5 Tips to Maintain and Sustain Your Brand
How do you maintain and sustain your brand in the marketplace? If you look at the land of the giants, there are common threads sewn into a history of consistency and clarity of message. The big brands know who they are and what they promise and they stick to it, from the visual to the interpersonal, while enhancing it as needed for transition and growth.
Some companies have maintained and sustained their brand so well that you can identify their products or marketing without seeing the company name attached (think Apple, Coca-Cola, Nike, Playstation, Tiffany & Co, etc.).
But if you’re not competing as a global brand, how do you maintain and sustain a brand that is memorable and lasting? You don’t have to be a giant to create a successful brand. Follow these five tips to maintain and sustain your brand, whether you’re a business owner, healthcare service provider, or marketing for a K-12 school.
Manage and protect your brand
Document your brand standards and stick to them. We recommend a style guide that includes your colors, logos, fonts and appropriate usage of each (including accessibility guidelines!). Include your key messages, taglines, and any specific language that defines who you are
Keep it consistent, and keep it fresh
Create a brand identity that is consistent across all channels, from your website to your social media accounts and marketing materials. This will help ensure that customers recognize and remember your brand. If you find yourself too limited in options, consider a brand expansion that adds additional designs to your toolkit.
Key messages and graphics may evolve over time. Honor tradition, but don’t be afraid to make changes when you need to stay modern. If your logos or messages are becoming outdated, consider a brand refresh that both honors your history and moves you forward.
Root your brand deeply in the hearts and minds of your team
A successful brand is driven by people who believe in it and represent it well, so make sure your employees know your brand, your key messages, and your values. Share with them the story and the mission behind your brand and why it’s important to carry out your brand promise. Our favorite thing to ask at CEL is, “Who is on your marketing team?” The correct answer? Everyone.
Stay true to your brand promise
You can speak your brand messages clearly all day long, but if you don’t follow through and deliver, it’s all for nothing. Brands tend to suffer when companies go through a lot of change and customer dissatisfaction, so stay true and follow through with your brand promise. If you’re struggling to define what your brand promise is (and what your brand is altogether), give us a call. We’d love to help you and your community tell your story.
“Your brand carries your story. It’s a supporting actor. The unspoken way you present yourself,” shares Anna Ingemann, CEL Graphic Designer. “There are unspoken nuances in how you present yourself to the world; we help clients identify what’s working and what’s not. We can perform an audit on your communications, messaging, and visuals to be certain your brand shares the values you have. And often it’s adding aspects to your brand, refining or evolving your messaging, getting at the core of who you are.”
Create a strategy for maintaining and sustaining your brand
Don’t just put your brand out there and hope for the best. Make sure to measure the performance of your brand in order to identify areas for improvement. Use analytics tools to track key metrics such as website traffic, engagement, and conversion rates. If you don’t set goals and make a plan for your brand, you have no roadmap to reach the success that you envision. Be clear about your target market and speak clearly to it, but keep your messaging fluid to meet demand. And always be open to new opportunities.
Want to learn more? Read our blog: Build Loyalty By Expanding Your Brand.
Build Loyalty By Expanding Your Brand
Your brand has seven seconds to make an impression.
No pressure.
So, what is a brand and why is it so important to make an impact in 7 seconds? It may seem like your brand only consists of elements like your logo and colors, but your brand is actually the entire identity of your organization.
Published on: October 9, 2013