Is Your Branding Giving You a Bad Reputation?

I went to a coffee shop last week.

Mask on. Standing on my sticker on the floor.

As I waited dutifully to be called forward, I took a look around. It was a busy day there, in fact, it looked almost like life was getting back to normal.

But one of the things I noticed was that even with everyone’s faces covered, I felt I could still get a good idea of what they were like just from looking at their clothes and style.

There was a young lad, about 14, wearing joggers, shiny white trainers and an Aston Villa t-shirt. His hair was cut short in that fashionable “shaved with a line missing” style and although he wore a mask, I could see his teenage frown clearly as he stared at his phone messaging his friends.

Loves football, likes to look cool, has a grumpy side and likes to hang out with his friends – rather than be in a coffee shop with his mum. Probably lazy and likes to Xbox.

On the next table, there was a young lady, maybe 25 or so. Her hair was purple, her nose pierced and her left arm decorated with a mishmash of tattoos including a My Little Pony and Elvis’ face. Her clothes were tight, low-cut and colourful.

A confident woman who likes to stand out. Likes nostalgia, is probably cheerful (hence the colourful attire) and is probably a bit of an extrovert too.

Now, of course, I didn’t step out of line, walk over and start a conversation with these people to verify that I was right.

But that’s not the point.

The point is that the way they looked made me THINK certain things about them – whether those things were right or wrong.

It’s exactly the same with your business brand.

Branding is one of the most undervalued aspects of marketing. Far too many businesses spend $5 on a logo online and think that’s job done.

But does that logo really give the right impression of your business? And what about the rest?

Branding is so much more than a logo. Your website, your business cards, your signage, your social media, your uniforms… everything should be in line with your company brand.

They should be consistent, and they should give the RIGHT impression for your business: showing off your personality, your culture and your USP.

So is your branding a carefully planned and strategic part of your marketing, or is it a quickly knocked-together hodgepodge that gives potential clients the wrong impression?