Interestingly, it’s a question that we’re frequently asked at Spritz, and not only by small companies. Clients with a great product or service may ask, “What’s the difference between a brand and a logo?”

When you think about if, everything and every one of us is a brand. Whenever you hear someone say, “Oh, I love Tuscany,” that’s branding. Are you aware that Roger Federer earns more as a brand ambassador than as the world’s top-ranked tennis player? More branding. Know any fans of The Beatles? Yes, branding again.

Aside from the fact that Tuscany is lovely, Federer is talented and The Beatles were the defining musical group of the 20th century, a brand (whether good or bad, personal or business) is the essence of one’s own unique story.

Moptops and Ringo’s Drums

As the curtain rose on the The Beatles in their first U.S. live television appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show” on Feb. 9, 1964, the four polite young men from Liverpool, England made history.

The band’s iconic “dropped T” logo featured prominently on Ringo Starr’s drum kit. Along with the Fab Four’s matching floppy haircuts and black Chesterfield suits worn with skinny knitted ties and stacked heel boots with a pointed toe, there was nothing about The Beatles’ look or sound that was accidental.

Ranging in age from only 20 to 23, these four lads already understood a thing or two about branding before they stepped off the Pan Am Yankee Clipper at New York’s JFK International Airport and Beatlemania kicked in.

How Much Are Those Sneakers?

Commonplace items can also demonstrate the point about branding being fundamental to the consumer’s point of view.

Consider sneakers, for example. They’re a standard item in every closet. Sneakers have a job to do and they’ve been doing it in America since 1892 when the U.S. Rubber Company introduced the first rubber-soled shoes.

Their purpose was to help sailors grip the deck or for tennis players to run on slippery grass. By the early 1900s, their purpose was also about moving around the basketball court or boxing ring and then the basketball court.

Sneakers were about purpose, not about fashion. By the dawn of the 21st century, that was fundamentally changing. In 1970, there were only five models of sneakers available, growing to 285 models in 1998 and exploding to 3,371 sport shoe models by 2012. The branding diversification trend hasn’t slowed.

Today, sneakers intended as fashion can be purchased for a few dollars at discount outlets, for $15 at Walmart, like the ones on the left, or for more than $1,600 from a high fashion house like the ones below.

What makes the huge price difference in a few pieces of rubber and canvas glued together? You guessed it: Branding. This involves the name, the box, the colors, the distribution outlets, the price and more.

What’s a Brand?

Branding involves a wide range of fundamental concepts. Most importantly, your brand is the cornerstone and foundation that your business is built upon. A definition from the “Father of Advertising” —

Why a Logo Needs a Brand (and a Brand Needs a Logo)

Branding is the glue between your business and your customers.

Once you transition from ideation to creation of a product or service, you must also create your branding and ensure that it’s aligned to your business strategy. This is what provides direction for all communications and design, both internally and on the customer-facing front.

However, just because something exists, this doesn’t make it a brand. Enhance it with a logo and it still is not a brand. In fact, a product or service is merely a generic entity until it is given meaning in people’s minds. Here’s the difference:

• A logo is an identification via a recognizable mark or symbol.
• A brand is the emotional experience someone feels when they interact with a product or service because emotion drives purchase.

This concept can be put across as a name as well as a logo; some have been wildly successful.

It can even be a sound.
Which one resonates with you? The startup tone of an Apple Mac, perhaps? Or the roar of the MGM lion at the opening of a feature film?

Branding Adds Value

A healthy, established brand with a strong emotional connection to people can be even more valuable than the thing it’s selling. But, remember that design alone is not a brand; it’s a representation of that brand.

According to Investopedia, “…A company’s brand can be one of its most valuable assets. Brand value is intangible, making it difficult to quantify, but common approaches take into account the cost it would take to build a similar brand, the cost of royalties to use brand name, and cash flow of comparative unbranded businesses.

Nike Inc., for example, owns one of the world’s most instantly recognizable logos, the “swoosh.” Forbes estimated Nike’s brand to be worth $29.6 billion in 2017, despite that fact that – in a world devoid of brand perception – taking the swoosh off of Nike’s shoes and apparel would change nothing about their comfort or boost to athletes’ performance.”

Nine Reasons Why Branding is a Must-Have

Branding is the secret sauce that sells. A brand is not anonymous; it doesn’t want to hide behind a no-name white label, because:

• Branding creates customer emotion, connection and experiences;
• Branding defines expectations;
• Branding makes a promise;
• Branding promotes recognition;
• Branding distinguishes unique selling points;
• Branding tells a story;
• Branding provides internal and external culture;
• Branding generates word-of-mouth;
• Branding creates value.

Spritz is looking forward to learning more about how we can help you build (or re-build) your powerful brand.

The post I’ve Got a Logo. So, Why Do I Need a Brand? appeared first on SpritzSF.

Building the Right Tone of Voice

Can you name the companies you most admire and the products or services that you love? Some people will say Apple, others may say Nike or Coca-Cola. These brands are typically named as the most popular and successful at connecting with customers.

Therefore it’s smartphones, sneakers or soda, these popular brands have a strong, defining identity—a personality that widely appeals to people. These brands each possess a tone of voice that’s relatable, authentic and consistent. And all three of these traits are essential to building a customer relationship that lasts.

The Goldilocks Principle

Nobody loves a robot. Algorithms and artificial intelligence are just that…artificial. To create a tone of voice for your brand that is relatable and will engage people, remember that humanizing the brand is of utmost importance. Speak and write conversationally and you’ll be on track.

To get the tone just right, apply the Goldilocks effect derived from the 19th century British fairy tale. Remember? Goldilocks was a little girl who stumbled upon a cottage in the woods where one bowl of porridge was too hot, a second was too cold and a third was just right. The beds upstairs were too hard, too soft and just right. The Goldilocks principle suggests that basic things should fall within certain margins, as opposed to reaching for extremes.

Apply this principle to your brand voice. Consider these three advertisement wording examples for a residential real estate agent promoting their open house viewings:

• Too formal: We wish to inform you of a new listing currently available.
• Too pushy: Just listed! Must see to appreciate! This one will go fast.
• Just right: A house is not a home until you make it your own. This could be the one.

For Authenticity, Avoid Jargon

Go beyond the tagline. An authentic, conversational tone of voice that’s free of industry jargon goes hand-in-hand with a brand voice that’s humanized and relatable.

Take Apple, for example. They didn’t just tell us to “Think Different,” they delivered a different look and feel across their product line.

When Nike says “Just Do It,” we know they’re inspiring movement, even if it’s not a marathon. The people behind the brand are encouraging us to get up off the couch and get some exercise in the fresh air.

The brand voice of Coca-Cola is naturally friendly and fun-loving. For 130 years, the beverage has managed to sound as effervescent as the bubbles inside the bottle, adjusting and adapting its tone of voice with each passing generation.

Digitally Speaking, Words Matter

Online, one of your key goals is the search authority. Offline, a key objective is customer loyalty. Especially when combined with relatability and authenticity, consistency stimulates loyalty.

Ask yourself, if your logo didn’t appear beside your content, would anyone be able to identify it as yours? If a customer came across messaging on different social media channels, would the consistent branding voice come through loud and clear?

Just Add Spritz

Let’s talk about your brand voice. Experienced copywriters at Spritz are ready to help you craft a relatable, authentic, consistent voice that genuinely and consistently expresses your brand’s personality.

The post What Does Your Brand Sound Like? appeared first on SpritzSF.