Branding is a hot topic in marketing these days, but it’s defined in different ways and looked at from different angles. There are many components that make up a brand, and we call each component a Brand Layer.

Build-Your-Brand

Here are our definitions of some of the most important Brand Layers:

Brand Foundation

The base from which all brand elements will be created and measured against for accuracy. This layer consists of the following elements:

Brand Basics

These components of your brand form your business’s “face” to the public. Brand Basics shape and direct your customers’ views of your business. Telling your customers how you want to be perceived is an essential piece of a Brand Strategy for any small business, and the easiest way for you to do this as a small business owner is through your:

These Brand Basics can also help to shape your Brand Personality, which is the persona that your business projects to the world. This is defined through the way that your brand expresses itself—the characteristics that give your business a life of its own, outside of your own personality.

Competitor Comparison

These components of your brand speak about your business’s relation to the competition:

You can control these Competitor Comparison factors through careful market research, market monitoring, and your definition of both your Brand Positioning and Brand Differentiation.

Internal Measures

These components of your brand are defined largely through your business’s actions:

External Measures

These components of your brand are defined by the public’s perception:

So, what is a Brand?

Your brand is really the combination of all of the above Brand Layers. A brand is both your presentation and public’s perception of your business. It’s the way that people think about your business, and it is shaped through all of the layers described above.

Once you’ve established your brand and started putting your Brand Basics before the public eye, there are some other branding issues you should consider:

When all of your Brand Layers are working together, you’ll have a strong Brand that will help your business to grow and prosper.

[Via Elf Design]

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