What is a brand? It’s more than simply a name, design, or symbol representing your business. It’s the recognizable feeling your business evokes. Your brand is the perception of your consumers; what sets you apart in their mind from other businesses. However, although “brands” technically live in the minds of consumers, you still have to put work towards creating how you want to be perceived. Your brand is your most valuable business tool, but if you’re using it wrong, it could be detrimental to your success. Read these common branding mistakes of new businesses and learn how to avoid them.

1. Not Focusing Your Efforts branding 

Much too often, new businesses aren’t sure where their focus lies. Offering too many different products or services can confuse potential clientele and make your business seem cluttered in the mind of the consumer. When starting a new business, it’s important to focus on a niche market for a specific product or service. This way, you’ll appeal to the needs of the consumers who need your specific product or service, making their experience feel more personalized, and creating a more recognizable and trusted brand. branding mistakes

2. Randomly Changing the Look of Your Brand/ Company 

Many times, new businesses will start out with a certain idea of color schemes, fonts, and logos to identify themselves, and after a while, decide they need a change. Perhaps the focus of the business has changed within a few years of being in operation, or the business is looking to appeal to a different clientele than originally planned. There are many reasons companies decided to change their look or “branding” for consumers. It’s important you don’t take these changes lightly, but follow a well planned strategy for changing the way your company is perceived by the public. 

It’s important to note, the longer your brand stays consistent, the more reliable and recognizable it becomes to consumers. Companies are often associated with their colors, jingles, or imagery to the public. You’ll often hear examples like, “it’s the air conditioning company with a blue logo and the cute dog on the billboards!” Or, maybe you don’t remember the full name of a company, but you remember the tune that plays behind all of their ads online and across advertising platforms. 

This is why consistent, long term branding is crucial. If you find over a few years of being in business that the identity of your business has changed, or needs to change to meet goals or reach a wider audience, then a full or partial rebrand might be something you consider. It’s best to consult with branding specialists for this, since so much goes into making sure a new look will be well received by the public. For information on what it takes to rebrand a business or if you have ideas about altering or expanding your current brand, please contact us.

3. Not Staying Consistent

When thinking of what exactly your brand entails, think of your logo, color schemes, taglines, fonts, imagery, and voice. To have a strong brand, all of these elements should stay consistent across every platform where your business is represented. Whether it’s your website, social media, traditional advertising, or direct mail, be sure to stay consistent in these physical aspects of your brand.  

4. Not Promoting

If your new business isn’t on social media, doesn’t have a website, and hasn’t started a marketing strategy, you could be looking at a very slow start. With most consumers beginning their search for products and services online, you should have a marketing strategy to reach potential clientele and a website to guide them through what you have to offer. Social media is crucial to businesses today as it helps with gaining the trust of consumers, and it helps your business to get in front of the customer, even if they don’t currently need your product or service. The more consumers see your brand, the more trustworthy you become to them. branding mistakes

5. Not Learning From Competitors

If you’re not consistently following what your competitors are doing, you need to start. Seeing what type of branding strategies appeal to your market niche, watching what works with their social media strategies, and paying attention to what they’re not doing well can help you create a successful brand. Learn from the successes and failures of others and you’ll quickly become a top brand.

Talk to Lawrence Media Group

Lawrence Media Group is a creative agency handling the online and offline advertising and marketing needs for dozens of businesses across the Southeast. We’ve helped new businesses build their websites, grow their social media presence, and create a strong, branded presence online.

If you’d like to speak with us about helping with your business’s branding, give us a call at 678-428-7777 or email us at info@lawrencemediagrp.com. Our professional staff will be happy to answer any questions you have and develop a plan to help your business grow! branding mistakes