Whether it’s a large corporation or a small to medium-sized enterprise, establishing a strong brand image is crucial. A positive brand image can provide significant advantages to a business, attracting more customers. This article will explain what a brand image is, the benefits of creating one, and how businesses can build their own brand image to make a lasting positive impression on customers.
What is brand image?
Brand image refers to the overall impression and perception that a brand forms in the minds of consumers. Consumers, through exposure to various elements such as the brand’s visual identity, sound, reputation, advertising, and events, gradually develop their own brand image through digestion and reflection. It is crucial for business owners to strive for a positive brand image that aligns with the company’s values, ensuring that consumers form favorable impressions.
The Differences between Brand Image and Brand Identity
What is often confused with brand image is brand identity, also known as brand image identification. However, the two are distinct concepts. The key difference lies in the fact that brand image is formed by consumer perceptions, while brand identity is intentionally crafted by businesses. Typically, companies shape their brand identity to establish a brand image, making it accurate to say that creating brand identity involves designing the brand image.
| Brand Image | Brand Identity |
|---|---|
| consumers’ thoughts | company making |
| products, advertisements, word-of-mouth, experiences, and so on. | The company’s logo, slogan, visuals, brand voice, and so on. |
| How consumers perceive you. | How the company wishes consumers to think. |
The three major reasons why brand image is crucial:
Why does every brand strive to establish a brand image? Because a positive brand image brings substantial benefits in marketing, helping solidify the brand in the minds of consumers and even attracting more potential customers. The following lists specific advantages of building a brand image:
Increasing customer loyalty and trust.
When your brand conveys a professional, high-quality, and positive impression, consumers are more likely to develop a sense of trust in the brand. Trust forms the foundation for establishing long-term relationships between the brand and customers. Customers who trust the brand are more likely to become loyal customers, actively recommend products to others, and contribute to the creation of positive word-of-mouth. This creates a natural and positive cycle for the brand.
Creating a distinction from competitors
Building a brand image can help you differentiate from competitors and establish a competitive advantage. When consumers perceive your brand as unique and irreplaceable, your brand has the opportunity to stand out in the highly competitive market. Nowadays, many companies not only promote their products but also emphasize the values they uphold in their operations. This practice highlights the distinctiveness of their products compared to others, creating differentiation.
Elevating the added value of the product
A strong product image can enhance the added value of a product, allowing it to be sold at a higher price point, often two to three times its original value. Many consumers are willing to pay a premium for products with a positive brand image, a phenomenon known as brand premium. One of the most notable examples is Starbucks, where the price of their coffee is 30-40% higher than that of typical coffee shops due to Starbucks’ high-quality brand image.
How to Build Brand Image?
So how should businesses establish a brand image? Building a brand image is a long-term strategy that requires various methods to accumulate a strong impression in the minds of consumers. Below are suggested steps for establishing a brand image:
Deciding the brand image objectives.
The first step in establishing a brand image is to determine the desired brand image, that is, how the company wishes consumers to perceive it. It is recommended to start by identifying the target customers for the products, combined with the unique characteristics of the company. For example, an automotive company specializing in manufacturing family SUVs, targeting the 30-40 age group of married individuals, may set “Safe and Reliable” as its image objective.
Write a brand slogan and crafting a brand story
Next, based on the established image objectives from the previous step, it is important to write a brand slogan, vision, and brand story. These elements not only help customers better understand the brand’s background and build trust but also provide employees with a clear understanding of the company’s current goals.
If you find writing brand marketing copy challenging, you can use AI tools to assist you! GenApe is an AI writing assistant with templates for company vision and more. It can help you create compelling copy and even allows you to set the tone of your brand voice, leaving a lasting impression on your customers.
Brand Image Design and Brand Identity
Brand image design involves crafting brand identity, and there are various types of brand identity, such as logos, product packaging, product copy, brand voice, advertisements, and more. It’s important to remember that every type of brand identity must align with the brand values, and there should be consistency in brand image design. For example, the style of the logo should not differ significantly from the web design. This consistency ensures that consumers do not feel confused and enables a more profound and lasting impression.
Conveying brand messages to customers
Brand image is shaped by various things and experiences that consumers come into contact with. Therefore, actively conveying messages to customers is essential when building a brand image. This involves marketing the brand through channels such as the company’s official website, advertisements, social media platforms, or offline events. Beyond one-way communication, these channels should ideally facilitate the collection of user feedback. Brands can then adjust their marketing strategies based on this feedback.
AI Tools for Createing Brand Image
GenApe is a useful AI writer that can create company slogans, visions, and introductions. It offers templates for advertising copy, long-form writing, and more. You can also set a unique brand voice to ensure the generated content aligns with your brand personality. Supporting multiple languages, including Traditional Chinese and English, GenApe makes it easy for you to craft various types of copy. Click the button below to give it a try now.
