The 4 biggest mistakes new businesses make when it comes to branding

Gillian Horan is a branding expert and CEO of The Pudding. She shares her tips on branding and stand-out strategies for your business.

Gillian Horan,  branding expert and CEO of The Pudding, was always drawn to where the worlds of business and creativity collide. Ahead of our IMAGE Young Businesswomen’s Forum in The Westbury Hotel on August 29, she tells us about some of the biggest mistakes young businesses can make when it comes to branding.

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Analyse

Businesses jump to design, before analysing the business. What makes your product or service different? What’s your target audience? What’s your positioning relative to competitors?

Are your brand values that are actually used for hiring and performance rather than pretty words that hang on a wall, messaging, and brand architecture? This is really key if you plan on selling your business in the future.

Identity

Choosing an identity that you personally like rather than an identity that reflects your business and resonates with your customers. This is very dangerous and can actually inhibit the future growth of the company.

Inconsistency

Inconsistency is a major issue we see especially when it comes to activation. Once you decide on your identity you then need to activate it. It is really important that you have a brand book or guidelines to support your identity which outlines how your brand should come to life across all your marketing channels. This will lead to greater consistency.

Involvement

Not involving the organisation. It’s so important that the leaders of an organisation drive the brand and all that goes with it. Involve your team. They are part of the brand and they are often the people who have more interaction with customers and suppliers.

Join us for the IMAGE Young Businesswomen’s Forum with Gillian Horan: Tickets available here