“The brand is the vehicle that allows you to tell your story and without it, you can’t communicate who you are as a company,”
says Founder and Agency Director of Y5 Creative, Carol Colley.
It’s that story – and an internal understanding of who you are as a company – that creates a brand that resonates with customers.
The more a brand resonates with someone, the more likely they are to choose you. But why exactly is branding important to customers? What areas do you need to focus on when it comes to developing a brand strategy that actually attracts customers?
Below we explore five key reasons why customers choose certain brands.
1 Brand Familiarity
The more consistent and persistent you are, the more people begin to recognize you. The more people recognize you, the more they trust you. Trust leads to purchasing and promoting.
When making a purchasing decision, 77% of customers say it’s because of the brand name according to Crowdspring.
2 Brands Add Value
Why is this the case? Why do customers pay more than a dollar extra when ultimately the two taste the same? Brand recognition.
Once a brand is well known enough, they can convince people they are better and therefore increase their value.
In the ketchup example, many people truly think Heinz tastes better, that it’s of better quality. We have one word for you why this is the case: branding.
3 Brands Save a Customer’s Time
Time is the most valuable thing we have as people and with something so sacred, we don’t want to waste it.
Once customers know who you are, once they trust you and know they can rely on you, they will choose you without hesitation – ultimately saving time.
For example, let’s say a couple is in search of a new vehicle because they are about to have a child. They know that a Subaru is about having a car that grows with you. Through their messaging, visuals, tone, etc… Subaru has positioned itself as a brand that families rely on. Their trust is earned by the company. Rather than shop around from brand to brand, they already know who they want to work with. The time they spend shopping will be a fraction of what it would be if it weren’t for the brand and its familiarity.
4 Brands Give Customers a Sense of Identity
Brands add to a person’s identity, they allow people to express themselves.
Think of someone who identifies as an outdoorsy adventurer, this individual will most likely choose a Mountain Equipment Co-op product – a company who has branded themselves as the go-to store for all your outdoor needs.
5 Brands Inspire Emotion
According to Marketing Week, customers prefer a brand that exhibits personal value through emotional appeals.
People want to feel something when interacting with brands. When you inspire emotion out of your customers through your branding, whether it’s happiness, excitement, laughter, etc., you increase the chances of them choosing to purchase whatever you’re selling.
Think of Coca-Cola and their Brotherly Love commercial. After watching, customers feel the love between the two brothers, they feel happy that the older brother stood up for his younger sibling. The Coca-Cola brand inspired customers to feel something and that is one of the most powerful things a company can do.
To develop a brand strategy that covers the five reasons above, it takes commitment and consistency.
“It’s about getting down to the core truth of who you are and what you are selling, and then communicating it through the brand,” says Colley.
Call Y5 at 778-379-2177 to chat about new branding for your business and why working with us can help you reach your goals.
About the author:
As far back as I can remember, I have loved to create. There has been nothing more engaging or fun for me than immersing myself in the possibilities that creativity brings. My passion for art soon transformed into a fascination for the mediums that communicate ideas and before long I knew that the creative and conceptual areas of marketing are where I am most comfortable. Using strategic thinking to develop branding and communication strategies is fun and I am blessed to work with my amazing team at Y5 every day.
