Beating the jargon: what’s what in the world of brand
There are so many components that make up branding. And along with those components can come a lot of language that might be new or a little confusing. I wanted to put together a simple glossary of handy terms you’ll want to know when you meet with your brand specialist for the first time.
The difference between ‘brand’ and ‘branding’
Brand
Let’s start with ‘brand’. My bread and butter.
A brand is a thing. It's how people feel when they think about what you do and how it impacts their life. It is the thoughts, expectations and experiences somebody has when interacting with your business and how that influences their decision to choose your business over another. In many ways, brand is the more abstract of the two.
Your brand is ultimately a culmination of your branding efforts.
Branding
Branding is the process of forming the way your brand is perceived.
Branding is how you impact people and how they think and feel when they interact with your business. This is through all sorts of things such as what you say, how you look, the customer service and experiences you deliver.
When you hear people referring to something being ‘on-brand’, it usually means your branding efforts are doing what they should be doing to support your brand perception.
A useful way to remember it is this: branding is all the things you do that support your overall brand.
Brand identity vs. brand personality
Think of your brand’s identity as what’s on the outside; the name, the logo, the colour palette etc.
Similarly to how you might notice someone’s clothes before you get to speak to them, you’ll notice certain features of a brand before you necessarily engage with it. When you think about it that way, it’s important to make sure that your identity (what’s on the outside) is reflective of your personality (what’s on the inside).
Your brand personality is what’s on the inside; the more human traits. Are you warm? Are you serious? What key behaviours do you try and drive in your organisation? Your brand voice falls under the brand personality category for example.
Brand audit
Like any other kind of audit, this is a review. You’ll evaluate how your brand is currently performing and where any changes need to be made.
From here, you’ll be able to decide whether you need a…
Rebrand or a brand refresh
Rebrand
This is going back to the drawing board completely. It’s a thorough redesign of your entire brand as you know it. It may even involve changing the name. It’ll almost always involve a new logo, colour palette, brand voice and the rest of your brand’s assets.
You should always create a new brand strategy as the business strategy will have changed as part of the rebrand.
Brand refresh
None of the core elements (such as your logo) change. It's a way to tweak, sharpen up your brand and adapt to changing customer types and change in proposition. Logos can be tweaked (Starbucks for example).
You might decide to carry out a brand refresh because of small changes in your brand strategy. It’s more of an evolution, rather than a revolution.
Brand strategy
Within your brand strategy, you’ll create a plan to help you reach your audience effectively. Your positioning, your target audience, your brand personality and your content channels are all going to play a part in making this plan a reality.
Having a brand specialist on board that you can trust is a major part of any brand project. It’s my job to make sure you always understand what we’re doing and why, and that your brand is going to be an authentic representation of you.
Let’s talk about your brand. Book a call with me today.