How Proven Startups Use Brand Strategy to Better the Competition

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This is the sign you've been looking for when it comes to brand strategy.
The magic we seek is for our brand to be perceived well by our customers. Photo by Austin Chan on Unsplash

Are you thinking about how to make your brand super cool and popular? Want to know how to make people really love what you’re offering? Then it sounds like you are considering your brand strategy.

Nowadays, with so many businesses vying for consumers’ attention, success depends on factors other than merely high-quality goods or services. 

It necessitates a skillfully composed combination of experiences, feelings, and perceptions—the impact of brand strategy.


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Brand strategy for startups

When it comes to new companies, like startups, making a brand that everyone knows and loves isn’t easy. 

Imagine trying to build a huge Lego – without instructions. Startups often find it hard to put all the pieces together.

Why?

Because they need a lot of energy and people to make it work.

Besides, it’s a dynamic process and startups have few hands to work on this process. Startup CEOs have got many things to do – product development, coding, fundraising, to name a few,

However, leaving branding by the sideline is risky.

A clearly defined brand strategy, which can distinguish, position, know why you exist, and cultivate loyalty can be a game-changer. 

It can help lubricate all else that needs doing, so you can make money from your venture. 

So with that in mind, this post will teach you the definition of a brand strategy, its components, and how to create one.


A brand? What is that?

“Brand is the sum total of how someone perceives a particular organization. Branding is about shaping that perception.”

Ashley Friedlein, founder and CEO of Guild

It’s important to understand what a brand actually is before talking about the specifics of brand strategy.

Consider your brand to be everything that distinguishes your company from the competition and makes it unique. 

It’s not just about a great tagline or logo. 

No, it’s more!

The overall market perception of your biz or your overall identity, including how it interacts with customers and feels is your brand. 

How you are perceived from the competition is your market differentiator.

And, that people is your brand.


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Your brand strategy is key to creating positive perceptions of you and your business.

Now, what is a brand strategy?

Simply said, a brand strategy is your choice of what you want to represent and the perceptions you wish to create in the minds of people.

It serves as a guide to assist you in communicating who you are and helps you understand who you are. 

As a CEO or founder of a startup, developing your brand strategy should benefit your connections with suppliers, consumers, workers, stakeholders, and local authorities – everyone!

In the absence of a well-crafted brand strategy, it can be difficult to know your brand’s purpose, vision, mission, and values

This can result in poor decision-making and a stagnant brand loss-making brand in your market.

Creating a powerful brand strategy requires dedication, time, and work. 

Many start-up brands get trapped there. 

After obtaining investment capital, a lot of startups jump right into expanding their staff and breaking into new areas, often without first developing a brand strategy.

No quality leads? Then, level up your brand strategy to the top. Book a free discovery call to find out how.

What are the components of a brand strategy?

Make sure the appropriate individuals are involved throughout the process and have a clear idea of what you’re creating and why before developing your brand strategy.

There are some things you should be aware of as they will guide you in developing your brand strategy. 

They serve as a roadmap for action, as shown below:

1. Having a brand story

A brand story is your narrative that you use to convey key points about your company, such as its originality, core values, beliefs, and mission.

Your brand narrative strengthens the emotional bond between your clientele and your company. 

Consider your brand strategy as a narrative you are telling to build a bridge of positive sentiment or perception.

Prominent brands typically respond to two frequent questions when it comes to brand strategy: 

Why do you exist and WHAT do you do? 

Who are you and what is your process? 

What look, what feel, what sound do you wish to have?

By providing information on WHY you were founded, WHAT you stand for, and WHAT motivated you to begin with, you create a sentimental space where potential clients may learn more about you and your company.

Based on the aforementioned, brand storytelling is the ultimate goal of your brand strategy. 

Your story—your goal, mission, vision, values, beliefs and behaviors, spirits, personalities, etc.—should be the focal point of your brand strategy.

Be real and authentic, this will help you build a rock-solid perception with your audience. 

Read more about brand storytelling.

2. The culture of your brand

    To build a great brand, you must recognize what will keep you moving forward and have an understanding of your legacy and culture.

    This is your culture.

    Although distinct, company culture and brand culture are related. As you construct your brand strategy, you must cultivate the legacy that will power your future.

    Consider the interaction between the people who buy what you sell and your brand culture.

    Furthermore, creating your brand values gives you a clear purpose and direction. 

    Maintaining and sharing your values makes it possible for your target market to identify with you and, should your values align with their own, to purchase your products and services.

    What should you consider the following while creating your brand values?

    What is most important to you? 

    Are their key issues that your brand addressing? 

    As a brand, what do you think is true?

    Providing answers to such inquiries enables you to identify the core values, tenets, and concepts that form your brand and ought to direct your enterprise.

    Your brand values serve as your criteria or yardsticks for determining whether the choice made by your team aligns with your objectives. 

    They also light a path of perception, that prospects with similar values will want to cultivate a relationship with you.

    Finally, brand strategy focuses on your message and desired persona. Do you act as you say you do?

    For instance, you may come across a brand that claims honesty as one of its core values but ultimately uses deceptive tactics to increase sales. This indicates that their values are centered on winning rather than integrity.  

    Here is a great quote summing this all up what brand strategy can achieve:

    “A brand is the set of expectations, memories, stories, and relationships that taken together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service over another”—Seth Godin

    3. What are your brand visuals?

      How do you want your brand to seem visually? 

      The audience you are targeting will always be moved emotionally by the brand design.

      Building your brand’s visual components—from identity to packaging—will provide you a competitive edge.

      It also strengthens your brand’s visual identity, enhances consumer satisfaction, and helps set you apart from the competition.

      Why is a brand good? 

      It’s more about having a compelling brand story or visual components. 

      Consider the key elements, which include visuals such as the brand’s logo, typography, composition, imagery, motion, and tone of voice.

      This makes it easier to distinguish your brand from a plethora of rivals. 

      Your brand system, which is a visual representation of your brand persona, will become apparent as you work on your mission.

      The success of your brand is correlated with the appropriate creative messaging. When it comes to brand strategy, it’s more about creating an intuitive, human, sympathetic, end-to-end experience.

      You should reconsider your brand strategy if it ranks among the least imaginative brands.

      4. Finding your brand personality

        Just as every individual is different, so too are all businesses. 

        Thinking of your company as a person can be aided by having an easily forgettable brand. 

        What kind of person, if your company were a person, would it be? 

        What qualities and attributes might draw someone in?

        With brand personality, you can demonstrate to a customer what to expect from a brand and set the tone for the relationship they will develop with it over time.

        Consider the words and phrases a brand employs in its multiple communication channels to interact with potential or existing clients.

        What language does your brand use? 

        Aim to distinguish your brand voice. 

        What is the tone of your rivals? 

        How can you tweak or enhance your tone superiority?

        Consider the language you use, the slang you employ, the jokes you tell, and the remarks you make. 

        How would you say this? 

        What would our clients say about the tone, voice, and style of your work?

        What about your brand’s personality? 

        As well as its vibe, which is the attitude you project through your website, social media accounts, product packaging, and other brand touchpoints.

        Create a mood by considering anything from lighthearted to sardonic to serious to humorous.

        Consider expressing yourself in a lighthearted, sardonic, serious, or humorous way.

        This will add to the whole experience that customers have with your company and make a lasting, more memorable impression and perception.

        Your brand stands out from those of your competitors in the market thanks to the above-mentioned attributes.

        Give it a try!

        No quality leads? Then, level up your brand strategy to the top. Book a free discovery call to find out how.

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        Great brands with a robust strategy last the test of time.

        How can a robust brand strategy be developed?

        Not only can brand strategy help you organize your logos, colors, copywriting, and imagery, but it’s not only for marketers.

        It goes beyond that.

        That’s absolutely right! 

        Brand strategy is the foundation for all aspects of your business, not just marketing. 

        It’s about defining the core essence of your brand.

        Every touchpoint – from product development to customer service – reflects that core identity. 

        It’s the guiding light that helps you make consistent business decisions that resonate with your audience and build lasting relationships.

        Make sure you know exactly what you’re creating and why before you begin developing your brand strategy.

        To get a consensus at the end of the process, make sure the appropriate leaders are all included.

        Things like purpose, vision, mission, values, beliefs, attitudes, audiences, value proposition, and positioning should all be included in your brand strategy documents. 

        Consider compiling documentation to serve as a roadmap for each choice you make that is consistent with your brand.

        1. Your brand strategy needs a foundation

          I want you to describe your brand. 

          Consider providing an answer to inquiries such as WHY your brand exists. What kinds of pain points does it address? Who are the people who compete with you? Who are the perfect clients for you? How does my market feel about my brand? What is the origin story of your brand?

          The answers to the preceding questions point you in the path of your brand. 

          Every well-known business you encounter has a core set of values, like directing and impacting the decisions made by your team.

          The foundation of a brand consists of factors like;

          • Purpose of your brand
          • Vision of your future
          • What mission will you build for the above future?
          • The values or precepts direct your actions and decisions?

          Having a strong basis right from the beginning directs your choices, objectives, and ambitions for the future.

          2. Conduct research on your ideal customer

            Consider creating a persona for your customers. 

            A thorough depiction of the perfect consumer who would be unable to resist purchasing your goods or services is called a customer persona

            This can help you identify the type of consumers you want to reach with your marketing communications.

            If you do not know with whom you are attempting to establish a connection, you cannot have an emotional touch. 

            Assess how your brand currently serves or may serve the interests and goals of your stakeholders.

            3. Take note of the customer journey with your brand strategy

              When creating a brand strategy, you should consider the steps your clients take to become customers. 

              Draw a customer journey that illustrates how a consumer interacts with your brand at particular times. 

              Include all the touchpoints.

              Besides, it varies from having no connection at all to having devoted supporters and returning clients.

              4. Conduct research on your competitors

                Your strategic decisions are based on market opportunities to strengthen your core offering, forge a connection with customers, and outmaneuver rivals. 

                Understanding how your rivals engage their audiences is beneficial.

                You don’t need to emulate your rivals’ actions. 

                Alternatively, you may take a cue from what they’re doing well and where they’re struggling with brand creation.

                You can get insights and strategic inspiration from observing your rivals to help you stand out from the crowd. 

                Moreover, analyzing your competition will enable you to identify the precise differences that set you apart from them. 

                When creating your marketing messaging, you should concentrate on what sets you apart.

                5. Work on your brand messaging

                  You now understand who you are and why you are here. 

                  Work on your brand essence, or how to communicate your messaging and identity, next. 

                  Your brand will speak consistently and genuinely when you address these concerns.

                  The person who should lead you on this stage is the brand consultant; many skip this phase and begin working on the brand designs—identity and other things.

                  Others work on the foundation step after finishing the designing phase; this is also out of moral order.

                  Develop the essence, voice, tone, and placement of your brand – first and foremost.

                  Recall that I questioned what kind of person you would be if you were a person. Your brand’s human qualities and attributes make up your personality.

                  So, Consider your identity as a person. Are you consistently serious, lighthearted, formal, professional, inquisitive, aristocratic, or sophisticated? 

                  Choose a personality that aligns with the core values of your brand.

                  6. Create a brand positioning statement

                    What brands all need is a benefit ladder that progresses from the basic customer’s problem to the numerous benefits. 

                    It is one of the brand positioning tools available to you when you construct your brand messaging.

                    Never delay creating your single leading brand positioning statement that connects with every touchpoint and facet of your brand and reinforces the emotional advantage you provide to your target audience after you’ve thought about all the benefits of your brand. 

                    It guarantees brand coherence at every point of contact and will help your brand be memorable.

                    7. Enhance the tone of your brand

                      The best method to create an inviting vibe is to imagine the kind of simple, helpful brand you would like your target audience to experience. 

                      It’s best to use no more than three words to characterize your tone.

                      What are your three words?

                      8. Determine the essence of your brand

                        Some call it a motto, catchphrase, mantra, etc. 

                        Don’t let other words pull you away. 

                        The words are what cause more individuals to become lost.

                        A straightforward statement that encapsulates your brand’s positioning in the market is called its brand essence.

                        These sentences or words should not exceed two or three words. Take Nike—Just Do It, for instance.

                        Consider coming up with a list of such phrases for ideas before moving on to more intriguing ones that fit your brand.

                        9. Create a brand value proposition

                          List all of the advantages your items will bring to your target market, both practically and emotionally. 

                          Consider how you wish to address the issues that your clients are facing and why they ought to pick you over your rivals.

                          It is advisable to not let language deceive you—some experts refer to a value proposition as a promise. 

                          In the end, that’s what your brand messaging will uphold and bolster.

                          10. Create your brand story when developing your brand strategy

                            Consider the founding narrative or uniqueness of your brand. 

                            All brand communications are in line with your brand story across all available media. 

                            It holds your brand’s reputation to be held in the minds and hearts of the consumers and encourages them to think, feel, and act while it operates.

                            11. Formulate your brand identity

                              You now understand your brand’s messaging, who you are, and why you exist. It’s time to use the fundamentals to envision it. 

                              Consider how your objectives relate to your clientele. 

                              In what ways does your mission address the needs of your clients?

                              Just like when creating your brand messaging, choosing your visual branding strategy depends on your brand strategy. 

                              Your brand system, or the visual representation of your brand persona, will become apparent as you move from your purpose to your effect.

                              12. Develop your brand architecture

                                Try to create economies of scale by connecting your varied brand assets to your parent brand if you have a large number of items. 

                                Make it simple for customers to browse through your offerings.

                                You should examine a variety of architecture frameworks to see which ones best fit your brand. 

                                That is in line with the variety of goods you sell. Enhance the offerings of your best-selling goods and services.

                                Consider the colors, composition, imagery, motion, typography, tone of voice, and logo of your brand. 

                                How can you maintain brand consistency while making branding actionable?

                                13. Create your brand guidelines

                                  You now have a thorough understanding of your target market and brand. It’s time to put your brand identity and other elements into practice and start working on how you’ll deliver your message.

                                  Create scripts and design concepts to help you visualize the potential appearance of your brand. 

                                  At this point, you will discover how to creatively use your brand’s logo design, typefaces, and typography, as well as how to utilize or apply them, whether they are left, right, or center, as well as the brand colors and imagery that you must use.

                                  This will all go into your brand guidelines, so you can apply it at scale. Across all channels and products.

                                  Your target market will stop taking into consideration your brand values once they get associated with it because they are familiar with it. They can now identify the fonts, colors, and logo of your brand. 

                                  You are as they say “top of mind” with your target audience.


                                  Case study: Tesla brand strategy

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                                  Let’s examine Tesla, one of the most well-known car brands in the world.

                                  Elon Musk Drops the Mic: “Look, it’s not just about fancy cars. We’re building a future our kids can inherit, a cleaner planet they can call home!” 

                                  Tesla’s mission zooms past mere vehicles. 

                                  They are all about innovation.

                                  And, who are these Tesla Titans? 

                                  Forget engineers and marketers, these are pioneering minds, leaving their mark on the world, one electric spark at a time.

                                  Tesla’s Values:

                                  • Sustainability: Their electric heartbeat. Think cars that breathe clean and power grids that hum green.
                                  • Innovation: They redefine what’s possible, pushing boundaries like a rocket launch.
                                  • Safety & Efficiency: Obsessed with making tech safe for everyone, and efficient enough to ditch fossil fuels for good.

                                  How about the Tesla vibe? I tell you, when you ride in a Tesla, it’s a ride into the future. Sleek. Powerful. Like stepping into a sci-fi movie come to life.

                                  They make us feel that innovation and spark excitement

                                  Buying a Tesla isn’t a purchase, it’s a passport to the future.

                                  Three Words? Innovative. Sleek. Futuristic. 

                                  Every Tesla touchpoint is a reinforcement of these electrifying feelings.

                                  And, Tesla is more than electric cars, but also has solar panels, think home batteries. They’re building the infrastructure for a sustainable tomorrow.

                                  Tesla: More Than a Car Company? Absolutely. 

                                  They’re a beacon for the future of energy

                                  Every launch, update, and Elon tweet is a piece of this electrifying future

                                  Pretty cool, right?

                                  No quality leads? Then, level up your brand strategy to the top. Book a free discovery call to find out how.

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