Here are the top five branding mistakes businesses make:
Making empty promises:
What does your brand promise your customers? Are all your actions aligned to meet those promises you are making?
Does your brand reflect who you are? Or who you think you should be?
Do you describe your business differently from the “official script” when speaking with friends?
Saying too much:
Is your tagline too long? Trying to communicate more than one or two concepts is too much.
Does your tagline communicate the core benefit you bring to your customers? Do you really need to say anything else?
Is your logo overly complex? Are your cramming in multiple clever metaphors and visual elements? Is it overwhelmingly colourful? Are you trying too hard to convey an abstract concept visually?
Non-information:
Are you parroting clichés? Do you over-use obscure jargon?
Are you saying things that no reasonable business could really be expected to dispute? Examples: “we believe in customer service” or “we care about quality” or “our people are our key resource”…
If you have a mark (a symbol, a graphic) as part of your logo, what extra information does it impart? Do you need the mark? Can you afford to market the mark?
Blindly following fashion:
Does your branding material use a lot of trendy elements or styles? That trendy typeface will look sad and dated in a few months. The cool animated splash page on your website will quickly become an annoyance.
Are you saying something because all your competitors are? Are you blindly towing your industry’s trend’s?
Does your logo and other aspects of your operations indistinguishable from your competitors’?
Remember the Branding ABC:
Your brand must reflect your Beliefs and Actions. These are the intangible qualities of the personality that is your business. Your logo is the Clothing your business wears. A great logo does not make a great brand.
