Brand guidelines
Brand guidelines are one of the first branding terms and an important reference guide or rulebook. They are referred to as brand standards guides, style guides or brand books. In short, they explain how your organization presents itself to the world. Additionally, they can dictate your logo design, blog content, website, advertisement and other marketing collateral.
Using a brand book ensures that your brand looks and feels the same. Even when you have different people working on customer service, marketing, design and sales. Moreover, they can be used both internally and externally. That way they can ensure consistency and continuity with your brand’s visual identity.
Brand Strategy
Brand strategy is a long-term plan for the development of your brand to achieve specific goals. Moreover, a well-defined and executed brand strategy affects all aspects of a business. Furthermore, it is directly connected to consumer needs, emotions, and competitive environments.
Mission statement
A mission statement is a short statement of why your organization exists and what its goal is. Furthermore, it communicates what kind of service you provide. Moreover, it defines which customers you serve and the location it operates. In addition, it ensures your brand content is working toward the same goal.
Ideally, it strives to solve the same problem for your customer. Additionally, it can guide your blog content, ad copy, visual media, slogan or tagline. It communicates your purpose and direction to your employees and customers. The statement is generally short, either a single sentence or a short paragraph. Ultimately, it is non-changeable.
Brand equity
Put simply, brand equity represents the value of your brand. It is the difference between the value of your product and its value without the brand name. Brand equity can be achieved by making products memorable, easily recognizable and superior in quality and reliability. For instance, you can establish brand equity by creating positive experiences in the consumer’s mind. That experience will entice consumers to continue purchasing from you over your competitors.
Brand awareness
One of the key branding terms is brand awareness. In short, it describes the degree of consumer recognition of a product. Creating brand awareness is a key step in promoting a new product or refreshing an older brand. Ideally, it may include the qualities that distinguish the product from its competition.
Moreover, brand awareness is a key consideration in consumer behavior, advertising and brand management. The consumer’s ability to recognize or recall a brand is central to purchasing decision-making. Finally, it is considered to be a key indicator of a brand’s competitive market performance.
Buyer persona
This key branding term is also referred to as customer/ audience/ client or marketing persona. In short, defining a buyer persona helps you create content to better target your ideal customer. Ultimately, it describes your ideal customers, their challenges and their decision-making process.
By definition, a buyer persona is a fictional representation of your ideal customer. It includes details related to your customer’s age, gender, job title, and professional challenges. Furthermore, it guides your blog content, ad copy and visual media. Hence, understanding it is critical to content creation, product development, sales process etc.
Brand experience
The brand experience is the sum of the sensations, thoughts, feelings, and reactions from individuals towards your brand. It’s the result or the lasting impression that remains after someone encounters or engages with your brand. Moreover, it is based on creating a unique user experience to become memorable to consumers. By connecting and engaging with your target audience, you can convert brand awareness to brand loyalty.
Brand positioning
Brand positioning is the process of positioning your brand in the mind of customers. It describes how a brand differs from competitors and how the customers perceive it. Therefore, it is considered to be the key marketing strategy. Ultimately, it involves creating brand associations in customers’ minds. Consequently, they perceive your brand in a specific way.
Perceptual maps
Another one of the key branding terms is perceptual or positioning maps. It is a chart that depicts how your customers feel about your brand or services. In other words, it allows you to understand your brand or service’s competitive positioning. A typical perceptual map is a two-dimensional graph.
It consists of a vertical axis (Y) and a horizontal axis (X). Each axis consists of a pair of opposite attributes at each end. Simple maps consist of just two variables. However, there are multiple types of perceptual maps. Alternatively, complex maps can uncover deeper insights for the identification of future growth opportunities.
Brand essence
Brand essence exists at the core of your company’s strategy for growth. It brings together concepts like values, mission statements, and brand visions. Additionally, it helps you determine what you stand for as a company and guide you into the future. It is often presented as the soul or DNA of your company. Moreover, it is the reliable feeling customers come to expect when they interact with your brand.
Brand identity
Brand identity is another one of the important branding terms. It is the collection of visible elements a company creates to portray the right image to its consumer. It includes visible elements such as logo, design, color etc. Ultimately, its goal is to identify and distinguish your brand in the consumer’s mind. Essentially, your brand identity is the personality of your business and a promise to your customers. It is a way to communicate with the world and differentiate yourself from your competition.
Unique Selling Proposition
USP is the unique benefit that your brand exhibits that differs it from competitors. Hence, it is another one of the essential branding terms you should know about. To communicate it properly, you must highlight product benefits that are meaningful to consumers. In short, a compelling USP should be specific and focused on customer value.
Brand image
Brand image is the perception of the brand in the mind of the customer. It is an aggregate of beliefs, ideas, and impressions that a customer holds regarding your brand. Consequently, customers form associations based on their interactions and experience with your brand. Hence, they form a brand image based on these associations. Thus, brand image is based on subjective perceptions of associations that the consumers have about your brand.
Brand personality
Brand personality is a personification of your brand. In other words- it is the representation of the way your brand speaks and behaves. Alternatively, it is also the result of all the consumer’s experiences with your brand. Ultimately, it is unique and long-lasting. It includes assigning human personality traits to a brand to achieve differentiation. These characteristics signify brand behavior through individuals representing the brand and through advertising, packaging etc.
Competitive analysis
A competitive analysis is another one of the key branding terms. For a start, it includes the process of identifying your competitors and evaluating their strategies. That way you can determine their strengths and weaknesses relative to your own business and service.
It usually consists of several phases:
- Conducting Research
- Gathering Competitive Information
- Analyzing Competitive Information
- Defining Your Own Competitive Position
As a result, you can create solid business strategies that improve upon your competitors. It also enables you to stay ahead of industry trends. Ultimately, you can ensure your product is consistently meeting industry standards.
Brand message
The brand message is your brand’s value proposition which you convey to your target audience. It is based on the tone of voice, language and core message. Moreover, it is communicated through your brand personality to set your brand positioning. Ultimately, it’s what makes buyers relate to your brand to make them want to buy your product.
Brand loyalty
Brand loyalty is another one of the key branding terms. It is the extent to which a consumer constantly buys your brand within a certain product category. In other words- it involves the consumers that remain loyal to a specific brand. Brand loyalty can be developed through several factors. For example- quick service, ensuring quality products, continuous improvement, wide distribution network, etc.
It is measured through methods like word of mouth, price sensitivity, brand trust, customer satisfaction etc. Brand loyalty exists when your brand consists of the right product characteristics and quality at the right price. Consequently, the loyal consumer will stick to the original brand. Even if the other brands are available at a cheaper price or superior quality. Accordingly, greater loyalty levels lead to less marketing expenditure. The reason for that is because the loyal customers promote the brand positively.
Tone of Voice
The tone of voice reflects your brand personality and helps you connect with your audience. Additionally, it describes how your brand communicates with the audience. Thus, it influences how people perceive your messaging. It includes the words you use and applies to your content- website, social media posts, emails etc.
Your tone of voice depends on several factors. Your target audience, communication channels, your business strategy and future goals. Above all, your overall tone of voice should be consistent throughout every piece of content you deliver. As a result, it will allow your audience to recognize your brand instantly.
Brand extension
Brand extension is also one of the key branding terms, sometimes known as brand stretching. Its strategy is based on using the company’s established brand equity to help launch its newest product. However, the original and new products have to share a common quality or characteristic that the consumer can immediately identify.
Brand architecture
Brand Architecture organizes brands, products and services to help the audience relate to a brand. The effective brand architecture includes an integrated system of names, symbols, colors and visuals. Moreover, these are informed directly by the consumers. A successful brand architecture enables consumers to form opinions on a brand by interacting with it. Moreover, it is an important guide for the development of new products. Finally, it helps brands to organize a framework for independent brand equity, enhanced focus and highly targeted communication.