Product Branding and Re-branding
Product branding is a much-maligned term that goes far beyond the “look” of your products or services. In its simplest definition, branding is what your customers associate with the product, information or offering. The “brand” is the company itself – what it stands for, how it conducts business or what additional value it represents. Branding is not visual image - it is the recognition of the company values that stand behind a particular image. However, the visual image must be consistent and designed to let you know that the company has earned its reputation.
For example, in the world of power tools, there is a big difference in how people perceive a Makita©, or DeWalt©, which may be considered a professional or contractor brand than a “consumer” brand like Black & Decker©. Or in a No-Name© brand, which really stands for economy vs. a President’s Choice© brand, which implies a quality offering. In the marketplace, these differences are readily apparent to consumers, although they may not give them much thought.
For any company, the questions surrounding branding really become: how is your product or service perceived in the market, how is it positioned against the competition and does it deserve its reputation in the minds of people buying those goods or services? Branding can have far-reaching implications for a company’s strategic positioning and operation.
For example, there are forward-thinking companies (such as First USA Bank) that have branded their company as a “trusted agents” to the point of offering trusted, credible information to their customers on all manner of goods, services and products that they don’t directly offer. Why? Because if they can be seen as a source of credible information on a number of products or services that matter to their customers, there is no doubt that their own products fall into this category. So, a simple branding mission can have far-reaching operational implications. At b-creative we take into consideration all of the implications a branding exercise can encompass and help you to make critical decisions concerning your branding goals.
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