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What's Your Brand Image ROI?

Guest post by: John Williams

Article Overview: If you’re like millions of other small businesses, creating a professional visual image is key to your success. After all, your image - as seen on your business cards, marketing materials, packaging and website - is the first and sometimes only chance you have to introduce your company to potential customers. If your customers like what they see, you’re one big step closer to getting their business.

What's Your Brand Image ROI?

So how do you determine the right image for your company? It doesn't take a rocket scientist, or even an ad agency. It just takes strategic thinking. For starters, your image should reflect your company's personality (or brand) - which to some degree is your personality, because you're the owner of your business. It should also reflect your industry, along with your customer's expectations and the defining attributes of your products and services. I've always maintained that there are three basic image categories: "Friendly", "Business" and "Technology". To see which image category your company fits in, take this short quiz*:

1) How do you want your customers to view your company? (Choose only one.)

___ a. Progressive

___ b. Reliable

___ c. Friendly and/or approachable

2) When it comes to your products or services, you plan to:

___ a. Charge more than the competition

___ b. Charge less than the competition

___ c. Charge a similar price but add value in another way (e.g., better service)

3) Why did you start your own business?

___ a. I know the industry like the back of my hand.

___ b. I saw a market opportunity and I went for it.

___ c. I love what I'm doing and I'm good at it.

4) What group of words best describes you?

___ a. Friendly, open-minded, stylish

___ b. Analytical, reliable, organized

___ c. Progressive, spontaneous, risk-taker

5) Your customers:

___ a. are risk-averse and/or fiscally conservative.

___ b. need something unique or creative.

___ c. want the newest technology.

Scoring:

Question #1: a) 5 points; b) 3 points; c) 1 point

Question #2: a) 5 points; b) 3 points; c) 1 point

Question #3: a) 3 points; b) 5 points; c) 1 point

Question #4: a) 1 point; b) 3 points; c) 5 points

Question #5: a) 3 points; b) 1 point; c) 5 points

If your score is 5-11, your recommended image is:

FRIENDLY

Your image should project creativity, flexibility and friendliness. Your promotional materials should be creative and unique. Design examples include rounded fonts, curvy lines and warm photography or illustration.

If your score is 12-19, your recommended image is:

BUSINESS

Your image should project experience, strength, and stability. Your promotional materials should be conservative in tone and design - not trendy or surprising. Consider straightforward fonts like Helvetica and Times, lots of white space, and 4-color photography.

If your score is 20-25, your recommended image is:

TECHNOLOGY

Your image should project innovation and technological expertise. Your promotional materials should be energetic and exciting. Italicized fonts, bold graphics, and dynamic photography work well in this category.

Maybe you're thinking, "My company features some ‘BUSINESS' qualities and some ‘TECHNOLOGY' ones. What's up?" That's okay. Overlap occurs. But you should have more of one category's qualities than the other. Be careful of "red flags" that indicate you may be trying to be all things to all people. For example, it is difficult to appear both established (which implies slow to change) and progressive (which implies fast-moving). Accordingly, I know of few successful small businesses with an image I'd describe as both "FRIENDLY" and "TECHNOLOGY." In many ways these two categories are opposite ends of the image spectrum and thus mutually exclusive.

The right image can be one of your biggest assets. Build a professional business identity, and you'll reap profits.

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Article Tags: brand equity, brand image, branding, brochures, business card, business card printing, business cards, collateralcohesive family, corporate attributes, Do it Yourself Logo, logo design, look and feel, loyalty, marketing materials, personal brand, printing companies, professional business card, promotional materials, start business, stationery, visual image, website design, workworld



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