You’ve been there before. You meet someone new and engage in small talk. They begin to tell you about some widget their company manufactures and its different uses. Like clockwork, the end of the conversation falls back on how boring their particular industry is. They apologize for carrying on because nobody is interested in what they do. They talk about how you’ve probably never heard about their company because it’s uniteresting. There are no boring brands, just boring branding.
The definition of branding is the marketing practice of creating a name, symbol or design that identifies and differentiates a product from other products. If you have an employee describing where they work with a negative tone – what does that say about your branding? Are you innovative within your industry? Is your product or service high quality? Is the foundation of your brand (logo, website, promotional materials) a priority? Do you have a brand strategy that communicates visually and verbally what makes your company a business leader? The old saying perception is reality is a very true statement. Boring branding can lead to the perception that your company is boring, and provides only run-of-the-mill services. Many times decision-makers have no idea what they are looking for. If you don’t stand out – do you think they are going to call you?
No matter the industry, there is ALWAYS something people find interesting or sexy. That’s the function of marketing, to dig out the feelings that your brand evokes. Most brands are pretty boring if you sit down and think about it. Coca-Cola is one of the biggest brands in the world. It’s sugar water, yet most people don’t consider it boring. Why is that? Because they have developed a personalty that appeals to the masses. It’s all about branding.
Your company has success for a reason. Celebrate that. Tell your story. Spend the time to create a brand that people recognize, respect and want to interact with. Make sure you are on the forefront of people’s minds so that the decision to do business with you is an easy one. Say it with us – your branding might be boring, but your brand is not.