Branding as a concept is often misunderstood, which begs the question what really is a brand? Can we narrow it down to one thing or is it a collective? Our creative team recently took turns reading The Brand Gap by Marty Neumeier to strengthen our understanding of the concept. After discussing the book, we felt inspired to write down our thoughts on the subject.
No Really, What is a Brand?
In our attempts to narrow down our question to one simple sentence, we found that is nearly impossible. The idea of trying to narrow down what makes a brand is why there is so much confusion surrounding the subject in the first place. So, we have put together a condensed version of Neumeier’s explanation of a brand…
“A brand is a person’s gut feeling about a product, service, or company. It’s a gut feeling because we’re all emotional, intuitive beings, despite our best efforts to be rational. It’s a person’s gut feeling, because in the end the brand is defined by individuals, not by companies, markets, or the so-called general public…When enough individuals arrive at the same gut feeling, a company can be said to have a brand”
Where Everyone is Going Wrong
Neumeier’s unpacking of a brand, although a little long winded, sums up the subject perfectly. Where people are going wrong is that they try to pinpoint exactly what a brand is when its much broader than anyone could ever realise. Often the word ‘brand’ conjures up an image of a logo in people’s minds. But branding is not just a logo, its best to avoid using these words interchangeably, a logo is merely a piece of the puzzle. A brand is a collective concept. If you want your company brand to be successful you should understand that popularity doesn’t hinge on the greatness of one element such as a logo or business card. If you are intrigued about the specifics of building a brand read our blog post Brand Basics.
How to Turn It Around
A brand is susceptible to change and will require constant development and evolution. As the social context of the time changes you might find your brand may need to change with it. For example, there is currently a big push for environmental awareness and there might be ways that your brand can use this to its advantage. However, always keep in mind that people’s emotive reactions are what can make or break a brand. “The foundation of a brand is trust. Customers trust your brand when their experiences consistently meet or beat their expectations.” Constantly keep the people who make your brand successful in mind, as better communication always leads to better branding.
Here is our favourite quote from the book which we feel sums up our passion for all things branding.
“Branding is the process of connecting good strategy with good creativity.”
If your new to branding or want to build on your existing brand get in touch with our creative team to get the ball rolling.
The inspiration for this post came from The Brand Gap by Marty Neumeier.
