Strong, surviving or tired – Five key questions for established brands?

Strong, surviving or tired – Five key questions for established brands?

A strong brand will help you win more sales and keep more customers, so spend time on a health check:

1. Is my brand position strong? 

Think about what makes your brand unique.  How does your brand stack up now and in the future?  Why should people care?  What your brand stood for in the past may just be that, so have a look at what your competition offers, how they operate and what they do, as well as wider influences and trends.

2. Is my brand clear? 

If you are clear about what you stand for and what makes your brand unique, are you clearly communicating it to customers?  Be careful of jargon and complicated wording, and be single-minded too – a list of 5 or 6 messages will just lead to confusion, leave the detail for later once you have attention.

3. Does my brand look good? 

How current is your look?  Think across all your activity, from the logo and identity, to your web site and promotional materials.  Are layouts clear?  Is your imagery current and clear?  Are there elements of consistency?  Do fonts work together or look a mess.  Brands that look current and relevant feel looked after and worthy of attention, so customers will feel you’ll pay the same attention to them. 

4. Does my brand sound good?

All flash looks with not much to say?  Ouch.  Supporting your central brand promise by what you say and how you behave is critical.  Think about how you and your people talk about, sell and service your brand – attention-grabbing looks might get you over a hurdle, but people soon wise up to brands that can’t deliver a promise.

5. Am I my only brand supporter?

Think about who talks about your brand, and where.  Is it as much as it used to be?  Word of mouth, recommendations, testimonials, social media and news stories will prove it has fans. Prove your brand is worth a look, and maximize every opportunity.

If you’re feeling uncomfortable about two or more of these then it’s time to spend time paying closer attention.

John Hayward of Brand Glue

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