IQ-Magazine-Issue-14

misses the mark. It is rare that there will be much equity established in a misplaced
identity.
Consistent communication is key
When it comes to actually communicating the brand to both customers and
prospects there is one vital rule - be consistent. Always use a consistent logo, in a
consistent format. Always use colours consistently. For example, if purple is used
to highlight an action that a customer/prospect can take on your website, then
use purple to denote an action in other forms of communication too. Consistency
breeds familiarity – make yourself instantly recognisable via consistent and clear
brand visuals and messaging to avoid confusion. You have seconds to engage
a customer and motivate them to take action; constantly changing the way you
are asking customers and prospects to access information is time consuming and
confusing from their perspective and they may ultimately decide to go elsewhere
because of it.
Knowing when to stop
Another common stumbling block occurs in the creation of multiple, separate
brands and identities for different parts of a proposition – for example for a
specific product or a service in a particular industry sector. This ‘house of brands’
approach is more common within the FMCG sector and is very successfully
delivered by organisations such as Proctor & Gamble, who effectively run each
brand as a separate business, each with its own unique and targeted identity and,
importantly, with the independent budgets to support it.
Adopting this approach as an SME is often extremely challenging, particularly if
the necessary budget to support the building of awareness and consideration for
two or more brands, rather than one, just isn’t available. In this situation a ‘house
of brands’ approach can lead to confusion, which will ultimately result in a dilution
of brand equity in all areas rather than success.
In this scenario it is again better to fix it rather
than allow the problem to perpetuate. A more
successful and manageable strategy here could
be to create strength through a ‘branded
house’ approach – think Virgin. When
deciding to take action though, it is important
to understand the equity established in each
brand before deciding which one to stick with.
We have experience of situations where the
product brand has become more synonymous
with the business and has a more positive
impact on customers than the overall business
brand. In these cases, careful consideration of which brand to retain is crucial.
Be committed
Whichever route you choose, be it a complete re-brand or the development of an
existing brand, it’s vital to have a robust plan in place for the roll out of that brand.
It is also imperative that you commit to it and above all, are consistent in the way in
which you communicate it. If you don’t believe in it yourself, how can you expect
anyone else to?
IQ business planning
MAKE YOURSELF
INSTANTLY
RECOGNISABLE
VIA CONSISTENT
AND CLEAR
BRAND VISUALS
issue 14 | page 37