To define brand identity, we can look at it on many different levels, from the words and tone of voice you use, to the style of your graphics and images used, to your logo and slogan, to the values you list on the ‘about us’ section on your website. By common definition, it is how you want to portray your business to your customers, investors, employees, and anyone else that matters to you and your business. Brand identity is different to brand image, but they’re intrinsically linked: your positive brand identity translates to a positive brand image.
Having a positive brand image is crucial to a business’s success; it is what keeps the customers coming back for more, it is what keeps them on the lips of the public, and it is, quite frankly, what allows them to charge their premium price tags.
Pretty Privilage
Customers always want the best; no one talks about their dream car being a Ford Fiesta or a Fiat Panda. People want the Lamborghinis, the Porsches, the Bentleys.
Why, when each car can get you from place A to place B in the same amount of time (abiding by speed limit laws)?
Brand Identity.
Lamborghini, Porsche, and Bentley have all successfully constructed a brand identity based on luxury, uniqueness, and forward-thinking. This brand identity has helped them to justify the massive price tags of their cars. As a consumer, you are paying for the brand name and the identity more so than the actual product. It also plays off the supply vs demand game, by developing and marketing a car as an exclusive luxury that is out of many people’s league, you’ve created hype and demand. If Porsches were as mass-produced as Ford, would people care so much?
If you look the part, you must be better, and therefore, you can charge more. It also creates a perception of quality, especially for people who go by the old axiom of ‘you get what you pay for’.
Are You a Cheater?
What brand of sauce do you buy? Which mascara do you always pick up? What make is your phone?
For most people, these questions can be answered by one word, a single brand name.
It is rare that people will answer with several different brands. Perhaps cheating on your preferred brand is seen on the same level as cheating on your partner? Probably not, but with the way some people will argue for Branston Beans over Heinz Beans, it’ll make you stop and think.
The key to all this is gaining customer loyalty. Impress customers with your product and service, and they’ll keep coming back for more.
The Art of Recognition
Do you have consistent branding? Do you stick to one signature font throughout all communication channels? Do you maintain a cohesive brand colour palette throughout all marketing?
Having consistent and distinct branding gets you recognised and remembered by potential customers. Everyone knows the classic Coca-Cola red, McDonald’s golden M, and Tiffany Blue. Being able to essentially ‘claim’ a colour and be constantly associated with it is probably the best branding you can get.
Back in roughly 2012, there was a fascination with an app called ‘The Logo Quiz’, which would show users part of a brand’s logo, with parts either taken out or obscured, and the goal was to guess as many correctly as possible. If your logo was guessed easily, this was great news for brands, as they now know they have a distinct and clear brand identity.
Build Your Own Brand
The most important factor to consider when constructing your brand identity is authenticity. An authentic brand genuinely believes in the words that they preach. If you claim your brand is environmentally friendly and cares about the planet when, in fact, you don’t personally care, this will show transparently through what you do.
We’ve discussed looking the part, but looks are one thing, truly believing is another.
In fact, Edelman’s Trust Barometer 2020 found that 64% of today’s consumers are belief-driven buyers. The report also found that ethical reasons (such as integrity, dependability, and purpose) are 3x more important to company trust than competence.
Aristotle once said, “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom”, and when creating your own brand, this could not be truer. Work with what you know and what you are passionate about, and build upon that to create a true, authentic brand.
A fake-looking brand will create trust issues in both consumers and employees.
Final Thoughts
Whilst looking the part, building loyalty, and being recognisable are all important parts of brand identity, your goal of true brand authenticity should rise above all.
The Millennial and Gen Z armies consist of roughly 139 million people, making up the largest proportion of the online digital market. These are the people who care most about brand authenticity; they want to ‘vote with their money’ by supporting brands that fight for a cause, display a positive message, and are genuine and authentic. You isolate this demographic; you isolate most of your market.
It’s time to think about what your brand stands for, what messages you want to convey, and what’s important to you.
“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation” – Oscar Wilde, De Profundis
