What’s your Brand?

Often small business owners think branding is for national or international businesses like those represented above. It is a short hand symbol that defies language differences and facilitates market recognition in places as far flung as Kazakhstan or the Maldives. We forget that Playboy started with $500 in the dining room of a rented apartment, that Coca Cola was a home remedy sold from the back of a wagon and that Microsoft was started by a college drop-out in a garage in Bellevue, Washington.

Small businesses become big business everyday. Those that succeed understand who they are; who their market is and the need they serve. To have a successful brand you need three things:

• An image or logo that represents your identity;
• A recognizable style, notice the distinct font style of each logo above;
• A tag line, sometimes called an elevator speech. http://www.taglineguru.com/sloganlist.html

Every Coca-Cola label is red and white. You can see Coca-Cola printed in other languages and know that it says Coca-Cola because of the font and if you hear someone say “the pause that refreshes” you know it is a reference to Coca-Cola.

Today we think of Harley Davidson as the premiere motorcycle manufacturer in the United States. Not so long ago they almost closed their doors and with it a significant portion of the economy in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Instead they regrouped and redefined their image and their message. The easily recognizable orange and black logo with the crisp, graphic fonts was both masculine and safely edgy. Their tagline: American by birth. Rebel by choice, states clearly their identity and stirs the emotions of their ideal audience.

A business that is unclear about who it is sends mixed messages to the public and by doing so creates confusion. Often entrepreneurs think branding is something they can do later. We argue that is a mistake. A business plan defines and shapes the internal and limited external definition of a business and its goals; branding is a public manifestation of what you bring to the market. When you convey your offering in a clear and consistent manor you build confidence and recognition. Dream big. Create the brand that reflects that you envision your business to be then live it!