Recently, I have been giving a lot of thought about branding and its importance, particularly in today's world with the use of social media to build direct relationships with customers. The trend in the past few years is for companies is to establish a social media presence, and social media has come a long way in a short time to meet these needs. As a result of this need or desire to establish these relationships with customers and promote "word of mouth" marketing, companies are establishing instantaneous and closer relationships with consumers or brand champions (those who actively engage with the brand).
Today, many companies have a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube, and other social networking websites. Since consumers can view this information instantaneously, these interactions and representations of the company's brand must be carefully thought through. After all, we would not want to compromise the brand and its integrity. In her article about the use of Instagram, Jessica McLaughlin (1) states that companies must decide which social media websites best align to their business needs and ensure that they devote enough time to this social media website. In this example, companies that use the photographic social media website Instagram must keep imagery fresh and find creative ways to showcase their brand imagery and values without recycling images.
In short, companies should not jump on the social media bandwagon without giving thought into how the particular social media website will help them. In my opinion, there is nothing worse than an 'empty' or 'ghost town' social media page or community that is rarely updated or that is updated with irrelevant content. This is harmful to the brand.
Now that I have discussed the social media impact on a brand, I will discuss the basics of branding and learning to identify mistakes. After all, the company you are working for has probably spent money on a new brand or branding materials, wether this is on business cards, brochures, logo, or a website. I don't need to state how important brand is; that is a lengthy topic of discussion that is beyond the scope of this article.
What is brand? In short, a brand should correctly convey the company and its message to customers in a positive light. The treatment should be consistent and revisited regularly, in line with the goals of the business. There are many examples where companies fail to grasp this concept or ignore the brand guidelines once their brand has been developed and the initial work has been completed; this can be immediately or a few months after the initial release. However, once the style guide and logos have been delivered and the money paid up, there is much more work to be completed. In my opinion, once this work has been done, the fun work in the brand execution is just beginning.
Let's face it. Creating a brand is a time-consuming and expensive task, and following through with the branding correctly and continuing to roll it out consistently, while keeping the brand fresh, is a challenge. It's also a task that should not be taken lightly. The branding exercise does not stop once the new brand has been created. A new brand is not going to miraculously work its way into the subconscious of potential customers and increase sales overnight. Correctly utilising the brand will, and there's much more to the brand than a "pretty logo". The brand should encompass an ideal and uniqueness of the company or product/service.
I've been locating articles and resources to back up my beliefs, and there's a lot of research out there to support this. I have taken the time to list some of these common branding mistakes and have identified some areas where designers and employees should be cautious to avoid common branding mistakes, which reflect poorly on the company.
- Inconsistent Branding. The branding guidelines are interpreted differently across different mediums. For example, the treatment of the brand on the website may be different to the treatment on business cards, signage, or invoices. The way that employees interact with customers may be inconsistent. The branding treatment should always be consistent.
- Failing to Update the Brand. Branding can get stale, and marketing materials should be refreshed and revisited often to ensure that it does not get "tired". This is an ongoing process. Precision Intermedia (1) mentions that some companies print a large order of brochures and use these brochures for several years; by that time, the company or message would have changed. Stale branding does not reflect well. The same can be said about keeping company websites up-to-date.
- Poor Visuals or Signage. Similar to brand inconsistently, companies must ensure that their visuals are pixel-perfect and also translate well in the physical forms. (Keep in mind that logos may be resized or photo-copied.) Due to background colours or sizing issues, a good web designer will always ask a company for the original artwork instead of using a small, grainy and pixelated GIF or JPEG logos at the beginning of any web redevelopment project. Outdoor signage must be given the same attention. (It does not look professional when a company does not fix its broken signage. It's the same feeling as when your neighbours leave their Christmas lights up all year.) When FedEx employees were asked how small companies sabotage their own brands, the following comments were made (6):
- "poor banners at trade shows"
- "bad signage"
- "poor quality of printed items"
- Lack of Brand Training or Guidance to Employees. Employees should act as brand ambassadors and may need to be briefed on the importance and uses of the brand as well as professionalism in public when wearing branded materials. Employees should be trained to execute branding materials correctly to avoid inconsistency and to be briefed on how to follow brand guidelines. Where possible, this should be done by professional designers. In the least, a professional designer or marketing individual should monitor the use of the brand and any materials sent to customers.
- Not Using Professional Existing Customers to Promote. Every company probably has a brand champion. These customers could help generate new customers. "Word of mouth" marketing is particularly important in today's world. Offering incentives and competitions may help the brand, and identify customers who are good for enhancing your brand. This also means avoiding controversial people, such as celebrities. Remember that mess with Tiger Woods a few years ago and how he was ditched by top brands? Follow the same rules.
- Poor Communication. Gutscher (4) mentions poor signage harming a brand, such as having signs in washrooms/parking spaces/indoors telling people how to behave. She also mentions communication in forms being poor and/or negative and that companies should take care and construct letters that present the brand in a positive light. This leads us on to the next point.
- Avoid Brand Contamination - Errors. Anderson (5) mentions association of negative feelings with a brand, such as displaying an electronic company Vizio's logo on a television whenever it crashes. This creates a negative feeling about the brand. Showing your brand on error pages sends the wrong message; for this reason, social media company Twitter use their "Fail Whale" image. This brings us to the idea of "Fail Pets", typically cartoon animals displayed in a website error page instead of the company's branding (3).
- Incorrectly Using Social Media websites. Companies must dedicate time to invest in social media websites and avoid being tempted to jump on the latest craze. Companies must ensure that the social media website works for them. For example, a fashion company may be able to successfully adopt use on Pinterest.com (pinning fashion photographs), but this may not work for a company that sells interactive online games. Once a company has invested in a social media website, content must be unique and tie in with the brand.
- Failure to Track Branding. Feedback should be noted, and customers thoughts on the brand should be obtained from time to time. Website tracking could also be recorded. This assesses if your branding is working.
- Adopt Employee Branding. Successful branding starts within the company. Generating employees' enthusiasm for the brand and promoting it is the key. The employee can help the company by engaging in social media or "word of mouth" discussions showing that they are proud to support the brand (7).
In conclusion, companies should ensure that their brand translates correctly to the audience, and branding activities must be ongoing and consistent. Companies must avoid using the branding in negative ways and work on ensuring only the best for their brand. Branding must be worked on continuously and developed, and companies should engage in the methods to help their brand instead of harm it. After all, a lot of effort has gone into building a brand.
Have you ever worked for a company that is making one of the mistakes above, or have I missed something from this list? Please let me know your thoughts.
1) McLaughlin, Jessica. Five Instagram Marketing Mistakes. http://sproutsocial.com/insights/2012/05/instagram-marketing-mistakes/ [22 May, 2012].
2) Precision Intermedia. Top Ten Branding Mistakes. http://www.precisionintermedia.com/branding_mistakes.html [13 June, 2012].
3) The Evolution of Fail Pets: Strategic Whimsy and Brand Awareness in Error Messages. http://uxmag.com/articles/the-evolution-of-fail-pets [02 November, 2011].
4) Gutscher, Mary Lou. Oops, your brand is showing. http://www.profitableprospecting.ca/2011/11/oops-your-brand-is-showing/ [15 June, 2012].
6) Campbell, Anita. Is your brand helping or hurting your small business? http://smallbiztrends.com/2012/05/brand-helping-small-business.html [17 May, 2012].
7) Vermeiretim. Beyond employer branding people are the brand. http://vermeiretim.com/2012/06/13/beyond-employer-branding-people-are-the-brand/ [13 June, 2012].
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