When customers think about your business, their impressions are largely formed by your approach to branding. Brand recognition is what sets your small business apart from that of the competition. Effective small business branding applies to those small or start up companies whose brands are easy for customers to recall, and can be easily recognized.
The first step in successful small business branding is to select the right name for the company or product.
Forget the catchy or trendy names in favor of options that are straightforward and easy to remember. It is also important to choose a name that gives customers their first hint about the type of service being offered. A Thai restaurant that names its company, “Spoons” gives consumers little notion of what type of restaurant the name represents, nor gives any information about its cuisine.
Just as each person involved in a company has a distinct personality, the company or product itself should be given its own voice to which customers can relate on a personal level. For instance, a company that specializes in booking entertainers will have a different, more playful marketing strategy from one that sells securities. The tenor of that company persona should be consistent across all communication platforms.
Visual impact also carries a lot of weight in small business branding.
A professionally designed logo that can somehow encompass the main idea of what the company represents, is the logo that will result in accomplishing fast brand name recognition. The logo should always be used across all forms of communication within the company, such as on websites, on company stationery and on business cards.
By focusing careful attention on small business branding, your company will remain in the minds of your current and future customers for years to come.
