Brand

Locational branding allows companies to target their consumers at a microscopic, personal level.  It is one of the best ways businesses can target consumers on a personal, granular level just based on their physical location.  This can be done online or offline, but the messaging that is used is based on their physical location. Locational branding has proves to be an effective strategy.  When implementing it properly, it allows companies to focus in on specific customers by offering specific offers to them.  Because of the technologies available today in phones, cars, watches, and the like, locational branding can be used through a variety of means. There are two main types of locational branding that most marketers use. Geofencing Geofencing is a location-base service that establishes a digital perimeter with smartphone, WiFi, or GPS data to trigger a desired marketing action.  For example, when you walk past a Kohl’s store and you receive a push notification with the message: “Sale ends today!  Buy 1 pair of shoes, get the second 50% off”. Geotargeting Geotargeting is a location-based service that delivers content when certain criteria are met when within the defined perimeter area.  For example, your brick oven pizza restaurant recently added a new vegan pizza option.  You want to target users within your community that are interested in a vegetarian lifestyle and health. Does it work? In a joint study by Forbes and Treasure Data, 74% of consumers say they were influenced to buy from a brand based on just the shopping experience.  There are oodles of other studies out there that will prove this same fact.  But the underlying theme amongst all of them is that a great customer buying experience is the mainstay for a successful business and marketing strategy. If you need assistance with improving your marketing strategy using location branding, please get in touch with me. Got a Project in Mind? GET IN TOUCH I collaborate with innovative brands to create cutting-edge digital experiences.Let’s connect!

What is Brand Perception? Brand perception are the thoughts, experiences, and feelings a customer associates with a company.  These thoughts and feelings are why people choose to wear certain brands of clothing, pick certain food items at the grocery store, or choose what restaurants to eat at.  Brand perception plays a vital role in creating emotional connections with customers.  Once brand perception, whether good or bad, is established, it’s very difficult to change it in people’s minds.  Therefore, giving attention to and putting in the proper work necessary to create positive associations is important. How do you Measure Brand Perception? Data provides evidence and framework for what is working and what is not working in given situations.  This is also the case with brand perception.  Since this perception comes from a variety of avenues, it is important to gather information from those to help determine how to measure it. Here are some means to collect data to evaluation that measure: Surveys: Surveys are a quick and relatively easy way to collect information from people. Setting up the survey properly will aide in the responder’s responses so that the best data can be collected. Social Media Mentions: Social media is the new online coffee shop.  People are constantly hanging out on these platforms sharing their views on different topics.  By monitoring some of these conversations and mentions on these platforms, one can get a feel for what people are talking about in regards to certain brands. Brand Audit: A brand audit is a great means to evaluate current information.  Through primary and secondary research one can assess target markets, products/services, and brand positioning.  Although it takes extra work to complete, the results that come about from a brand audit can be influential in learning how people perceive the brand.  Customer Experiences: When customers buy your products and service, implement an extra measure in that process to ask them a variety of questions.  These answers can help paint the picture on how they view the brand. If you are not sure how your target market views your brand and want to find out, please get in touch with me so I can help you through that process. Got a Project in Mind? GET IN TOUCH I collaborate with innovative brands to create cutting-edge digital experiences.Let’s connect!

SEO branding refers to a process where your brand becomes an important source of organic traffic.  Brands that have established an awareness and recognition tend to be trusted by Google.  Therefore, they are shown as a viable source in search results.  When they are shown frequently in results, they end up ranking higher. SEO branding builds and promotes a company’s recognition and trust.  Much like networking, it focuses on building relevance, authority, and trust within the search engine results.   Although SEO and branding are two separate important factors, they also influence and benefit from each other.  It is important to consider the brand in all aspects of developing your SEO.  This helps expand and paint the picture further about the brand. Some basic SEO techniques include: Brand links Digging into brand search data Using the results to enhance the interest in a brand The important takeaway for SEO is that branding is a huge asset.  How a brand performs is an incredibly important to a company.  SEO is an extension of that branding and should be used in the optimization of a website.  Therefore, you need to see the brand interest as a huge asset and drawing point if you desire to grow a brand online. If you need assistance with your branding or have questions, feel free to get in touch with me and I would be pleased to assist you. Got a Project in Mind? GET IN TOUCH I collaborate with innovative brands to create cutting-edge digital experiences.Let’s connect!

Visual branding is influential for your company.  There are two absolutely important elements when building a brand that’s remembered, referred, and respected.  Those two elements are clarity and consistency. Clarity When you are clear about your mission, your audience, what sets your apart, and why you are the best, the marketing activities become effortless.  On top of that, you will get more referrals because your audience better understands you and what you are about. Consistency When you use the same colors, typography, imagery, and message across all marketing channels, you build trust, credibility, and reliability for your brand.  When a company changes their messaging and visual imagery, a brand loses traction in the market.   It Matters Visual imagery is proven to get more attention, increase audience involvement, and enhance social sharing.  Here are some facts that back that up: Content that includes imagery gets 94% more views Including images in blog posts will get 35% more shares 66% of all social media posts include visuals For every 350 words in an article, one image should accompany them Because millions of images are shared amongst social media and blog posts every day, it is important to include some important visual branding practices. Five Ways to Implement Add a logo or icon Use brand colors Use consistent typography Add color overlay Create templates Visually branding your media and content is vitally important.  Giving attention to these important aspects can greatly affect how prospects view your brand.  If you have questions about visual branding or would like help establishing it, get in touch with me and I would be pleased to assist you along this path. Got a Project in Mind? GET IN TOUCH I collaborate with innovative brands to create cutting-edge digital experiences.Let’s connect!

Digital branding is the process of using digital assets to create an online brand identity.  This identify can be expressed on virtually any digital channel, like your website, social media profiles, digital ads, and content marketing. Done right, digital branding allows you to create stronger digital marketing campaigns.  These campaigns can then help build a powerful presence in the digital sphere. Digital marketing is any marketing that uses electronic devices and can be used to convey promotional messaging.  In practice, digital marketing typically refers to marketing campaigns that appear on a computer, phone, tablet, or other device.  What Exactly is the Difference then Between Digital Marketing and Digital Branding? Because the digital assets are used in both digital methods, it can be difficult to identify the difference.  However, the focus and intent of each is what makes them different from each other. Digital marketing is designed to capture new leads and ultimately sell them products or services.  Digital branding on the other hand uses assets to establish relationships and engage customers in interactions with the brand. They both have the intention to grow the customer base, enhance sales, and grow the company.  However, digital branding goes about it in a different way.  Instead of focusing on the product or service like digital marketing, it shows the effective of the brand.  The branding approach strives to portray the bigger picture of the company.  Whereas marketing approach puts emphasis on the specific products or service being presenting in the marketing.

Value is one of the top-level components customers use to determine their personal interest in a brand.  Therefore, choosing prices becomes an integral brand pricing strategy for a brand.  Below are two useful recommendations when determining value and price. Reasonable Prices People often establish a reasonable pricing in their minds for a category of products or services.  A “reasonable price” is the price at which people expect or determine to be acceptable for a certain type of product.  Here are some common factors that might affect reasonable prices: Past pricing experiences Pricing references (competitive prices, pre-sale prices, manufacturer’s suggested prices, channel-specific prices, marked prices before discounts, substitute product prices) Current price comparisons with other brands Presentation of pricing whether shown as a whole product or pricing per quantity / unit Consumer Sensitivity What flexibility is there in the price setting that might cause changed behavior amongst the population of consumers?  It is important to know how a brand’s price or change of it will impact consumer response and sales.  Some business people think that simply raising the selling price of an item will ultimately enhance the business’s bottom line.  But some situations have proven that doesn’t always hold true.  If a brand chooses to change their pricing, it becomes important that they prep the customer based with information to justify their reasoning for the change.  In doing so, customers tend to continue to stay loyal to the brand and product. If you are seeking assistance in establishing pricing that reflects the quality of your brand, be sure to get in touch with us here at MatthewVermeer.com so we can assist you in this process.

Customer Recognition / Loyalty Brand recognition is King! When a customer sees unmistakable typography/images of a brand that they recognize, they’re more likely to grab that product than the multitude of others that are surrounding it. Why you might ask? Because it’s eye-catching and familiar. Once a shopper begins to recognize and buy the product, a good brand can keep them coming back. Over time, they will ultimately turn them into loyal “followers.” When a company puts a great product with engaging branding, a business will see their customer loyalty begin to grow and grow and grow. Builds Confidence Brand recognition exists to expand the original product or service. It pushes it forward by grabbing the customer’s eye and making them pay attention. Good branding is for the customer, but it ultimately benefits the company as it projects what they are all about. Shared Values When a customer can identify shared values with a company, they build a stronger connection with the brand and turn into loyal customers into the future. Consistency Once a company has established it’s philosophy, marketing, colors, typography, print, and website, it can start to design the rest of its branding efforts after it. When there’s a foundation established with branding, it makes the future marketing activities for the company much easier to develop and implement. Credibility When a business has created a solid brand strategy, it increasing its reputation within the industry as well as with the customers. Creative marketing combined with phenomenal customer service and attractive visuals will establish a company as a serious professional business. If you need help with your branding, check this out. Got a Project in Mind? GET IN TOUCH I collaborate with innovative brands to create cutting-edge digital experiences.Let’s connect!

What makes a brand? There are many companies in the marketplace today who know their need for a brand and how it helps connect them with their audience, enhance their profits, and maintain their reputation.  The unfortunate fact is that many of those companies don’t truly understand what branding is all about. So what is it?  It is an idea or representation.  It’s the portrayal the company wants their customers to view and feel when they think about the company.  It is not just your logo, your product, your website, or even your company name.  Instead, it is a culmination of all those things to establish this representation collectively. Then what is branding?  It’s the strategy that the company takes to ensure that all their marketing activities revolve or center around that idea or representation.  When planned for and implemented properly, branding helps bridge the gap between the business and the people they want to reach.  When you begin to think about your company’s image, here are five important aspects to consider: Identity Identify is your outward image and all the components included within that.  This would include, but not limited to, your logo, brand colors and website (just to name a few). In other words, your brand identity is the “look and feel” of your brand. Purpose, Mission, and Values Although purpose, mission, and values are all different aspects of your brand, they should work synergistically together to tell a larger story about you and what you do. Your purpose is what you do and what you can promise your customers, your mission is the big picture you’re trying to achieve, and your values are what you’re company represents.  Messaging Messaging is the voice of your company.  The messaging helps you connect with your audience to enhance their experience with you.  It is vital that the messaging is consistent across all platforms and aspects of the company to deliver the same message. Brand Differentiation Brand differentiation is what sets you apart from the crowd.  This identifies what you have to offer that can’t be obtained elsewhere.  This is usually a feature or unique value that can’t be copied or imitated elsewhere.  Experience Brand experience is the way your audience connects with your products or services.  This can start with interactions with your sales staff all the way to them using your product.  By enhancing and improving the brand experience, a company can establish repetitive transactions with the same customers. Got a Project in Mind? GET IN TOUCH I collaborate with innovative brands to create cutting-edge digital experiences.Let’s connect!