planning. Constant effort goes into branding – or should go into branding – which you can see in your use of social media, newsletters, emails, and your website.
While you're busy spreading the word about your company online and in person, it's important to know what you shouldn't do as well as what you should. A lot of simple branding errors are made all the time, but they're all avoidable. Read on to find out more.
Not Having A USP
Why should people choose your product above the competition? Your unique selling proposition (USP) is the reason. Make sure that your USP is prominent in all of your marketing materials. When your product or service is identical to the competition's, it might be difficult to earn customers' trust and loyalty, so they need to see and understand your USP immediately in all your branding.
Following Trends
Anchoring your brand to a trend simply because it is a trend runs the risk of diluting your brand's significance once that trend has passed. You want your company's name to last for a very long time and to remain relevant to consumers. In order to stay relevant, you may need to rebrand, and that's not easy or cheap. If you have to do this, you'll be diverting resources from other areas of your organization.
It’s far better to find a style of branding that works for your business and, ideally, not one that links to any particular trend or fashion. This will help you keep it for longer, which means it will stick in people’s minds longer. Plus, it will be more cost-effective. You can use it on branded merch, your website, your vehicles, and any paperwork you might give out.
Not Being Inclusive
Even if you run a small business with only local customers, your brand can reach people all over the world because of the internet. You don't want people to think your brand only for a select few.
Make sure to welcome customers from all walks of life by using language that everyone can understand, a wide range of images, and cultural sensitivity. If you have the money, you could even have your website translated into other languages. Always ask your customers for feedback, and do a lot of research before expanding your business to new areas or markets.
Not Proofreading
Branding missteps may be extremely expensive, therefore proofreading is always a good idea. Make sure your content team is always on the lookout for typos and other errors to avoid embarrassing copy mistakes. When doing your last revisions, use a spell checker or editing program. Also, watch your language and sense of humor. After all, jokes sometimes have the potential to be misunderstood, leading to damage to your company's reputation.
Being Too Vague
In advertising, being vague has long been seen as a way to make people curious and interested. But the risk isn't worth it unless you really nail it. People might completely misunderstand what you do if you are too vague with your words, which is something you don't want to happen. Not only will you have to answer the same questions over and over, but you won't be able to set yourself apart from the other candidates. That's a big branding mistake you'll really want to avoid.