BUILD A BRAND THAT STANDS OUT
Why you should build a brand, not (just) a business
by Mel Fee
THE BLOG
Our online business tips
Hey, I’m Mel Fee
Brand and Marketing Strategist
for female entrepreneurs
A business and a brand are two different things. If you aren’t clear on how to set the two apart, read on.
What is a business?
Your business is what it is you do that generates money. It is the services and digital products you sell. It relates to the tangible, functional aspects without which your couldn’t trade.
What is a brand?
A brand is the emotional connection you build between your audience and your business.
Your brand, be it your business brand or personal brand has a personality and an identity. It is intangible and relates to the perceptions your audience associate with your brand name. Your reputation if you wish.
At the Mighty Bunch we think the only way of skyrocketing your online business is by turning it into a brand.
What happens when you build a business, not a brand:
If you focus on the revenue generating aspect of your business instead of aiming to build connections with your audience, here are some of the things that will happen:
1- Your offerings will be replicable: promoting mainly the tangible aspects of your services makes it harder to differentiate them in a crowded market. No matter how good your services are, they might be replicated by your competition. If you don’t build a more solid barrier such as an emotional connection through branding, there is nothing stoping your competition from entering your field, replacing your offers and getting you out of business.
2- Your will compete on price: If you haven’t been intentional about your positioning, look-and-feel, and crafted messages that make you stand out, you will most likely drown in a sea of sameness.
Think about it. When people can’t clearly differentiate offerings because they all seem to provide the same value, they usually go for the cheapest option.
Your only option to win would be to offer the cheapest services and my friend, that is not a good race to be in.
What happens when you build a brand and not a business:
Picture yourself on holidays. You’re on your way to the beach and you see two ice-cream shops. One has a fairly nice selection of flavours but their seats are washed out, their name doesn’t show up on google map, they also sell hot-dogs and all their menus look different.
The second ice cream shop looks polished, shows consistency from their menus to their wallpaper and they serve you ice cream scoops shaped as flower petals.
Which one would you go for?
Yes, I’d go for the second one too. In case you haven’t recognised it from the description I’m talking about Amorino (and as an ice-cream connoisseur, I suggest you give them a try!)
You see, the first shops is a business. It has a company name but this is not a brand. No effort has been put into their branding, they would sell you anything that fills your stomach and their lack of cohesiveness doesn’t scream trust.
Be it to sell products or services, your brand is much more than a business, it is an EXPERIENCE. It’s a feeling your clients have when they hear your brand’s name that no-one could quite emulate even if they tried. With a brand you are no longer someone they randomly run into online, they seek you out.
You’re not a ‘pit stop’, you are a destination.
In my experience as a brand strategist, I would even go further and say the ultimate difference between a business and a brand is that a brand infuses a vision of the world into everything they do.
Look at Coca-Cola for example, it is not -just- a sweet, caffeinated bubbly drink. It is Santa Claus ads on Christmas, the colour red, childhood memories. It is HAPPINESS.
A brand creates an emotional connection
Emotions often overwrite rational reasons.
If there’s ONE thing I would like you to take from my examples above, it’s that people mostly buy based on emotions. If your audience feels stronger towards your brand than that of your competition, they will most likely buy from you.
There might be a thousands rational reasons why someone should buy from you but if they don’t ‘know, like and trust’ your brand they simply won’t.
A unique connection allows for higher pricing
Focus on creating an exceptional customer experience. Provide value, deliver results and have great, consistent branding, and you will hold a special place into your ideal clients’ heart. The sort of place your competition can’t claim and that you can’t put a price on.
People are ready to pay a lot more when they feel connected to your brand.
I am personally happy to pay extra for brands I love, because first of, kudos for their branding and marketing efforts, and secundo because they make my life feel that much better.
I have a Mac book Pro for instance. Sure I could get a Dell. They’re technically more performant, have more storage and are cheaper. Only their design doesn’t appeal to me and I like being able to synchronise all my Apple devices in seconds.
Like all Apple lovers, I’d also rather spend time in a sleek Apple store than at any random computer shop. Besides, Steve Jobs developed a fantastic personal brand and carried values I deeply connect to, so here we go, they get my money.
To summarise, a business is based on what you do and get paid for. A brand is the connection you create with your audience.
Next time you wonder if you have a business or a brand, ask yourself, ‘What am I selling?’ If the answer is something that goes beyond your products or services, you may be on your way to building a successful, Mighty Brand.
