Everywhere we look, we see brands. Some good, some bad, some weak and some powerful. While strategic branding was once more the domain of big business, now businesses of all shapes and sizes are benefiting from focusing on their brand. With the marketplace becoming more and more competitive, businesses that want to stand out need to ensure that their brand is not boring or generic, but instead unique, interesting and relevant. Without a clear differentiation, there is no reason as to why customers should choose your business over a competitor, which means that you are really going to struggle to get your voice heard. Over the years, we’ve seen many good businesses invest heavily in creating a brand, only to see it disappear into the sea of other businesses employing the same generic brand values. Here are a couple of tips to get you on your way to brand success: 1. Tap into your brand’s true uniqueness. Every business has something unique to offer. The trick is to tap into what makes it unique from your customers’ perspective. Try to avoid generic values such as quality, reliability or customer service. Instead, do some real soul searching around why your existing customers really choose to purchase from you. This is what you really stand for, what is important to you and the values that you really want to base your brand on. Don’t rush this process. It’s important to get it right. 2. Create a brand promise. The point of the brand promise is to promise something that is important to both existing and future customers. Therefore, it needs to be relevant and mean something to them. Think about what they really want and find a way to deliver it to them in a unique way that matches your unique brand values. This ties in closely with your identified point of difference. Just make sure that what your brand is promising here, your business can actually deliver. After all, overpromising and under delivering is the quickest way to deflate brand equity and lose customers. The marketplace is changing, businesses that want to compete effectively need to take their branding seriously, identify their true uniqueness and engage with their customers. By putting the hard work in now, any business can benefit from a boost in reputation, increased revenue and long-term business growth. To find out more about how creating a truly unique brand can benefit your business, please contact us at Mark 2 Creative.