Small businesses often confuse the term “brand” with their logo. However, a company’s brand is much more than just graphics and artwork, it’s the way people perceive you as an entire entity. The people who work for you, the tone you use in your communication, the company culture, and finally the design of your website speaks volumes about your brand.
Branding is crucial for organizations of all sizes. However, it’s especially important for smaller businesses as they start to build and maintain a reputable name in the market.
Here’s why you, as a small business representative, should worry about building a strong brand.
The benefits of having a strong brand for small businesses
Having clear branding lets you set your business apart from the competition. You see, the markets today are saturated with businesses that provide similar services. To succeed and prosper in such a market, a business has to present itself as something unique. That’s where your brand comes in.
A strong brand lets you build a customer base that will remain loyal and generate repeat business. That’s because a unique brand attracts customers that value your specific attributes. The way you market and sell your products or services will allow you to get customers that love what you do and how you do it.
What is a strong brand?
As we touched on earlier, your brand is not just a logo — but that doesn’t mean the logo isn’t included in your branding. On the outside, your logo, business name and slogan are the first things your customers will see and speak volumes about your business.
The design of your website also sets the tone of your brand. The content on your website, like blogs and resources, also showcases your strength and knowledge (ie. part of your brand). Finally, the way you communicate and interact with customers on social media cannot be understated – this is a key giveaway about how you work as a company.
Last but not least, the company culture you follow and the type of people you hire also affect how your brand is perceived by the public. From your voicemail, to your offices – this all reflects on the identity you have chosen for your venture.
How much time does it take to develop a brand?
The time is takes to create a strong brand varies by the type and size of the business you’re running.
However, in most cases, you can get the visual part of your brand done in around 2-4 weeks. The website could take anywhere from 2-8 months to develop, depending on its size and functionality.
Furthermore, you can get a batch of blogs written for your company in around one month. But most companies keep publishing consistent content, so that’s an ongoing process. The punch line? Working on your brand has no finish line. As you grow as a business, your brand will evolve as well.
Having a strong brand identity lets your brand stand out and gain popularity in saturated markets. It takes hard work and attention to detail to develop a strong brand identity for your small business but it just might be that key that lets you level up and bring success into your venture.
Taking the first step
At Starting Dimensions we recommend starting from the basics, which means developing your mission, vision and values as a start. Check out our Resources page for downloadable worksheets and guides to get started!