As a new business owner, building a recognisable, strong brand can seem like a daunting task. Too many businesses are founded before the idea and target audience have been thought all the way through. But without doing this, building a brand that appeals to people is almost impossible. Only half of small businesses make it past the five-year mark – and if people never even realize that your business exists, you’re at high risk of becoming one of the failures. Read along for our tips to building a strong brand that will reach and appeal to your target audience.
Consider Your Target Audience
Before you even think about developing your brand, you need to decide who you’re trying to sell your services to. Are your target audience teenagers, middle-aged adults or retirees? Are they working, middle or upper class? Are they politically liberal, conservative or somewhere in between? Do they even live in your own home country, and if not, what does a trustworthy and appealing business site look like where they’re from? Are you targeting a particular gender identity? Factors like these all have a lot to say about how you should be designing and communicating on your business’ channels. So don’t start developing any aspect of your brand before you know your audience like the back of your hand.
Find the Perfect Name
Once you know your target audience, you can get started on actually developing your brand. A big part of this is finding a name for your business that targets your audience’s needs, flows well, is memorable and unique and can be used on all your business’ platforms. This laundry list seems long and daunting, and it definitely can take a good while before you land on something that ticks all the boxes.
If you’re stuck, there are several websites out there created with the sole purpose of helping users find premium domain names. If none of them seem completely right for your business, you can at least take inspiration from them. Take a look at a few options, combine all the best parts of them – and before you know it, you’ve found the perfect name for your business.
Create an Appealing Visual Identity
Now, it’s time to really get creative. If you manage to create a cohesive, strong visual identity, this is what will drive your selling points all the way home to potential customers along with great copy. To find the right look, go back to your assessment of your target audience. Pick colors, shapes, fonts and imagery that tells them that your product is for them and appeals to their values. Use this visual identity consistently on every channel, document, email signature, etc. that is connected to your business. This way, your customers will quickly start to automatically associate this aesthetic with you.
Also, make sure to design everything in a way that looks good on a smartphone screen. Today, more and more consumers view everything on mobile devices, and businesses are expected to operate and design mobile-first. Luckily, there are also experts out there ready to help you make this transition if you find it too difficult to do yourself.
