7 Reasons Branding Matters
[How to Get People to Swipe Right for Your Business]
It’s 2020 and online dating is no longer faux pas. In fact, it’s becoming easier and more practical thanks to smartphone apps and quarantine. Think about your online dating profile for a moment (if you had one). You only have 3–6 seconds to make your impression on someone before they decide if you’re worthy of swiping right or if you’re just another left swipe, gone from their mind forever.
Your brand is a lot like an online dating profile.
In fact, within 0.5 seconds or five MILLISECONDS, a person will form their opinion about your website, determining whether they stay or leave.
If there was ever a business expense worthy of not cutting corners, branding is it. Sure, professional branding costs money and of course, you could go for it yourself — but you’ll likely end up costing yourself money in the long run by not having a high quality visual identity.
So what is branding?
If you look up the definition of branding, you’ll find tons of different definitions. Ultimately, your brand is your look, your feel, your style, your culture, your message, your story, your connection.
[So, it’s basically everything. Everything you are, everything you want to be, all wrapped up in such a way that someone can know you in 5 milliseconds]…No pressure, right?
Why does branding matter?
- It’s your elevator pitch.
Everyone has heard of an “elevator pitch.” If you met someone in an elevator and only had a couple of minutes to describe yourself or your business, what would you say? Think about it. You have 1 minute to describe your business to someone. What do you say? If someone were to ask one of your employees about your company on an elevator, what would they say? Hint: It shouldn’t involve anything like “well it’s hard to explain” or “ummm i mean it’s complicated to summarize it.” Nope. You’ve lost your 5 milliseconds to sell your perfect pitch. Your brand matters because not only should you be able to pitch your brand in an elevator, but so should all of your employees and clients. You need to send a clear message.
2. Your brand should emotionally connect with people.
People want to be wowed and wooed. They want to feel taken care of, seen, heard, understood. Gone are the days of one to many advertising. Thanks to social media, brands need to connect with their customers on a much more personal level. Your brand should be like a warm blanket to your clients. Connecting with people is an art and a strong brand in today’s society should really resonate with it’s audience in a synchronized way, across all platforms — from social media to advertisements to packaging. What value are you adding to your clients? What personal touches show them that you care?
3. Your brand should inspire.
Having a strong brand is like a company banner that your entire company can rally around. Inspired people inspire people. You want employees who are passionate, grateful, humble carriers of your banner.
4. Your brand sets you apart.
No doubt you probably have a list of competitors vying for your customers’ attention and ultimately for their money. To stay relevant to your customer community, you need to have a strong brand. Knowing who you are and representing your brand across multiple channels will allow your audience to know you, trust you and want to purchase from you.
5. Your brand creates loyalty.
Studies show that during economic challenges, the stronger the brand, the more successful the company will be in hard times. People aren’t loyal to products, they are loyal to brands. Look at 2020. Many companies have relied on their customer loyalty to stay afloat during the pandemic. Customers who are able to continue spending money during an economic crisis are more likely to support the brands they are loyal to versus buying products from unfamiliar brands.
6. Your brand motivates customers to make purchases.
According to The Business Journals there are 10 motivations that cause people to buy. It’s important to know where your brand meets customer needs along this spectrum and then make your marketing efforts align with these motivators. The top motivators for people to buy are: to enhance their status, to make a personal dream come true, to make amends, to be defiant, to feel good, to feel safe, to forget our problems, to make a statement, to feel we’re somebody, and to reward ourselves. Customers respond when they feel like a company knows them. Get to know your customers — their wants, needs, dreams, desires and use your brand and your marketing efforts to meet their needs on a personal level.
7. Your brand creates trust.
Social media has transformed the way customers view and interact with companies. People want to feel heard and seen. The most important marketing effort that you can employ is to make people feel like they can trust you…that you’re worthy of their time and hard earned money. Believe in your own brand, be transparent and communicate. Make sure that your customers feel heard and seen. Go out of your way to move as many mountains for them as you can and build a rapport between your brand and your customers. When a person trusts a brand, they will not only be loyal but they will spread the word to their community.
Back to our dating profile.
Remember we have 3–6 seconds to make someone decide we are worthy of swiping right. We are going to put everything on our profile that makes us seem attractive, kind, intriguing and worthy of connection. Our ultimate goal is to set ourselves apart to someone who finds us worthy of love, loyalty, trust and relationship.
Your brand should be no different.
