Branding and Identity

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BRANDING AND

IDENTITY
What is branding?
In simple terms, branding is a part of
marketing. The brands create an identity
using different colors, symbols, and designs
to ensure that the brand is identifiable by
potential customers. At the same time, it’s a
representation of the company and how you’d
like people to perceive it.
Branding helps create a long-lasting
impression. But more importantly, it enables
you to distinguish yourself from your
competitors.
You can leverage your branding to develop
different company areas. This can include
marketing collateral, advertisements,
merchandise, logos, and print media.

There are also several different terms for


branding, but in reality, they’re all the same.
These terms majorly include brand identity, brand
values, and brand positioning.

6 Reasons Why Branding is Important


Let’s look at the 6 main ways in which branding can
elevate your business presence.
1. It allows recognition
2. Helps you get more customers
3. Allows you to create better marketing strategies
4. Helps increase your company value
5. Improves employee satisfaction and morals
6. Creates a sense of trust in the market
1. It allows recognition
Branding allows for more recognition by presenting a
unique identity. In this case, your brand logo becomes an
integral part of branding because it acts as the
company’s face. So make sure that you use a unique logo
concept.

2. Helps you get more customers


If you brand your business correctly, you can create a
culture that invites more people. Building up your brand
like a community helps gain traction. That’s because
people generally like being included, and creating that
effect can help your brand get more customers.
3. Allows you to create better marketing strategies
Marketing and advertising are vital parts of branding. That’s
because they need to be in line with your brand values and
positioning.
But if there are no guiding principles, your marketing
campaigns can quickly fall apart. That is where branding can
help save the day! It works as a backbone or set of guidelines
for effective strategies.
4. Helps increase your company value
Every company wants to do a profitable business. With the
right branding, you can scope out the right opportunities and
increase company value.
5. Improves employee satisfaction and morals
People generally tend to feel demoralized and
disincentivized if they don’t have any guiding
principles at the workplace. And in the absence of
strong branding, the chances of this occurring can
increase.
On the other hand, branding cultivates motivation
and good company culture by promoting similar
employees’ values and incentives.
6. Creates a sense of trust in the market
As a new company, you’re more likely to get business if you
brand yourself the right way. Ask yourself who is your
primary audience and what objectives are you trying to
achieve. This would help you understand the opportunities
you should be seeking and the activities you should be doing
to increase trust.
With branding, your prospective client or buyer feels more
comfortable purchasing from you.
8 Types of Branding
Different types of branding are used worldwide, and while
all of them have their importance, all kinds of branding
can’t be used simultaneously. That’s because every type
has its own set of objectives and guidelines.
1.Personal branding
2.Service branding
3.Product branding
4.Cultural branding (Also known as geographic branding)
5.Retail branding
6.Online branding
7.Offline branding
8.Corporate branding
Personal Branding
 As the name suggests, this type of branding is
specifically associated with a person. This would work
best if you’re a solopreneur or self-employed and
starting a venture of your own. For instance, if you’re a
freelance writer or designer, you can opt for personal
branding for your website and portfolio. Similarly, if
your business is somehow related to your personal being
(if you’re a celebrity or famous person), this would also
work great for you!
For instance, Jeffree Star, the owner of a cosmetic brand
by the same name, recently got into a controversy. And
because of that, his new cosmetic line wasn’t as
successful as the previous ones.
2. Service Branding
It is entirely focused on the service that an individual or a
company is providing. So if you decide to follow this
branding, remember, all that matters is the service you
provide to your customers and that it needs to be
excellent.
In simple words, you develop a trustworthy relationship
with your customers using your service. Also, keep in
mind that as a company, you can provide the services in
different ways.
It can either be through a helpline, physically visiting the
store, or even interacting with you face to face.
3.Product branding
It is one of the most commonly used types of branding
because it’s based on your product. For that reason, you
can see this type everywhere, expressed through various
colors, images, illustrations, drawings, and words.
The primary principle behind this to keep the customer
journey and decision-making in mind. Another essential
factor that is considered is the competitors who are
working selling the same product as you. You have to brand
your product to solves your customer’s problem creatively
and uniquely.
Here’s an example of product branding being perfectly
executed by Kirk’s Soap. Notice how they’ve leveraged the
sustainability aspect to brand their product and make it
more likable.
4.Cultural Branding (AKA Geographic branding)
Geographic or cultural branding is not very different from one
another. That’s because both types consider the geographic or
cultural conventions of their target audience to brand the
business.
It attracts people’s attention because of the geographic or
cultural association. And that is a leading reason why it’s
primarily used to increase tourism by highlighting the specific
attractions, setting them apart from all the other countries.
Cultural branding focuses on an area’s cultural aspects to get
tourists and increase the revenue being generated.
A great example of this can be Times Square in New York, an
attraction for many tourists and allows the country to get many
tourists.
5.Retail Branding
Retail is connected with the word ‘retailers,’ which means
stores and retailers selling different products under the
flagship on one brand. However, some retailers tend to sell
only the products that belong to their brand.
But to do that effectively, they need strong retail
branding. There most prominent examples of successful
retailers include Apple and even Amazon, who sell their
own branded products and have stores worldwide. However,
the latter also has several leading brands’ products under
one roof.
6.Online Branding
 Online branding encompasses all kinds of brandings with an online
space or wants to leave a digital footprint.
7. Offline Branding
 As mentioned above, offline branding and online branding go hand
in hand, but there are some differences between them, setting them
apart. So let’s see what those differences are.
 Offline branding happens offline, which includes all the offline
channels like printing or in-person meetings. However, much like
online branding, offline branding can encompass all the different
types of brandings.
 Examples of offline branding can be the food companies and how
all the offline branding that they do, including the boxed, labels,
and everything else, is entirely and fully aligned to their colors,
logos, brand values to make sure that the customers remember
what the brand looks like and can recognize it anywhere.
8. Corporate Branding
 And finally, we’re onto the last type of branding – corporate branding.
 Corporate branding focuses on the look and the success of a business.
It involves everything, including the products, services, employees,
name, suppliers, and every other possible connection to the company.
 Suppose a company has established itself as a luxury brand in its
audience’s minds. In that case, all the products that it sold will be
expensive and luxurious, and they will attract a specific type of
audience. On the other hand, if a brand has established itself as an
affordable brand, its customer base will be entirely different.
 The best yet the most appropriate example of this type of branding
involves the automobile industry.
 Think of Mercedes and how it has established corporate identity to be
very expensive and luxurious. Therefore, all the services and the
products they provide are of a different standard than the brands that
have the reputation of being affordable.
What Is Identity
In the most general sense, we can define identity as a
person’s sense of self, established by their unique
characteristics, affiliations, and social roles. Moreover,
identity has continuity, as one feels to be the same
person over time despite many changes in their
circumstances.
Types of Identity

1.Racial identity -refers to a person’s sense of


belonging to a racial group, such as Asian-American,
white, etc. This identity trait remains constant
throughout a person’s life.

2. Ethnic identity -indicates a person’s affiliation with


a specific ethnic group, such as Japanese, Malaysian,
etc.
3. Geographical identity -is the identity that indicates
the local affiliation of a person. For instance, a person
living in the United States may identify as a Mid-
westerner, Southerner, New Yorker, Texan, etc.

4. Sexual orientation -is an identity trait that indicates


the sexual preference of an individual, such as
heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, asexual, etc.
5.Family identity -is made up of all the roles a
person plays in their family life. Typically, a person
has a primary role (i.e., daughter) despite having
multiple functions at a given time (such as
daughter, sister, granddaughter, cousin). Yet, these
roles, and thus a person’s primary family identity,
can change over time as new functions are added
to their repertoire (such as wife, mother, aunt,
mother-in-law, grandmother, etc.).
6. Ability -is a form of identity that reflects an
individual’s ability/disability status. Non-disabled
individuals may not feel the implications of this
form of identity as much as persons with
disabilities.

7. Body identity stems from a person’s body shape


and size. Although some traits remain constant
over time (i.e., height), others may fluctuate (i.e.,
weight, body shape, etc.)
8. Generational identity -is also referred to as age
identity. It reflects a person’s affiliation with an age
group, such as child, adolescent, elderly, among
others.

9.Religious identity -is a person reflects their spiritual


belief system. People may be born to families that
practice a specific religion. Yet, sometimes
individuals adopt a different religious identity as they
get older or become more or less religious.
10.Class identity -of an individual reflects the social
stratum they belong to, such as middle-class, upper-
middle-class, etc. A person may not notice their class
identity until they interact with someone from another
social class.

11.Educational identity -depends on the level of


education a person has or the types of schools they
have attended. Examples include ivy-league educated,
high-school drop-out, private school student, public
school graduate, among others.
12.Career identity -forms when a person selects a career
path and may evolve with the changes to the person’s job
titles and responsibilities. Some examples are doctor,
scientist, teacher, superintendent, CEO, artist, miner, etc.

13. Gender Identity-indicates which gender group a person


belongs to, such as masculine, feminine or non-binary,
and along with sexual orientation, it might be one of the
most debated types of identity in our society. Most people
equate gender and sex, and controversies arise when
people identify with a gender that doesn’t match their
biological sex assigned at birth. To understand this
debate, let’s consider these concepts.

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