The Art of Brand – Part One
by Marc Iannacone / eBrands
In a three part series, eBrands strategy development director Marc Iannacone discusses the art of branding. In part one, Marc reviews the war on clutter.
Branding is close to my heart. In my experience I have learnt that the word ‘brand’ means different things to different entrepreneurs, business owners, corporations and their customers.
Some people see ‘brand’ as a range of television commercials during the cricket and therefore neglect it because they see it as a terrible expense; others see brand development as too difficult and are suspicious of it as marketing hyperbole; and some see it as the ultimate business weapon.
If you own, run or are the custodian of a business, branding should keep you awake at night. Why? Clutter.
Clutter is your biggest enemy. Clutter is what gives your competitors a chance. Clutter makes you part of the crowd. Clutter determines if you are a “me-too” offering. Clutter confuses your customers.
Sadly, there is more clutter around than ever before. There are more businesses selling you more wares; more shops selling the same products and more consultants promising returns. There’s more media for you to read, hear and watch; more sales that offer surplus stock; more customers waiting for the same bus every day; and more spam in our inboxes. Clutter is a thief that steals time, energy and space (both physical and mental).
What does all of this really have to do with branding? Let’s make it clear for business owners;
- How many competitors clutter your space with variations of the same offering?
- How many corporate newsletters/emails do people receive a month, and yet how much do they read, let alone remember?
- Does your promotional material really help people see your point of difference?
- How many people, who don’t work for you, really understand what you do?
- When was the last time you gave a forty slide PowerPoint presentation when you could have said it in five?
Barring detailed analysis of your target, there are some universal truths about all customers that help to shape every brand:
There are still only 24 hours in a day, and 365 days in a non-leap year.
With all of the additional pressures and activities of everyday life, the time and attention that your customers and employees devote to you will always be limited. In turn, your capacity to remember and truly engage yourself in relationships is continuously tested as you cram in all of life’s activities. There is no time for clutter.
People find it easier to remember what is relevant to them.
If a brand is relevant, it is interesting, and it’s easier to remember. If it’s dull, it cannot be recalled without a maximum of effort. Clutter means effort.
Simple equals memorable.
The simpler something is, the greater the number of people that will understand. If a concept is easy to grasp, it will be grasped. Keep it simple and you will stand apart from clutter.
Can you afford clutter?
Businesses who are thinking about their brand should begin by asking, “How can we overcome clutter?” Clutter can exist from how you answer the phone; to the PowerPoint presentations that you give; to the imagery and copy on your web site; through to how your visual identity stacks up against those in your space.
A successful brand strategy (be it in visual concepts, words or audio communication) eliminates clutter, helping customers to recognise you and understand what you offer, and it provides the cues required to engage you.
And this is why your branding in the digital space is so important. Yes, the World Wide Web is cluttered. Yes, you are bombarded with special offers from genuine and not-so-genuine enterprises. But when someone visits your web site, they are no longer passively receiving your brand, they are engaging with it. So, how much is your brand worth to you?
In part two, we delve further into the art of branding, arming you with weapons to help you win the war on clutter and decide the right directions for your brand.
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