when branding goes wrong
Branding is a tricky concept, and it’s something that many companies struggle with. It can be easy to get wrapped up in the grandeur of branding your company, but more often than not when it goes wrong it ends up costing you a lot of money. Here are some examples where branding has gone wrong:
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Logo and Slogan it's all that matters
When we think of the word branding, we often think of a logo or a slogan. That’s a great beginning. But branding is much more than a logo or even an advertising campaign. It’s a process, lifestyle and culture. It’s how you build relationships with your customers and potential customers every day over time.
It starts with who you are and what you stand for as an organization—and then it continues through everything you do: from customer service to product development to marketing efforts like creating ads or sponsoring events. Your brand should be at the core of everything because it will inform every decision made from this day forward in building relationships with your clients/customers/followers etc., no matter what mediums those interactions take place (digital channels such as social media platforms; physical spaces like retail stores).
Losing the Way
Branding it’s a process that requires constant work. Sometimes we can lose sight of our goals when we are not focusing on our audience. Believe me, your competitor and your niche needs might change with time and your brand needs to follow that change, adapt and move on. A good example of loosing your way is the company Kodak, that in some point reached a 90% market share of photographic film sales in the United States, but ignored the rise of digital technologies and ended up underestimating the market for digital
photography or overvaluing their branding awareness. By the time that they tried to grab the market, it was too late, the branding didn’t have the same power and other companies like Nikon, Sony and Canon were upfront.
So, It’s important to keep your brand in mind at all times: from how you interact with customers and colleagues, to the way things are presented on your website or social media pages, following cultural changes to even what kind of coffee mug sits atop your desk at work (you know who I’m talking about and their branding it’s powerful).
Remember: when building a brand—even one as simple as an online shop selling organic cotton shirts—there should always be room for improvement and change!
Rebranding Gone Wrong
The first thing to know about rebranding is that it’s a chance to revitalizing the brand and create a different identity, influencing a customer’s perception. This is the time to talk about what makes you different from your competition.
Rebranding can be an opportunity to tell the world about new products and services, or it could be a way of attracting new customers who may have been previously unaware of your brand. Or can go completely wrong if not considering the actual customers that already follow the company.
Think carefully before deciding on a name change—or even just minor changes like color scheme or logo size. Name changes can confuse customers who wonder what happened between now and last time when they made their last purchase.
Do some research. What do customers really think of your company? What do they say in their reviews? How can you use this information as an opportunity to improve customer service?
Misguided Content
Writing any content without thinking about your target is a mistake. For example, If you add a title that is not clear about what the post is about, that no one understands beside you, the chances of reach a lot of people drops significantly. Also, be careful when you choose your battles. If you focus on hating or diminishing your competitors, or causes, have in mind that your audience might be supporting some of that causes/competitors. Remember, there’s space on the market for everyone. So, instead of spreading what you don’t like, maybe you would like to focus on what you like/support and attracting people that support that as well. It’s your call.
So, It's not only about you
Yes, it’s not only about you, it’s about your customer. Let’s go even deeper in that concept. It’s not even about what your audience needs, but what they want.
Ok, you believe in your product/service, you know that’s a good one and you know from the bottom of your heart that they really need it, but in order to catch their attention, you have to offer what they want. Because in some cases, people don’t know that they need your product/service and if they don’t know, you’re going to have to find different ways to show what they want and offer what they need.
Conclusion
The bottom line is, branding is a complicated business but can be simple once you understand and build a relationship with your customers. It’s not something that can be fluffed up with a few freebies and giveaways. Branding is about developing a reputation for quality products, excellent customer service and great value for money. If you want to make your brand stand out from the crowd then you need to put some serious thought into what makes it different from all the other brands out there (and then make sure those differences are reflected in everything from your logo design through to your advertising campaigns).
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