How to kill the branding game; What we can learn from Apple.

Branding is so much more than a logo. Every point of contact your customer has with your business reinforces the brands’ perception. Branding is being able to utilize all vehicles to promote your message and image consistently.

One giant that anyone can take note of, regardless of your business type is Apple. This is a brand that people aimlessly flock towards when looking for new tech and solely because of the image they have built and their ability to keep their brand at top of mind. Here is a how you can take your branding to the next level with a few examples from the Tech Giant Apple.

SIMPLICITY

Within marketing this can be looked at a few different ways, The main two being from a product perspective and the second being from a promotional point of view.

From a product perspective, a way to look at simplicity is by sticking to what you know or do best. The term “less is more” often comes to play when I think simplicity and is definitely the case for Apple. They have a major focus on their key products and don’t really deviate from the essentials like some bigger companies will. How does this help there brand? It’s simple, less room for error and more room to focus on quality products along with building a focused expertise within one area. You also might notice that their products are typically minimal and simplistically designed. This is either because Steve Jobs had some serious OCD or he wanted to build products that are non-intrusive, user-friendly and easy for us to be attracted to (You choose...maybe both though)

On the promotional side of things, simplicity tends to be the feeling that most people perceive from Apple Billboards,commercials,ads and other initiatives. Having an ad with a minimalist approach ensure viewers are not distracted by elements that don’t add value to the message in which they are trying to deliver. Using negative white space tends to draw the viewers eyes to the focal point and have been proven to be more memorable. Another benefit of these ads are that it falls in line with Apples overall image and everything they do, I touch on consistency next!

Talk about simplicity right?

How can you make use of simplicity to upgrade your brand game?

Think more about your target market and what is the easiest/most convenient for them. Why confuse people? Focus on the message you’re trying to deliver and drive it home with short and concise communications! Lastly, Focus on your strengths, the expertise and reputation will follow.

CONSISTENCY

This is what I think might be the most crucial pillar in creating a brand that your target market can resonate with; Consistency. This means ensuring that your underlying message and image is being implemented across all touch points. Touch points being anywhere that your target market may interact with, this means everything from your product and promotional initiatives (and the other 2 P’s of course) to the more specific things that you don’t necessarily think about or strike as important.

An example of Apple practicing this Consistency and being particular with even the smallest things is in their partnerships with other brands; in specific Otter box. Otter box as many of you may know makes some heavy duty cases that are typically in a bright yellow, kind of cheap plastic package. You think Apple is going to let that fly in their stores? Nope.

They went above and beyond in the name of consistency and made sure that Otter box created a specific box that is fitting to their brand and the minimal image they have spent so much time perfecting. Check out what the typical Otter box case looks like vs the cases in the apple store.

The first two photos are from the Apple Store. The last photo is what typical Otterbox cases look like along with the display.*

Obviously, this is a very extreme instance that most individuals or small businesses would not be able to capitalize on; because of the high costs and authority required. However, this just goes to show how particular you should be on touch points that you do have control over.

COHESION

As I mentioned earlier, Branding is so much more than logos and visuals. Branding is utilizing all of your customer touch points to build a reputation, familiarity, and loyalty to your business.

Everything you do should relate to each other to create a uniform lineup of initiatives that tie into your mission, And that’s exactly what Brand cohesion is. Being able to tell a story or build a unified experience through all touch points. Having cohesion throughout all initiatives enables your target market to really resonate with your product or service.

An example of Apple utilizing brand cohesion is with their stellar product line up; Often referred to as the Apple Ecosystem. Think about all your friends with iPhones, or maybe even your self. The first reason for not switching to android or PC from Apple is (if they’re capable of thinking hard enough to not say “I don’t know its cool”) that of all of their friends have iMessage or they have a full setup at home. That is Brand Cohesion at its finest. Apple has set up a product lineup that falls perfectly in line with their mission “To make a contribution to the world by making tools for the mind that advance humankind”. They have done so by creating a lineup that benefits each facet of your technological life, whether it be socializing with friends, working, studying watching TV and everything in between. (It’s also kind of a trap but hey, COHESION!) Apple has done an amazing job of creating an Ecosystem that is convenient for you and completely integrated. This in turn drives cross sales and brand loyalty because of the investments made in previous products.

One thing that any experienced sales person will tell you is that very often “people buy the person, not the product.” People love things that they can relate to and are familiar with! Unify your product line up and everything in between to display that story you want to tell and build brand loyalty.

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