Sometimes feeling overwhelmed about the process of creating a brand strategy for your company is totally normal. It can be hard to know where to start and what to do first.
Since building a brand strategy can be harder than originally expected, this article will try to help make it easier for you! The 6 models will provide some variety, so you’re able to pick what best suits you and your company.
PESTLE
The macroeconomic environment is constantly changing, so it’s important to have a detailed understanding of the forces at play in order to make informed decisions about your brand strategy. A tool that can be useful in this process is PESTLE analysis, which takes into account six key factors: Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental.
Political Factors:
What is the current political landscape? Are there any trade agreements or regulations that could impact your business? What are the tax incentives or disincentives for your industry? These are all important questions to consider when formulating your brand strategy.
Economic Factors:
What is the state of the economy? Are interest rates high or low? What is inflation like? What is the unemployment rate? These economic indicators will have a direct impact on your business, so it’s important to understand where they’re heading in order to make sound decisions about your brand strategy.
Social Factors:
What are social trends? What demographics are you targeting? What are their buying habits? What motivates them? Understanding these social factors will help you better target your marketing efforts and make sure your brand resonates with your audience.
Technological Factors:
What new technologies are emerging that could impact your business? Are there any changes in the way people are using technology that you need to be aware of? Keeping on top of these trends will help you make sure your brand is using the latest and greatest technology to reach its target audience.
Legal Factors:
Are there any new laws or regulations that could impact your business? What about changes to existing laws? It’s important to stay up-to-date on these developments in order to ensure compliance with any applicable regulations.
Environmental Factors:
What is the state of the environment? Are there any trends that could impact your industry? For example, if you’re in the fashion industry, you’ll want to stay on top of trends like sustainable fashion in order to make sure your brand is perceived as eco-friendly.
SWOT
As your business grows, it’s important to take the time to assess your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This process is called SWOT Analysis and can be a helpful tool in determining your brand strategy.
Your business’s strengths might include unique products or services, a loyal customer base, experienced employees or a strong financial position. Weaknesses could be things like an over-reliance on one product or service, dependence on key personnel, high operating costs or a small market share.
For opportunities, look for things like new markets that are opening up, changes in technology that you can take advantage of or partnerships that could help you reach a new audience. Threats to watch out for include changes in the marketplace, new competitors entering your space or shifts in consumer behaviour.
Once you’ve identified your SWOT factors, you can start to think about how they can be leveraged to help you achieve your business goals. For example, if you’re looking to expand into new markets, your strengths might give you a competitive edge. Or if you need to cut costs, addressing some of your weaknesses may be the answer.
No matter what your brand strategy looks like, incorporating a SWOT Analysis can help ensure that it’s based on a solid foundation and sets you up for success.
Brand Pyramid
The first step to creating a strong brand is to develop a brand pyramid. This pyramid will serve as the foundation for your brand strategy and help you increase your audience’s trust.
The base of the pyramid is your mission statement. This is what drives your brand and should be the guiding force behind all of your actions. Your mission statement should be clear, concise, and easy to understand.
The second level of the pyramid is your values. These are the principles that guide your decisions and underpin your actions. Your values should be aligned with your mission statement and reflect the core of who you are as a brand.
The third level of the pyramid is your positioning statement. This is how you position yourself in the market and in relation to your competition. It should be clear, concise, and differentiating.
The fourth level of the pyramid is your unique selling proposition (USP). This is what makes you different from everyone else and sets you apart in the market. It should be clear, concise, and relevant to your target audience.
The fifth level of the pyramid is your key messages. These are the messages that you want to communicate to your target audience. They should be aligned with your USP and support your overall branding objectives.
Evolutionary Brand Cycle
The first step in developing a strong brand is to understand the Evolutionary Brand Cycle. The cycle starts with Awareness, where customers are first exposed to your brand.
They then move on to Trial, where they form initial impressions and decide whether or not to engage with your brand. If they do engage, they enter the Loyalty stage, where they become committed customers.
Finally, they may reach the Advocacy stage, where they become brand ambassadors and promote your product or service to others.
Each stage of the cycle represents an opportunity to build trust with your audience. By creating a strong foundation of trust at each stage, you can create lifelong customers who will remain loyal even as your product or service evolves over time.
Here are a few proven ways to build trust at each stage of the Evolutionary Brand Cycle:
Awareness: Make sure your branding is consistent across all channels and touchpoints. Customers should be able to easily recognize your brand no matter how or where they encounter it.
Trial: Offer a money-back satisfaction guarantee so customers feel confident about giving your product or service a try.
Loyalty: Show your appreciation for customer loyalty with exclusive offers, rewards, and privileges.
Advocacy: Encourage customers to share their positive experiences with others through online reviews and social media endorsements.
The Evolutionary Brand Cycle is a powerful tool for building trust with your audience. By creating a strong foundation of trust at each stage, you can create lifelong customers who will remain loyal even as your product or service evolves over time.
Marketing Sales Funnel
The marketing sales funnel is a process that companies use to identify and convert potential customers. The funnel begins with awareness, where potential customers are exposed to the company’s products or services. Next, they enter into the interest stage, during which they learn more about the product or service and express interest in it.
From there, potential customers move on to the evaluation stage, during which they weigh the pros and cons of the product or service and decide whether or not to purchase it. Finally, those who do purchase the product or service enter into the loyalty stage, where they become Repeat Customers or Brand Advocates.
The marketing sales funnel is an important tool for companies because it helps them to focus their efforts on converting potential customers into paying ones. By understanding which stage of the funnel each customer is in, companies can tailor their marketing and sales efforts accordingly. Additionally, tracking data throughout the funnel can help companies improve their conversion rates over time.
Experience Ecosystem
There are a lot of factors that go into making a successful brand. But at the heart of it all is the customer experience.
Creating a great customer experience should be the foundation of your brand strategy. Why? Because when you deliver on your promises and give your customers what they want, they’ll keep coming back for more.
Building a strong customer experience ecosystem requires four key elements:
1. A clear understanding of your target audience: Who are they? What do they need? What do they want? How can you serve them better than anyone else?
2. A differentiated value proposition: What makes your brand unique? Why should customers care about your products or services?
3. A consistent brand identity: Your branding should be recognizable and consistent across all touchpoints, from your website to your social media channels to the way you answer the phone.
4. An integrated approach to marketing: All of your marketing efforts should work together to create a seamless, cohesive customer experience that reinforces your brand messaging and delivers on your promises.
When you put the customer experience at the center of your brand strategy, you’ll be well on your way to building a strong, successful brand.
Conclusion
A brand strategy is an essential part of any business, big or small. It can help you build trust with your audience, and increase your overall reach and visibility.
If you’re looking to improve your brand strategy, here are six proven ways to do it. Implement these tips and see how they can help increase your audience’s trust in your brand.
