Building a Strong Brand: The Essential Checklist for Small Business Owners and Freelancers

Building a Strong Brand: The Essential Checklist for Small Business Owners and Freelancers

A brand encompasses more than just a logo. It is a comprehensive package of visual tools that effectively communicate every aspect of your business. From leaving a first impression on a business card to delivering a memorable customer experience, branding is an ongoing process that sets expectations and reflects your business's personality.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, branding is defined as the act of making a product, organization, person, or place easily distinguishable from others by connecting it with a specific name, design, symbol, or set of qualities. It is the design, symbols, colors, and other elements that people associate with a particular product or company. Successful branding uses design to reinforce customers' visual memories and connects a product with a specific name, symbol, or features, ultimately driving recognition and desirability.

While a brand can be defined as a unique name, symbols, and designs that differentiate a product, service, or company from competitors, it encompasses more than that. A brand strategically positions a product or service within the market and shapes consumers' overall perception and image. Successful brands create emotional connections with consumers, foster loyalty, and establish a strong market position.

For small businesses and freelance professionals, developing a well-thought-out and well-designed brand is crucial. A clever brand can help you stand out, build trust with customers, and enhance loyalty. However, the process of creating a brand can be overwhelming, especially when starting out or revamping an existing brand. To help you navigate this process, I've put together a branding checklist that covers the essential elements and offers practical pointers for implementation.

BRANDING FOUNDATIONS CHECKLIST

BRAND ASSETS

• Brand Identity: Your brand identity encompasses visual elements such as your logo, icons, color scheme, typography, photography, and overall design style. Working with a designer can help create a strong brand identity, but if you're not ready for that, you can utilize brand packages or templates to establish the basics. Keep your messaging clear, simple, and consistent across all elements.

• Photography: High-quality and thoughtful photography plays a vital role in conveying your brand's message, personality, and values quickly and visually. It is essential for creating visually appealing content that engages and grows your audience.

• Brand Tone and Messaging: Your business's tone of voice, values, mission, and unique selling proposition (USP) shape your brand's tone and messaging. Consistently communicate your brand's messaging across all marketing channels and customer experiences, ensuring a consistent tone, especially on your website and social media platforms. Create a cheat sheet of words and phrases that align with your brand and exclude those that don't, such as the use of exclamation points or slang.

• Brand Guidelines: Establish brand guidelines for your assets and develop templates to save time and maintain consistency. Brand guidelines provide specific instructions on how to use the elements of your brand. Even if you've created your own brand elements, compile a list of rules regarding colors, fonts, tone of voice, etc., to ensure consistency across your communications.

• Product Packaging: Consider your packaging as an extension of your brand and ensure it aligns with your brand identity and messaging. Assess all packaging elements, whether physical (boxes, labels, etc.) or digital (envelopes, email footers, receipts), and make them cohesive with your brand.

BRAND STRATEGY

• Brand Story: Communicate your brand story through social media, website content, or emails. Your brand story should convey your business's history, values, and mission. Sharing the story or the people behind your business helps build a connection with your audience and establishes credibility.

• Target Audience: Take time to understand your customers—their demographics, behaviors, frustrations, and interests. This knowledge will help you create relevant marketing messages and content that resonates with them. Visualize a specific person who represents your ideal customer to further refine your targeting.

• Brand Experience: Your brand experience encompasses the overall interactions customers have with your brand, including customer service, delivery, product quality, and overall experience. Consider every touchpoint on your customer journey and strive to create a consistent, positive, and unique experience that aligns with your brand messaging.

• Marketing Channels: Identify the channels through which you communicate with your audience (e.g., Instagram, email, LinkedIn, direct mail, advertising). Determine which channels will be most effective based on your customer insights and ensure consistent branding across all channels. Monitor results and adjust your branding and marketing activities accordingly. Remember, it's better to focus on a few channels and excel rather than spreading yourself thin across numerous platforms.

Building a strong and consistent brand requires time and effort, but the benefits are worth the investment. If you have any questions or would like to start a conversation, feel free to comment below or email me.

Adidas is globally recognised for its iconic three-stripe logo, which (to me) doesn’t closely represent sport in a literal symbolic sense (maybe three footballs?!), but they have been so consistent with their brand strategy that it has become a global symbol of the brand's commitment to performance, innovation, and style in the world of sportswear and beyond.