be yourselfWhether you’re a new company or a business that is on the verge of reinvention, it can be a difficult process to become recognized as a brand. Fortunately, there are a few keys to success when it comes to effectively building your company’s value to create a brand that consumers want to be affiliated with. It all starts with knowing yourself; it’s that very individuality that makes your business relateable to the public.

1. One Step At A Time

Since it usually has multiple products and services, a new company, no matter how much capital it has, will tend to fall short of the resources that it will require at one time or another. This can make it difficult to market on a large scale for multiple outlets, which is why it’s important to really focus on what you’re offering. Rather than providing many individual thoughts, which can confuse customers or distract your brand message as a whole, try to pool your energy and resources into one common area where you can have a single focus to effectively pull in new customers and keep existing customers interested in what you have to offer.

Often times, keeping a simple and focused idea for your brand message will help the idea catch on. This actually might seem too simple but naming your brand with just one word can increase customer retention and help your brand name become recognized far more quickly. I’m sure we can all name dozens of popular electronics, auto and apparel brands by one name right off the top of our heads. There’s a reason why companies like Apple and Windows name their products using simple identifiers rather than long descriptions.

2. Be Prepared To Claim The URL

It isn’t enough to change the name of your brand, or create a name for your product or company; you’ve also got to be prepared to claim the URL and other needs for a successful startup. A brand is all about creating customer recognition, and being recognized by a specific name is almost pointless if that name is being used for another product or company. Keeping yourself unique and independent from others in your industry is what will set you apart as a top contender and make consumers want to come back to you time and again.

3. Follow The Rule Of Two

It’s true that you want to stick to single words or as few as possible for your brand, but there are two rules to follow when it comes to making this decision. First, you must select something that describes what it is you do or sell so that customers aren’t looking at your business and wondering what it is that they’re going to get. If you sell paint, for example, then something like Color Code might be more fitting than Marvelous Marvins or something equally as vague. Second, keep your brand name simple so that it’s difficult to misspell or mispronounce it, as this could confuse customers and keep your brand from being properly marketed.

4. Choose For Yourself And Be Consistent

Many companies choose to go with a focus group or selecting committee to decide on a brand that works. Nine times out of ten putting things to a vote will reward you with a name and a vision that is less than inspired. You want something definitive and unique in describing your business, not a hybrid of multiple elements all wrapped up into a confused brand name. Your brand is much more than a simple name, it’s about creating a personal connection with your audience.

Once you have a clearly defined brand message and image, it is essential that you actually live up to it. Nothing kills a brand quicker than making claims that aren’t backed up. If your brand message is all about being there for your customer, but you fail to return their calls, answer their questions or back your product; how long do you think your brand will be around?

5. Get Some Protection

While it’s quite possible that nobody will be looking to claim the same name as your company, if you don’t trademark your brand, logo, and slogan through the United States Patent and Trademark Office for both online and physically printed items you could find yourself losing your concept to a competitor. This actually happened recently to one of my clients who even used a trademark attorney to register their business name. I hope they got their money back from that attorney, because after they launched and began building a very successful brand they were issued a cease and desist notice from a much bigger brand that had trademarked their term usage in that particular market. This caused tens of thousands of dollars in rebranding and production costs.

If you want to build a killer brand just take it step by step, dot your “i’s”, cross your “t’s” and be yourself!