Starting up your own business and making profits from it can cost you years of hard work, consistency, persistence, sleepless nights, early mornings, and whatnot. This explains why only 2 in 5 startups are profitable, and one in three startups will either keep losing money or will never reach breakeven.
This data can give you real-time insights into how difficult it is to make your startup into an established business. So, if you think it will be a cakewalk to make a brand of your potential startup or business, you have been running, you are wrong.
When you are thinking of making a brand out of your business, it is no longer just about the value you are adding to your customer’s life. There are a lot of other things that play a part like your brand identity, name, logo, USP and so much more.
All of this combined is a lot of work and requires hours of research and groundwork. But now that you have decided to establish yourself as a brand, remember the journey is not going to be easy but it will certainly be more rewarding than you think.
To begin with, here are 6 amazing tips that will give you a good head start.
1. Analyze your current position
In today’s market scenario, there are very few businesses, where there is minimal or no competition. That being said, no matter the competition, you can still make a difference. So, before you start and are finally transitioning into a brand from your business, you need to figure out your place in the market.
This means you need to know your potential customers and competitors, at the same time. Before moving ahead, it is important you know your own position, and sometimes, it acts as a much-needed reality check as well.
2. Identify your focus areas
Your focus will identify where you need to guide your efforts, so it is important to focus on the right thing. It is needless to say, that you cannot achieve everything all at the same time. And if you try to, you will be left in the middle of nowhere.
So, are you planning to focus on your USP offering? Or your marketing campaigns? Customer relations? Or something else? Decide and find your focus, before moving ahead.
3. Decide your brand name
What’s in the name, right? Well, wrong. Do you think Nike, McDonald’s, Zara, or Amazon, would have been even half of what they are today if they weren’t named the way they are?
The name plays a big role, because that is how you as a brand are recognized, and not by your product or service. At least, at first sight.
Sometimes, names have meanings, and sometimes they don’t. Sometimes, you choose a name, which is expandable to other genres of work, like Amazon, which now is established in OTT, Grocery, and more platforms and sometimes you make it industry-specific.
Ideally, stick to a name that is hard to imitate, like Apple, and harder to confuse with the existing competition.
4. Select your brand’s color and identity
A lot of your brand’s identity will be based on the visual aspect of your brand, so working on it is important.
Starting with color, have you ever wondered why McDonald’s has a red dominant slogan, brand, and stores? Because red color can make people hungry. It isn’t just about aesthetics.
Next, you must also decide the font. Avoid fonts that are not clearly visible or readable.
5. Write down your slogan
Nike’s Just Do it, or Coca-Cola’s Open Happiness, or Apple’s Think Different, has played a massive role in their success.
Your slogan along with your logo is not only your first impression on the customers but also the means to secure a place in their minds. A potential, short, brief, and catchy one-liner is what you should be looking for.
6. Keep Evolving
The above steps will help you launch your brand but that is not even half of the journey you have set out for. As you move ahead in the journey, evolve, reboot, and restart if needed.
Always aim to put your best foot forward whether it is about your product or service, or customer relations. This is when you must start investing in activities like advertising and promotions.
Speaking of that, if you are based in Melbourne, you would want to check out 10 Feet Tall.
One of the most important skills to create a successful brand is foresight. If you can evaluate the upcoming trends with the available data, you will be able to define a successful way ahead!
