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Brand Positioning – what does it mean?

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Brand positioning is the process by which a marketing opportunity is defined through extensive market research, allowing the business to best market its product or solution. Successful brand positioning allows a brand to have meaning to a particular audience and allows it to be seen as different from the competitor brands.

While marketing and advertising will help raise awareness of your product or service, ultimately it is your customers who will determine your ultimate success or failure. It is your service and product quality that you will be ultimately judged on. Consumers are looking for a credible brand experience, a reason to believe in your brand. So while it is good to stand out from the crowd, it is important for long term success that your product or service fills a genuine market place requirement, and provides genuine benefits to consumers.

What it comes down to is, what is it that you can deliver to your customers? What is it that you want to be known for? What is it that you can deliver above your competitors? Does your brand make sense to your target market? Does it provide a long term solution to their particular need? Does it provide the emotional connection they are looking for?

Well positioned brands will be seen as meaningful to their audience. For example, the Dove soap brand successfully leverage off the fact that it’s products contain moisturiser and sun screen. The perception is that Dove provides additional benefits over its competitors. The perception is that the product will provide meaning by improving the consumers lifestyle.

Brand positioning is an ongoing process requiring consistent and ongoing marketing and advertising over a range of mediums, in particular digital, to ensure that your online image remains valid to your audience. If you become invisible over time through a lack of market place exposure or your overall branding image begins to lose its validity in the face of ever changing competition, your brand will lose its significance to what matters most, your customers.

Ref: http://www.smartinsights.com/online-brand-strategy/brand-positioning/most-meaningful-brands/

A positive workplace culture is the core of a successful brand

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What is the most important aspect of a successful business brand?

Is it a clever media marketing campaign? Is it an effective digital marketing campaign? Is it the logo we see on business cards to billboards?

Not exactly – the cardinal aspect is not so obvious nor is it often talked about (outside business development). The cardinal aspect of any great brand is a business’s management mindset and resulting culture.

You have likely heard it countless times before: the most important asset of any business is its staff. Neglect this aspect and you develop a negative and fear-based culture. However, you can do the opposite and nurture this aspect. A plant needs sunshine; similarly, your workplace and its staff need enthusiasm and positivity. If you have enthusiasm for your business and it shows, this will flow down through to your staff. Enthusiasm and a positive mindset is an infectious thing!

My favourite example is Sir Richard Branson’s actions in Virgin Blue, presently Virgin Australia. It is the year 2000, and Branson sets up and launches Virgin Blue into the ultra-competitive domestic air travel market. The first thing he does is foster a positive and exciting culture for his employees. Arguably, it’s still one of the best within the industry. Prospective employees queue to be part of this exciting new business; Branson has a track record of not creating businesses so much as creating families. Thus upon launching Virgin Blue, the employees take great pride in being part of the company. At the same time, they are encouraged to take ownership of their roles: this is their business. Accordingly, their enthusiasm shows.

Enthusiasm and excitement has a major role. When a staff is excited about being part of an organisation – be it multi-national or a locally based SME – it transforms what customers and clients think of your business and what they tell others. This and this alone, is what separates successful brands from their competitors.

A little enthusiasm and positivity breeds great results: a healthy attitude promotes a healthy culture; a healthy culture promotes effective staff; effective staff promote happy customers; and happy customers promote potential customers. Furthermore, happy customers promote brand loyalty.

Get your workplace culture right and you are halfway there to creating a successful – memorable – brand image.

 

Brand positioning makes a world of difference

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Welcome to the first blog entry for Steve James Brand Builder!

Just a little about me…

I’ve had a long career in graphic design, advertising, and marketing.  My career spans many years including  running my own niche design and marketing agency for over 15 years.

Others will testify to the fact that I have a real passion for all things marketing, in particular, the process of branding and business image development.

Over the coming weeks, I’ll tell you about myself and some of the clients I have had the pleasure of working with in both a brand building and marketing management capacity.

I hope I can inspire you to think about your own brand and the impact that has on the success of your business.

 

Steve