Brand Image Strategy | What to Consider When Developing It

Image strategy is an important part of the reputation of any company. Based on their perceptions of the brand a person makes a decision about purchasing. Everyone forms his or her idea of a brand also thanks to the way the brand positions itself. Probably everyone today would name at least one or two companies if asked about a certain product or service because these projects have an elaborate marketing strategy. The competition on the market is so high that a brand that has proven itself will enter a person’s personal top. Why choose another company if I am satisfied with the quality and service in this one? But how to build a new brand to create a positive impression of yourself from the first days in the market? Especially if the business isn’t large-scale yet.

Image Strategy: What Is It All About?

Today a person does not necessarily need to visit the site of the company or watch ads about it to understand whether he will buy from it or not. The Internet has made it easier for consumers to choose, and at the same time, it has made it harder for brands to do their job. To form an opinion about a product, users read reviews on recommendation resources and social networks. It turns out that the image strategy of the brand may not work at all if the online reputation of the brand shows the opposite picture. Advertising also stops working – more often people turn off banners in their browsers. But brands can’t do nothing. You need to talk about yourself, and it’s important to have a clear goal: to position yourself the way you want people to know you. Of course, the quality of your products or services must be appropriate, like an online roulette at NationalCasino CA with high-quality graphics.

The image strategy is the work on the image of the brand, goods or services in the mind of the consumer. The chosen image policy helps the company to stand out from competitors and already from the beginning to build the right communication with the client.

The stages of image strategy formation consist of:

1. Analysis of the market and competitors.
2. Study of the target audience and its needs.
3. A clear understanding of the product features of your product.
4. Branding and naming.

It’s more reasonable to assemble an image strategy after completing comprehensive work in all areas. The audience should have a clear idea of what product or service they will receive, and the logo and slogan should be associated with the best qualities of your product.

Why You Can’t Forget About Audience Segmentation

Identifying and segmenting your audience is the first thing a brand should do when creating an image strategy. Your product or service may be needed, demanded and vital, but if you don’t understand exactly what needs it will fill in different customers, you could be wasting your promotion. The better you understand the psychology of different groups of users, the easier it will be to adapt the content so that it accurately responds to the needs of the audience.

The principles of segmenting the audience depend on the characteristics of the product. Premium-class cars are unlikely to be of interest for women on maternity leave, and men are less interested in manicures and waxing. On the other hand, it is not uncommon for a product to be associated in the minds of consumers not only with its direct purpose. For example, olive oil is used not only for cooking but also for cosmetic, medical, and health procedures. One product can meet different user needs – this is a strong advantage that should be used when developing an image strategy.

Identifying more of these benefits is helped by analyzing search results for your product. Look at exactly how people search for these products? What words do they type in, what links do they open more often than others? This will be especially valuable in the case of promoting an innovative product that has no analogues on the market, but the demand for which is already there.

To find your audience, you need to identify:

• The main problems the product solves.
• What desires will be satisfied by the person buying the product.
• Related solutions that can be offered to the consumer.
• The result the customer will get.

For example, if we take olive oil, it will be interesting mainly for the female audience, which can be found in communities about healthy living and sports. That is, understanding who your customer is, you solve two problems: how and where to promote the product.

About Sites and Content

A brand needs to constantly be heard and, at the same time, be aware of what the Internet audience is saying about it. If you engage only in promotion and ignore client feedback, you can lose not only clients and their trust, but also the opportunity for a second chance in case of failure. That is why you should include in your image building strategy not only who you are going to tell about your product but also where you are going to do it.

Make a list of venues with different segments of your audience in mind and target people who are just thinking about buying. Obligatory channels on any list will be:

• Your own website and social media accounts are suitable for publishing company news, new product announcements, and testimonials from satisfied customers.
• Profile media. Can be content from you or about you.
• Encyclopedias and directories. To increase brand awareness and credibility.

Never underestimate any of the directions – publish positive information about yourself on all sites simultaneously and, if possible, place cross references in the texts. This will increase traffic to resources, which means that search engines will realize that you are interesting to people. In this case, your resources will be offered to users more often than others.

The content of your content directly affects its demand from your audience. The tone in which you communicate with people, visual and textual creatives, topical humor or lack thereof – everything has an impact on image, recognition and relevance. If this is a PR publication in the media, focus on news and events within the company, in social networks, on feedback and customer opinions. Monitor the feedback – this will help to correct the image strategy in time and avoid mistakes.

Keep an eye on what current newsworthy events can play in your favor. We don’t recommend engaging in black PR – it’s always a losing strategy.

Brand Face as Part of Your Image Strategy

Since the opinion of buyers is crucial, a specific person can enhance the brand promotion. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the owner of the company, – the positive audience can be gathered through a charismatic manager, a popular doctor at the clinic or an executive with a good sense of humor.

It’s important to focus on the persona at the start of the campaign, because the media persona will help to quickly get the users on social networks and establish a direct dialogue with them. A charming speaker will present the brand well at a conference, exhibition or business lunch, and the company will get new clients thanks to his performances, even if they will appear not at the event itself, but after the publication of the event in the media.

A brand persona can also actively participate in communications:

• Lead a blog or social media.
• Conduct workshops.
• Give expert commentary.
• Conduct live broadcasts.

In the future, it would be optimal to have several media personalities in the company from among the employees in order to avoid losing media weight if one of them leaves. Public appearances should work for the brand image as a whole. On their basis, the company can publish books and manuals, develop its standards, and build communications with government authorities.