What is branding?
When you hear the word branding; what does it mean to you and why is it such a valuable component to building a successful business and make a difference in our society?
We are living through challenging times and the impact of worldwide economy is hitting directly our livelihood, our success and our happiness. Entrepreneurs and people who have a passion to produce and come up with ideas are asking the questions; “how can we make this work”, “where could I market this product/service?”, “is there a demand for this….. in the marketplace? ” And the questions pop up one by one but the answers are not crystal clear.
A sense of reality.
The one hidden solution is “branding”. So where do we go from here and how can we pursue this crucial concept?
Being in the business world and building companies from ground up for over 20 years I’ve come to understand that branding is not only necessary but a must and brings me back to one of my favorite movies I watch every year over the Christmas Holiday.
“Miracle on 34th Street” where Macy’s management sends customers to Gimbles’ across the street to purchase items they do not carry and of course Gimbles’ returned the same motion. How brilliant? It was a win win situation for everyone.
This movie was originally released in the United Kingdom in 1947. So where are today? 66 years later. After all social media wasn’t in existence then but it is in full force today, so let’s take advantage of technology and move forward not with simple success but total success; why settle for less than that? We have the tools to do so.
Karen Kang quotes; in 2013 you need to reinvent your brand or you will be left behind and who wants to be left behind? Certainly not me!
Karen said it so beautifully; we replace the letter “m” in the word “me to the letter “w” and make it a “we” The longer we continue to live in the me society the longer it will take us to breakthrough and change the pattern.
Karen is a 20-year brand strategist. And she says; “you need to be crystal clear about who you are and the value you bring to a world where constant change is the only norm”.
Deemed “the master of personal branding” by marketing visionary Regis McKenna, Kang is the author of Branding Pays. The five steps to reinvent your personal brand she translates tried and true Silicon Valley branding lessons to companies of one helping individuals, graduates and entrepreneurs accelerate their career success.
She trained thousand of professionals on the unique Branding pays and consulted more than 150 organizations from Fortune 100 to companies’ non-profits and startups.
Karen helped launch the Apple, Intel and Gnetentech brands.
What impressed me most with Karen is that her practical methodology makes branding as easy to understand as “Bake the cake” then ice it a metaphor she uses to talk about the rational value in comparison to a (cake) and the value the (icing) that make up strong brands; simply said consolidate and connect the materials with the presentation.
The 5 powerful steps are:
- Define your unique “cake” or rational value
- Develop the key messages that support your cake
- Put your cake and icing together
- Define your ecosystem
- Develop a two-part action plan
Considering Karen’s exceptional knowledge and tools in this case you can actually have the cake and eat it too.
I am not an expert baker but I do know one thing that most of us have a sweet tooth and we love to conclude our meals with something sweet and the icing is what invites us to dig our forks into the cake, pie or the ice cream sundae.
Presentation is not everything but it is surely a powerful factor igniting our emotions to follow thorough and create the desire to buy or bite.
What is your favorite cake and icing?
Read more posts by Ana Weber. Ana is a blogger for JenningsWire.