Brand recognition is a vital component of any company. It’s not something intangible that you cannot see or hear. In fact, it’s the opposite.
It is the successful use of visual, auditory and physical cues to show your audience the character attributes of your business, without having to hit them over the head with it.
In recent years, brand recognition has become an essential part of advertising and marketing, thanks to the many in-your-face advertisements that attempt to hit our every senses. We are constantly bombarded with advertisements whenever we watch a video on YouTube, play a mobile game, scroll through our social media feed, or reading the news. Advertisements and digital marketing materials are literally everywhere, not just on our television screens and newspapers anymore. And, it’s endless.
With that in mind, join creative design agency I Concept Singapore, as we dive into more detail, and look at what brand recognition really is, why it’s essential, and how you can build up brand recognition for your own business.
What is brand recognition? How does it work, really?
Visual branding is made up of several different elements, such as your business name, logo, packaging, unboxing experience, website design, and advertisements (both traditional and new media). Together, these elements help your audience understand your brand’s character and attributes.
Companies should aim to build brand recognition, which is the extent to which a consumer can correctly identify a product or service after seeing one of these elements.
The ultimate goal of brand recognition is to reach a level where your customers instantly recognise your brand and recall who you are.
Now, let’s take it one step further and think about the bigger picture.
When you imagine one of your friends, do you only recall their name? Or do you instantly think about their face? The last time you saw them? An enjoyable time you had together? How do you feel about them? Or if you want to see them again really soon?
When a brand like yours can reach that kind of recognition, it’s an absolute game-changer and can dramatically help boost your success. We’ll talk about how it can help you below.
How to build brand recognition?
Building brand recognition is an ongoing process. The goal of this process is to make the brand identity memorable and more appealing to the audience. And this is done by understanding the buyer’s journey and stages of recognition of a brand.
The five stages of brand recognition
Naturally, your customers don’t go from never having heard of your brand, to thinking of it as a household name they trust.
Brand recognition is a process that has multiple stages. They are as follows.
Awareness
This is the stage during which you are getting your name out there, as well as helping
consumers associate it with your chosen visuals and slogans.
Preference
During this stage, your potential customer learns to select your products over the alternatives. They may do this because of price point, quality, or a previous positive interaction with your brand.
Reputation
Here, your customer doesn’t just choose you. They are starting to respect your brand
and see it as having a genuine value that exceeds their other options.
Trust
During the trust stage of brand recognition, your customer begins to build a sense of
attachment to your company and products. The choice to buy from you is no longer
just about reliable products, but also the personal connection they feel toward your brand.
Loyalty
During the final stage of brand recognition, you have got a loyal customer on your
hands. They will go out of their way to buy from you and likely consider their lives
incomplete without your products.
Strategies to build brand recognition
Getting your brand recognised and into people’s brains takes a bit of know-how. We’ll show you some steps to take to put the spotlight on you.
Understand the target audience better
It is important to understand the target audience’s demographics and psychographics profile to gain insight into what is the most relevant for them. There are various online tools that can be used for this purpose, like Google Analytics and Facebook Insights. They provide a variety of information ranging from age and location to their behaviours and interests.
Build memorable brand associations
The visual aspects of any brand, such as the logo and tagline, forms the image of the brand – also known as its brand identity. It should be designed in a way that is strong, distinctive yet balanced. It should be easy to grasp and effectively communicate what the business is about. Logos should be on the face of everything. Companies should keep reinforcing its name and its logo everywhere possible, so it’s easier to grasp and persist in the customer’s mind.
Make use of influencer marketing (if possible)
Social media is undoubtedly one of the best platforms to reach out to customers today. Social media influencers are instrumental in further increasing this reach. It becomes easier to target the right audience using short videos and relevant hashtags shared by the influencers. It is one of the subtle methods of online marketing which is almost certain to generate a decent amount of clicks and conversions. Influencers tend to have a well-established audience that trusts them. Thus, if the influencer shares the products with their audience, they would naturally gravitate towards it.
Develop a unique product packaging
Unboxing is a critical part of the product journey today. Allowing customers to customise their packaging can make the purchase a lot more exciting. Moreover, including the logo, name, and tagline of the brand in the packaging improves retention. Even the smallest of initiatives like including a bookmark when a customer purchases a book can have a huge positive impact. Personalised packaging can feel like a gift for the customers.
Ask for customer feedback
Any customer’s opinion about a product they have used is important to better serve their needs and helps in identifying areas of improvement. Customers always appreciate when asked for product reviews as it makes them feel like their opinions are valued.
Brands that recognise the value of human interactions succeed in enhancing their recognition in the market.
Make commercials worth remembering
A company’s commercial should be a reflection of the company’s values and identity. An ad should make people go, “This is what I was looking for”, or “This product is for me”. This is achieved when the right audience is targetted such that they relate with the product or services offered. Even advertisements that can inspire a dialogue leaves an impact on the minds of the customers. Draw them into your website through innovative and engaging website design.
Brand recognition versus Brand recall
Brand recognition and brand recall both fall under the umbrella of brand awareness.
Brand recall is sometimes referred to as an unaided or spontaneous recall, while brand recognition is referred to as aided recall. Moreover, brand recognition is not about the customer remembering the brand name, but rather about the customer recognising the brand when presented at the point of sale. Whereas, brand recall refers to how well a customer can recall the brand from their memory when prompted by a product category.
Build a brand that gets the recognition it deserves
Your target audience are people first, and consumers second. Having a powerful brand starts with having an airtight branding campaign that gets to the right people at the right time.
A successful branding strategy never loses sight of this and strives to connect with people in terms that resonate with them.
Establishing a clear brand identity and developing an initial brand recognition strategy is the first step. Learning everything you can about branding is the second.
Looking to up your branding game? Seeking help to manage your business’s brand touchpoints? Branding agency I Concept Singapore is here to assist.
I Concept is a creative design agency, as well as wholesome digital marketing that specialises in branding in Singapore and beyond. We can help guide businesses carve out a niche of their own, developing strong brand touchpoints (brand identity, website design, etc) to best reach their potential customers, leaving good impressions.
We have RMC-certified consultants to provide strategic brand and marketing development services, and your business may be eligible to tap on up to 50% funding through the corresponding Enterprise Development Grant.
Contact us today to learn about how better to get your brand recognised by your target audience.
