Building Your Brand

What Really Makes A Brand?…

A brand is one of those ideas that has evaded creatives and business people for years. Pricing can be calculated, but branding requires an emotional connection and established associations between customer, onlooker and brand.

This insight breaks down a number of things we think are necessities to building your brand. This is more than just a logo or a tagline, this encapsulates the perception your customers have before purchase, their purchase experience and how they feel afterwards.

Creating a well-crafted brand often serves as a key differentiator in a competitive market, it builds trust and customer loyalty and if you ask us, it’s completely worth the investment.

Now how do you create one for yourself?  Let’s have a look at the possible outcomes for your business from this exercise.

A.    Establish A Clear Brand Message

B.    Build Strong Brand Equity

C.    Create A Distinct Brand Identity

D.    All of the above

Image: Lagos Fashion Week

Achieving these branding goals requires a strategic approach. Here are the foundational elements to focus on:

1. Establishing Your Brand

2. Building Brand Equity

3. Crafting a Strong Brand Identity

1.Establish Your Brand

This is the process of creating a unique identity for your company that resonates emotionally with your customers. It’s the promise you make to your customers and the values that set you apart from your competitors. Whether it’s quality, innovation, sustainability, a meticulous attention to detail or affordability, your brand needs to clearly reflect the things that your company stands for.

In order to do this, you must define what your brand stands for, why it exists, and how it improves the lives of your customers. This message must be communicated consistently across all channels—whether it’s your website, social media, or customer interactions. Consistency is key to building trust and recognition.

Now the opportunity arises to ask yourself: What are the core values that define my company? Are these values communicated clearly and consistently across all channels? And most importantly, are your customers receiving the intended message? Successful branding bridges the gap between what you want to convey and what your customers believe.

Image: Kente Gentleman

2. Build Brand Equity 

Brand equity is the value customers attribute to your brand based on their experiences and perceptions. Positive brand equity allows you to charge premium prices and establish a loyal customer base. This is achieved through delivering quality, creating positive experiences, and ensuring that your brand is perceived as credible, reliable, and desirable

Consider brand equity to be like a form of real estate in people’s minds. The greater brand equity you can build, the more flexible and promising your brand is going forward. Brand equity will improve the perceived value of your products or services and this is done through positive customer experiences.

Building brand equity is a slow process that requires a number of activities carried out consistently.

Firstly, you will need to concentrate on defining your brands identity clearly, consider what motivates the brand and it’s raison d'être. Craft a compelling brand story that you plan on communicating with your customers over and over again. With this, determine what your brands unique value proposition is and decide on visual guidelines that the brand will follow going forward. In building brand equity, a consistent message, delivered in a consistent way and consistent service will ensure that your brands identity remains clear in your customers mind.

Focus on delivering exceptional products and customer experiences if this is what your brand stands for. Reinforce your brands value and practice though customer service. If your brand promotes innovation, this should be evident throughout the customer journey and in the product itself. Encourage feedback and actively respond to it to show that you value their input and are committed to continuous improvement. Brand equity can work both ways, it is possible to build positive connotations and perceptions for your brand as well as negative perceptions. In your efforts to build brand equity, remember that this is your company’s reputation to current and potential clients.

Ensure that each interaction, from initial awareness to post-purchase support, reinforces your brand’s promise. Customer feedback plays a crucial role here—listen, adapt, and improve based on what your customers are telling you.

Image: Niuku

3. Visual and Verbal Language  

In fashion, imagery is everything. visual and verbal representations are the tangible expression of your brand. Consider your brand name, logo, typography and how these represent what your brand stands for. If your brand represents heritage, old world or legacy, this is expected to be evident in the visuals presented, the creative direction and even the font choices.

A large part of brand focuses on triggering emotional connections between the customer and your brand. Developing visuals that register with your audience is very key, consider a brand for older women that want to feel young again, visuals should create feelings of youth, nostalgia and freedom button a way that your customer can relate and place themselves in these images.

Consider how your visuals place you int he mind of your customers and how it separates you from the competition or alternative offers for your product offering. visuals and brand verbiage can help the customer create a strong bond once the brand identity resonates with them. This identity should resonate with your target audience and be memorable enough to leave a lasting impression.

Image: TJWho

Branding is more than just a one-time effort; it’s an ongoing process that evolves with your business. It’s about creating and maintaining a positive perception in the minds of your customers, aligning your brand’s image with your company’s values, and ensuring consistency across all touchpoints. A well-established brand not only strengthens your market position but also creates long-term customer loyalty and advocacy. As your business grows, so too should your brand, adapting to meet the ever-changing needs and desires of your audience.

Book a consultation with our experts to explore personalised approaches tailored to your business goals and market dynamics. Capture the opportunity to build an emotional connection with your customers by perfecting you brand, this also creates a solid base to gain new customers and capture new markets.