Building a Brand and Business (in 3 minutes)

Branding isn’t something you do once and forget about.

It’s an ongoing process that takes time, commitment and energy to develop and maintain.

A brand is everything that you do to differentiate yourself from your competitors, both online and offline. It’s the look of your website, the quality of your products, the tone of your voice, and how you interact with customers.

The world’s most successful companies understand these aspects of a brand:

1. Brand and business are not the same. The brand makes the path to purchasing easier and more enjoyable for the customer.
2. Branding is the infusion of your “why” into what you sell.
3. Branding is the collective intentions and behaviors of the people who work within a company. It is a manifestation of their values, beliefs, and the vision they have set in the world.
4. Your logo and Instagram grid are shadows of your brand. They tell people it exists in the world. In the same way, it takes more than a camera to be a photographer, branding requires more than design.
5. Branding is what you say and do consistently applied over time.
6. Brands are always searching for three things: Awareness — get their products in front of the most people, the right people. Conversions — data on new customers. Content — media to repurpose and run ads with.
7. When bringing a brand to life, make sure the people who represent it are personally invested. Ask employees and stakeholders their perspective on the brand and what it stands for.

Treat your brand like a fledgling child. If you want it to grow into a mature adult that stands out in the crowd and generates revenue, then you need to nurture it every single day.

It’s easy to forget that brands are people, too. But they are.

A strong brand is a persona, a character, an identity. Just like human beings, brands can be likable or unlikable, trustworthy or deceitful, cool or uncool.

Learn more: The Ultimate Guide to Creating a Memorable Brand Identity

The best brands have the same relationship with their customers as a beloved parent or grandparent does with his or her children and grandchildren. The bond is deep; the connection is personal. Customers feel understood by them and at ease in their presence.

Brands that have this kind of relationship with their customers tend to be incredibly valuable. People will pay a premium to do business with them. They earn customer loyalty and customer advocacy because happy customers want to tell others about them ― sometimes for free, just because they love them so much.