How To Build A Brand Strategy In 5 Key Steps
WHY BRAND STRATEGY MATTERS
Entrepreneurs and business owners can often get stuck trying to piece together their brand strategy all on their own. Having a Brand Strategy Roadmap can simplify this process and create an understanding of what goes into building a strategic brand.
First, why does a brand strategy matter? Clarifying your brand is a way to be proactive in your business, rather than reactive. You’re intentionally creating a plan so you know how to show up and best serve your audience. It makes decision making in your business easier, and acts as your guide in shaping all that you do across every consumer touchpoint.
In harnessing my 15+ years corporate experience with brand strategy, integrated marketing and creative content production at Disney, as well as the last few years building my own brand as an entrepreneur and helping others do the same, I’ve come to breakdown my brand-building (and growing) process into 5 Key Steps.
HOW TO BUILD A BRAND STRATEGY IN 5 KEY STEPS
STEP 01 - PURPOSE
In order to head in the right direction with your brand strategy, the first step forward has to do with taking a step back. It’s looking at your business from that 30,000 foot level to understand its overall purpose for existing in the world.
It starts with why. For some, it’s hard to start with this broader, grander vision and understanding of your business because you’re ready to dive into the details and start doing, doing, doing and implementing, activating and executing. If you truly want to build a brand that lasts, you first must get clear on its overall purpose. You need to decide who you want to BE, before you can go about the business of what to DO on a daily basis.
Why did you choose to start this business? What fuels your passion for your work, or drives you to continue doing this thing that you’ve chosen to do - all day, everyday? The answers to these questions will help you begin formulate your purpose that will give momentum to the rest of your brand-building process.
STEP 02 - PERCEPTION
brand perception
def. A way of regarding, understanding or interpreting your brand; a mental impression of your business.
Brand Perception is literally what consumers think about your business. It’s their expectation and how you meet that expectation every single time. Your brand is an experience, and you don’t want to leave that experience to chance.
You cannot control the minds of every single member of your audience - after all, you’re not Yoda or Luke Skywalker able to do Jedi mind tricks. But, you also don’t have to wait for others to form their own opinion without any input from you. The people you care about most are your ideal clients.
Tell them on a regular basis what you do, why you do it, and the overall promise of your brand and show up in a way that’s congruent with your values and promise to form a positive brand perception in the minds of your consumers.
Decide what you want to stand for and what you want to be known for and hold that intention close with everything you do, say and offer.
STEP 03 - POSITIONING
In order to position your brand you have to know who it’s for. Getting clear on your Ideal Client and knowing exactly who you’re talking to will allow you to not only position your business to attract your best clients, but will also have you stand out in your industry.
Entrepreneurs, business owners and visionaries tend to be a passionate bunch. We can get so excited about finally doing work we love, and waking up everyday as the boss and owner of our schedule. And sometimes, we let that excitement seep into how we position our businesses, and we end up positioning it based on who we are and what we want.
This can actually work sometimes when we ARE our ideal client, however, in order to position your brand successfully, you’ll want to keep your audience in mind first. Know what they’re searching for when it comes to what you offer. Know what their challenges and ambitions are and position everything in your business to speak to those things.
This will help you add meaning and value to your work that will resonate with your audience, thus helping you grow your business. You want to position your brand to move your audience and get them to take inspired action.
STEP 04 - PACKAGING
When you package your brand, we’re talking about the outward appearance of your brand and what that says about you and your business. Brand Strategy informs design. That’s why packaging is Step 4 in this brand-building process - because until you’ve created your strategy and understand your overall Purpose, Desired Perception and Positioning, you won’t know how to build the look, feel, design and style of your brand.
Once you’ve positioned your brand and have added the meaning, value and emotion through your why, your mission, the benefits, the core values and your relatable story, only then can you translate all of those things and carry them through into your visuals.
Oftentimes it’s the look of a brand that first attracts someone, and thus you think you must dive into designing a logo, building out your color palette and font hierarchy, but no. Just like when a director shoots a film, they don’t shoot the first scene first. With your brand, even though your audience may “see” your brand first, you build your brand by starting with strategy.
STEP 05 -PROMOTION
Promoting your brand is about communicating clearly and in a relatable way to not only reach your ideal client, but to touch them, move them and inspire them. This final step in building your brand strategy is really about finding your brand voice.
Finding your brand voice is imperative to communicating successfully to your audience. It’s about speaking your customers’ language so they feel welcome and know they’re in exactly the right place.
You also want to choose key content pillars for your brand so the kinds of topics and conversations you’re having with your audience are aligned with the brand strategy you’ve created. If your key content pillars are your Messaging (what you say to promote your brand), then your brand voice is the Personality of your brand (how you say it in order to really connect).
One final consideration in the area of Promoting your brand is where to find your audience so you’re not shouting into the wind, but whispering directly into your ideal clients’ ear. Back in Step 2 and 3 as you’re really identifying and getting to know your ideal client, you need to know them so well that you know where they’re spending their time (email inbox, Instagram, Linked In, YouTube, Facebook, etc) so you know where to promote your brand.
Creating a brand strategy means you’ve got a plan to articulate, present and communicate your business to the right people, in the right place, with the right message.
You don’t have to keep throwing everything at the wall to see what sticks - that’s a waste of time, energy and resources. You build a brand strategy in order to create a plan so you know exactly what to do, what to say, and how to show up to attract your dream clients and grow a business doing exactly what you love.