The 3 Key Components of Your Brand Vision and How To Craft Your Brand Vision for Success
Simple Steps To Develop Your Unique Brand Vision
Behind every successful business is an effective brand.
And every effective brand is built upon the foundation of a strong brand vision.
If you are starting out in business, your brand vision may be something about which you already have clarity - or your brand vision may be a roadmap or work in progress, that you are discovering or refining as you move forward.
Effective branding - and understanding and communicating your unique brand vision to your customers - is critical to ensure you stand apart from your competitors in the marketplace.
But what is a 'brand vision'? - and how do you get it right - for you, your business and your prospects?
Read on for some simple tips of how to develop a comprehensive brand vision that is uniquely your own.
Why is Brand Vision Important?
The ideas behind your brand define you
Getting your brand’s vision right can help you attract more customers and make the selling process easier. A well defined brand can help move your business forward. It can inspire all people involved with your organisation – including you, your employees and your customers.
Brand vision and brand values send personal and emotional signals to potential customers, allowing them to connect with your company and develop loyalty.
For your brand to be successful there must be a clear vision that informs operations.
Not only will this allow employees to understand and appreciate their roles better but when unexpected incidents occur, it enables you to determine effective strategies to negotiate successful outcomes.
Brand vision comprises three key components, namely:
- Brand Values
- Brand Future
- Brand Purpose
Know Your Brand Values
What do you stand for as a business?
What are your values as a brand? Every successful brand represents a set of values.
For a company to be successful there must be a number of shared values behind a brand. Your company should adhere to all the core brand values across all situations.
This ensures your brand is well placed to give meaning to customers and employees. It provides the workers with a common cause, a reason to come to work every day. The brand also motivates the employees and makes them think out of the box.
Identifying your brand’s values will help your customers to engage with your brand and business.
Make The Future Happen
What is Your Brand's Future?
What possibilities does the future hold for your brand? How can you shape your future to manifest your brand's full potential?
For a brand to succeed long term, the management must have a good vision about the future. In other words, the team behind the brand should have a detailed forecast about what its future will look like, for instance in the next 10 years.
It is important to envision what happens next because managers should be encouraged to avoid incremental estimates - and to develop a creative and holistic view about their brand’s future.
By thinking well into the future, your brand should not be overwhelmed by unexpected circumstances. Let your brand adapt accordingly and organically to realise the future you are hoping for.
Think Big
Discover Your Brand Purpose
Your brand’s purpose is much more than just boosting shareholders’ wealth or increasing profits. Instead, ensure your brand's purpose aims high - to include such lofty goals as making the world a better place, and what meaningful role your brand can perform in this respect.
Again, it is important to guide and motivate employees.
Organisations that have a well-defined brand purpose have a huge advantage over those that don’t. This is because they stand for something and will always have something to share, and not just a product to sell.
Purpose-driven companies strive to make the world a better place and always stand for their values. Businesses should work hard to make the difference come to fruition.
Why Have a Brand Vision?
Discover why it is important to get inspired
Your brand vision is the ideas behind your brand that inspire you, your employees and your customers. They give a clear direction to your company.
Defining the values that your organisation will stand for is vital, as these set guidelines about the kind of behaviour that differentiates your company in the marketplace and allows your clients to instantly appreciate the promise of your brand.
A successful brand will always have certain core values as well as peripheral values that allow a brand to reflect and give voice to the changing societal atmospheres.
Successful brands do not just focus on their customers; instead, they are always thinking about their employees as well. It is extremely important to make sure all employees appreciate the brand values, and are dedicated to delivering those values.
Encourage everyone in your company to think about how they will help make the world a better place, and understand the kind of behavior that will allow your brand to achieve its goals.
How to Create Your Brand's Vision
What is your vision for your brand?
What do you stand for - as a person, as a business?
Take the time to understand the messages that you want your brand to communicate.
Start with clarity and purpose. Make a list. Collect images and motivational quotes.
Get excited - your customers will thank you for it. People admire and respect others who are knowledgeable, caring and genuine with regards to their business dealings.
Above all be authentic - and tell your own story.
Creating your brand’s vision is one of the most important steps when it comes to brand management.
Crafting brand vision is a tactical process that requires the input of the brand’s top managers as the vision determines the future of the brand. More often than not, marketers should make critical decisions about the future growth of the company. This is a major challenge since the brand must be expanded to cater to emerging opportunities in the market and also be focused on overcoming the existing challenges.
Poor brand vision can also create the issue of discontinuity for the company’s strategies.
Generally, brand vision statements must be simple, clear and easy to remember.
The staff should be able to memorize the brand vision statements.
When crafting the brand vision, you need to keep the following tips in mind.
Think Big: while creating a brand vision for your company, marketers should have huge plans for the business. The vision should address all issues concerning the end consumer. The vision must motivate both the employees and customers alike.
Encourage Growth: marketers should craft a brand vision that will boost the growth of the business beyond the existing product categories.
Consistency: it is important for your brand vision to be consistent with the corporate strategy. For that reason, the top corporate managers should take part in creating the vision.
Regular Revision: while marketers draft brand vision for the long term, make sure that the vision is revised on a regular basis. These days, brands operate in a changing environment. Your vision should be revised according to the changing environment to ensure it is always relevant for the consumers.
Every business decision you make should be in accordance with your brand vision. Your brand vision needs to replicate the business strategy, stand out from competitors, motivate staff, resonate with consumers and guide your brand to meet its goals.
Are your ready to take your brand to the next level?
Talk to Saul Edmonds and Roundhouse.
My name is Saul Edmonds and I have over 20 years professional brand design and brand experience. I would love to learn more about your business and help you grow your professional opportunities. Call me for a FREE personal brand consultation today. Let's work together to make your vision a reality.