Anyway, What Is A Brand

Simply - a Brand is a promise. 

Brands and colors

For hundreds of years,Western cattlemen branded their herds for identification not because they thought the herd would be stolen but because they wanted to make sure people knew that their stock was of a certain quality and value.The same holds true today - Brands are a measure of quality, consistency, and value.

- Why do consumers buy branded products or services?

Because they know what they are buying. They know its quality and trust that it will be exactly that which was promised by the seller.  Breaking that promise is non-recoverable. A Brand will never be able to salvage a bad product or service or bad management. A business builds its Brand on repetition and trust and the stronger the Brand the more it is trusted.

Fund-House Logo

- How do you get your Brand known?

It takes less than 7 seconds to grab a consumer's attention whether by traditional means, such as print media, ads, or even radio spots or new media via website, social, or blogs.  In today's digital domain it is all about WIIFM (what's in it for me). What are the benefits to the a buyer of your product or service as compared to others.

- What colors should be used in developing a Brand - logo, social pages, stationary, business cards-to-company sway? I get this question all of the time and my answer depends upon the product/service and what industry it is part of.

Red: creates positive emotions, urgency, impulses. Many companies use red for their branding, especially those in the food and restaurant industries.

Blue: again, used by many companies to evoke sense of authority and trust. Used extensively in the financial industry.

Yellow: stands for youthfulness, grabs attention and creates feelings of happiness and clarity. Used by many consumers goods companies and in their packaging.

Orange: calls attention, is a friendly, cheerful, and confident color.

Green: relaxing, points to fertility and growth. Used by almost every green-based, eco-company.

Purple: denotes luxury, royalty, mystery. Is soothing and calm. Used in the wealth management and insurance sectors.

Black: dramatic and formal. Used for upscale consumer products companies and by professional groups, such as attorneys and doctors.

In my next post I'll cover the top 10 global brands and discuss what these brands have in common.

Best,
Jim Lavorato