In the marketing world, we hear a lot about branding – strong branding, branding guidelines, branding voice – the list goes on. And as marketers, we could talk for hours, days and probably weeks about everything that goes into a business’s brand. In the interest of time, we’ll zero in on one specific aspect of branding in today’s blog post: Brand consistency.
First of all, what exactly is a company’s brand? To boil it down, a brand is the feeling evoked by a company. It is the emotion, personality and association a person attaches to a business. One of the most important things you can do after establishing that brand is to keep it consistent across every channel of marketing and external communication piece.
Here’s why:
Brand Consistency Creates Trust
Imagine you walk into a hair salon and have the following experience: The cut is great, the products are average, the receptionist is condescending, the dye job reminds you of a bad Halloween costume, but the décor is nice. You probably wouldn’t really know what to think. That’s because their brand is inconsistent.
When all pieces of the customer experience puzzle line up and match one another, you feel comfortable, safe and a strong affinity to the business. You can count on them to deliver a positive outcome in all aspects, not just a couple. This is what brand consistency can accomplish.
Branding Establishes Familiarity
Think of your favorite department store, and now think of their color scheme, commercial background music and tagline. Without even seeing the company’s name, you would still recognize them in a heartbeat based on their branding aspects. You understand exactly what they’re trying to communicate, and you can distinguish them from their competitors fairly easily.
That’s the power of strong and consistent branding. You don’t have to relearn what a business stands for each time you return – you already understand the game. Customers are drawn to businesses that they know and understand.
Encourages Responsiveness
Lack of branding consistency is confusing and frustrating – plain and simple. When people know what to expect, they feel comfortable interacting with and spreading the word about a brand. Imagine if you have a consistently positive experience at a local restaurant. You will likely be able to talk about the same great service and same great cuisine that customers can expect each time.
As long as customers have a clear idea of what a company represents, they feel empowered to leave a positive review, post pictures on social and call up their friends with a favorable recommendation.
Shows Professionalism
A company that knows their chops also knows how to consistently establish the personality of their chops. Consistent branding translates to the notion that a company has put ample time and effort into communicating a clear and thorough message to their audiences. In other words, they have it together.
You obviously want your business to be viewed as the best in its industry, and your branding should accomplish this. When a brand is communicated with expert precision, it shows, and customers will take notice.
Branding Generates a Strong ROI
All of the above factors result in (one of) the most important things for a successful company: Strong return on investment. Trust and familiarity encourage repeat customers. Repeat customers are responsive on social media and via word of mouth, thus tapping into a new audience. This new audience will then tell their friends (as long as they continue to have a good experience with your company).
The snowball keeps rolling – as do the dollars. Everyone is left with a professional view of and an attachment to your company. Win, win, win.
Branding can be a bit overwhelming – we get that. That’s why the Brindle branding crew is here to help. We’d love to talk about how branding can play into your overarching marketing strategy. Contact us today.
