The Dreaded “B” Word and How to Use it Correctly

Branding is one of the most important aspects of any business, large or small, retail or B2B (business-to-business). An effective brand strategy gives you a major edge in increasingly competitive markets. But what exactly does “branding” mean? How does it affect a small business like yours?

Simply put, your brand is your promise to your customer. It tells them what they can expect from your products and services, and it differentiates your offering from your competitors’. Your brand is derived from who you are, who you want to be and who people perceive you to be.

Are you the innovative maverick in your industry? Or the experienced, reliable one? You can’t be both. Is your product the high-cost, high-quality option or the low-cost, high-value option? You can’t offer both. As the saying goes, “You can’t be all things to all people,” but you should base your business persona, at least to some extent, on being the type of person your target customers want and need you to be.

The foundation of your brand is your logo. Your website, advertising and promotional materials—all of which should integrate your logo— communicate your brand.

Brand Strategy and Equity
Your brand strategy is how, what, where, when and to whom you plan on communicating and delivering on your brand messages. Where you advertise is part of your brand strategy. Your distribution channels also are part of your brand strategy. And what you communicate visually and verbally are parts of your brand strategy, too.

Consistent, strategic branding leads to a strong “brand equity,” which means that the added value you bring to your company’s products or services allows you to charge more for your brand than what someone with an identical, but unbranded, product can command. The most obvious example of this is Coke versus a generic soda. Because Coca-Cola has built powerful brand equity, the company can charge more for its product—and customers will pay that higher price.

The added value intrinsic to brand equity frequently comes in the form of perceived quality or emotional attachment. For example, Nike associates its products with star athletes, hoping customers will transfer their emotional attachment from the athlete to the product. For Nike, it’s not just the shoe’s features that sell the shoe.

Defining Your Brand
Defining your brand is like a journey of business self-discovery. It can be difficult, time-consuming and uncomfortable. It requires, at the very least, that you answer these questions:

• What is your company’s mission?

• What are the benefits and features of your products or services?

• What do your customers and prospects already think of your company?

• What qualities do you want them to associate with your company?

Do your research. Learn the needs, habits and desires of your current and prospective customers. And don’t rely on what you think they think. Know what they think.

Because defining your brand and developing a brand strategy can be complex, consider leveraging the expertise of a nonprofit small business advisory group or a small business development center.

Once you’ve defined your brand, how do you get the word out? Here are a few simple, time-tested tips:

• Get a great logo. Place it everywhere. If you don’t have a logo, consider getting one for free from the ASHI free logo site. Check out the ASHI website (https://www.homeinspector.org/) for details. Go to the Members Only tab and scroll to the Free Logo Design option near the bottom. Or, if you are willing to pay an affordable design fee, you can hire an ASHI designer to design a custom logo for you. For a how-to video, go to: https://youtu.be/JnNLRD7DDmo

• Write down your brand messaging. What are the key messages you want to communicate about your brand? Every employee should be aware of your brand attributes.

• Integrate your brand. Branding extends to every aspect of your business, including what you say when you answer your phone, what you or your salespeople wear when you go on sales calls, and even what words you include in your email signature.

• Create a “voice” for your company that reflects your brand. This voice should be applied to all written communication and incorporated into the visual imagery of all materials, online and off. Is your brand friendly? Be conversational. Is it ritzy? Be more formal. You get the gist.

• Develop a tagline. Write a memorable, meaningful and concise statement that captures the essence of your brand. For example, ASHI’s tagline is “Educated. Tested. Verified. Certified.”

• Create design guidelines for your marketing materials. Use the same color scheme, logo placement, look and feel throughout. You don’t need to be fancy, just consistent. ASHI’s new Print-On-Demand website can help you in this area. See the ad on Page 14 for more information. View our introduction video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xH5g_Y UC2a0.

• Be true to your brand. Customers won’t return to you—or refer you to someone else—if you don’t deliver on your brand promise.

• Be consistent. We placed this point last only because it involves all of the above and is the most important tip we can give you. Consistency tells your customer that they can depend on your business, and being consistent can lead to repeat clients and referrals.

What is ASHI’s Print-On-Demand Site?
The Print-On-Demand site is exclusive to ASHI members. The graphics department has designed templates to help you start creating brochures, postcards, business cards, letterhead, envelopes and newsletters. No design experience is necessary; everything has been programmed with drag-and-drop ease. We have also incorporated marketing information about home inspection and ASHI to help you communicate with homebuyers or real estate agents. Click on the Brand Your Business icon to get started.

You will need to create a user account. Each time you log in to the site, the templates will have the correct logo already loaded and will correspond with your level of membership. You will also be able to upload logos from other organizations to display on your materials. ASHI has added a photo gallery for you to incorporate images into your materials or you can upload your own photos. All of your work will be saved for easy reordering. Tech support is availaible on the site in the upper left-hand corner of your screen (look for the Call To Discuss button).

Chapters can also brand themselves and communicate with their members with templates and tools on the Print-On-Demand site. Click on the Brand Your Chapter icon to get started. We received a lot of positive feedback about this site at the Leadership Training Conference and have added some new features that were requested.

You can order newly redesigned ASHI brochures and books from this site as well; look for the yellow ASHI Brochures icon. There are also videos that you can add to your websites and PowerPoint® presentations to download.

The graphics department will continue to add new designs and features to the Print-On-Demand site on a regular basis, so check back often or email your suggestions to arlenez@ashi.org.