Understanding Brand Strategy It' s a plan for the systematic development of a brand in alignment with business strategy. Your business plan is for allocating resources and prioritizing actions to achieve a business goal or purpose. The business strand represents the internal company (how you operate), and the brand strand represents the external company (how customers see you). In today’s customer-centric marketplace, any company that doesn’t view its customers as integral to its existence is likely to become irrelevant. Let' s find out the core steps to achieve the goal of Brand Strategy.
"READING IS TO THE MIND WHAT EXERCISE IS TO THE BODY”
Identify your Purpose
This is the starting place for any strategy. Without a clearly defined purpose, there’s no compelling reason to engage in any particular business. Ask yourself these specific questions:
1. Why are you in the business beyond making money?
2. What are you passionate about?
3. Where does your core competence lie?
4. How strong is the need for your products/services?
5. Is this a worthy challenge? 6. Is it broad enough to encompass everything you’ll want to do in the future?
Identify your Target market/client
You serve customers, of course. But which customers? How can you identify your customers if you’re not sure what you’re selling? Once again, you have to start somewhere, anywhere, and work back and forth until it makes sense.
Look for these signs:
1. What do they have in common?
2. How do they communicate with each other?
3. How likely are they to form a tribe around our brand?
4. What are the unspoken rules of the tribe?
Competitive Analysis
Branding is a game of competition and categories. The category you choose to compete in, and the products and services you sell, are key factors in your ability to win.
Ask yourself these questions:
1. Do you have the necessary skills to compete in this category, and with this product or service?
2. If not, can you acquire the skills in a reasonable amount of time?
3. Do you already have credibility with customers in this category?
4. Does the product or service create synergies with other products or services you’re selling? 5. Will entering the category bring you into direct competition with stronger brands?
6. What kind of management systems will you need to support your new offering?
7. Can you afford to do it well?
8. What would success look like?
How to Sell?
This brings us to the most basic question of all: Why will customers choose your brand over the others in the Industry? The most successful brands aren’t better or cheaper. They’re different. More important, they’re different in ways that customers find compelling. Winning doesn’t come from strategy alone. There are two parts to building a brand: getting the right idea; and getting the idea right (as quoted by Brand masters)
How will you grow?
To succeed and grow in today’s volatile marketplace, you need the ability to innovate at will; to continuously adapt to shifting circumstances. It needs a culture of non-stop innovation, the right kind of culture can build momentum with very small inputs, then release large amounts of energy whenever needed. 5 reforms required: 1. Elevate brand to the C-level - become your Chief Brand Officer. 2. Establish an innovation routine, station, corner for yourself. 3. Invest like a venture capitalist. 4. Invest in self learning & personal development. 5. Reward yourself with consistent efforts
The Key to generate a different, emotional response in the hearts & minds of every consumer by offering a clear and concise message.
Where to compete and how to prevail against the competition? Get you answers in discovery session for brand coaching with Coach Shweta - contact@coachshweta.com