A brand is a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, which is intended to identify the goods or services of one reseller or group of resellers and differentiate them from those of their competitors. Brand awareness is the degree to which consumers are familiar with the distinctive qualities or image of the image or brand. Successful brand awareness happens when you have embedded yourself into people’s lifestyles and habits. Here are a few lessons on how to accomplish this.

Maintain a consistent brand voice and image

Brand voice and image can be summed up in one word – Identity. So much can be said for brand identity but its two key takeaways are 1) how deeply the brand entrenches itself into people’s lifestyles and habits and 2) what persona it has, the attitude it projects and inversely evokes out of brand adherents.

Both these qualities can’t be adequately established without a consistent communication of the brand’s ethos. A brand has to be there. It must advertise. It must sponsor. It must post.

It is impossible to think of Nike without conjuring up laser-focused, driven personas who operate beyond the realm of athleticism, within which the brand retails.

Implement offline-marketing campaigns

In this digital world, there is still room for good old-fashioned conventional marketing tactics such as print media and in-store activations. These work best when they are coupled with digital components such as QR codes on the material, which come in handy as a way to measure the effectiveness of the non-digital component.

Another method of driving brand awareness in a non-conventional fashion is the branded link.  A branded link is a short link built around a brand’s name. A good example of this is Pepsi’s pep.si link. The immediate association is the brand itself, and there is an implied self-assuredness in the brand ethos.

Establish referral programs

According to Getambassador 82% of people seek recommendations, and 74% identify word-of-mouth as a key influencer in their purchasing decision. Research has repeatedly shown that referred customers close faster, buy more, and stay longer than customers that did not come via referral. A referral program is a sure-fire way for a brand to acquire, retain and strengthen awareness.

Partner with other brands

Collaborating with similar or complementary brands is an effective method for a brand to create more brand awareness. Brands that partner leverage off their respective audiences and expose their respective offerings to the complimentary brand’s audience. Of course, the keyword here is “complimentary”; elements of both brands’ ethos must speak to a similar audience set.

Get social

“Social is the new black”. Any brand that is not leveraging its social media profile (I can’t imagine there’s a brand without one) is robbing itself of an effective means to

• Convert leads into sales.
• Enhance customer engagement.
• Build a better brand experience for customers.
• Turn prospective customers into brand loyalists.

In order to successfully do the above, the brand must actively engage its audience. It takes more than passively holding profiles on various platforms to convert social media into an awareness tool.

Promotions

Run competitions and giveaways. These appeal to the desire for reward, one hardwired into every human being. There are many ways to go about this, but one of the most popular is having the brand’s followers share the brand’s posts, which then results in exposure to their audiences.

Make customer service a priority

We can all identify with that one call center we dread calling because we are virtually giving away chunks of our life in the waiting queue. A brand that understands the essence of awareness understands that for it to be effective, service to the customer must be its highest priority. Otherwise, awareness turns to infamy and that is counter-productive to holistic brand objectives.

Segment Branding Efforts to Target Highly ­Specific Audiences

Spray and pray is the old way. The new and more effective way of branding is to target specific audiences with relevant messaging. Samsung Mobile may be a single entity but the S10+ billboard in affluent northern Johannesburg does not carry the same language as the Samsung J7 mural in the youthful Maboneng precinct.

Community Event Sponsorships.

Besides the obvious altruistic desire to do the right thing and give back to the community, the two main reasons brands must get involved in community sponsorship events are 1) to build trust and 2) to gain visibility. Sponsoring communal activities endears the brand while at the same time, searing its imagery into the minds of the community.

To find out more about how Vodacom can help you create brand awareness with mobile, go to www.eziADS.media.

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