29 December 2014

Practical Principles Of Product Branding Strategies

By Stacey Burt


Today's business world is very competitive and only allows those who take steps to stay ahead of the competition to survive. Good product branding strategies enable a business to stay ahead of others in the competition. The term "product branding" usually describes what is produced or service the company wants to communicate and for whom this communication is intended. It also considers when this communication is supposed to get to the target of communication and how this is supposed to be done.

Consistency is one quality that can keep a product brand on top of the competition. Every communication that goes on within and outside the business should be structured in a way that helps explain better the brand of the business. This would especially help employees better understand the brand they are working for and their roles in projecting the brand.

An emotionally appealing message about the brand works well. This is because many people buy products they have "good feelings" about. An emotionally appealing message would give these customers a "good feeling" about the business and bring in many more customers.

Everybody likes to be appreciated, and so do customers, especially when they have stuck with the brand for a while. These customers have spent a considerable amount of time with the product and have also helped market it in terms of recommending it to their friends and family. Giving such customers little thank-you presents would be a way of encouraging them. These presents can be in the form of product branded gifts or simple messages or calls to let them know the business appreciates their commitment to the product brand.

Helping customers with extra services that they do not have to pay for is also a great principle to consider in product branding. A brand is not just the company logo or the catchy name; it is customers that make a brand. The branding strategy, if blended well with the mission statement of the business helps because this statement is usually customer oriented. A retail shop selling electronic equipment, for example, can make customers happy by providing a customer care line that is tollfree.

It is important to measure the progress levels of a strategy periodically because plans fail. The fact the strategy is a good branding plan does not guarantee its effectiveness. To know the extent to which the plans are working, it is important to measure the marketing metrics of the business before implementing the plan, and then measuring it periodically thereafter. This would also help in identifying any point in time at which the plan started to fail and factors that are causing it.

Flexibility is one principle to follow when looking at a branding strategy. Marketing trends change all the time, and such changes do not necessarily require re-strategizing. A small modification should be adequate. A marketing strategy should be versatile in a way that it can be interpreted in several forms to suit the various target groups.

It is also important to keep competing brands in sight while developing branding strategies. The business and its competitors are all after the same customers, so watching what competitors are doing differently can help the business strategize better. In spite of this, a business should not blindly copy whatever the competitors do.




About the Author: