The concept of your brand, product or service, like Ikea’s affordable and simplified home furnishings.
Visual branding: The design elements that represent your brand
Brand values: The beliefs your brand embraces. For example, environmentalism for Patagonia.
Mission statement: A written statement of your utmost mission and promise to your customers, like Uber’s mission to “ignite opportunity by setting the world in motion.”
Culture: What social culture orbits around your brand? Brand culture is how your customers respond and partake in the values of your brand.
The experience: How and what do you want customers to experience while using your product or services?

Focusing on your brand identity is less about making sales, and more about making an impression. You want the experience they had shopping from you to stick around long after they've made a purchase.

Let's look at one of the most identifiable brands of all time: Nike. What does the name "Nike" bring to mind?

Is it the unmistakable Swoosh logo? Perhaps it's the compelling slogan beckoning us to rise above excuses and circumstances and "Just Do It." Or maybe you think of all the famous athletes who've endorsed Nike as the leading authority on athletics.

Regardless, there's no disputing the force that is Nike. The spirit of this brand encapsulates an ideology and lifestyle that ascends beyond a footwear company. Nike is a cultural icon that symbolizes power, strength, independence, fitness, and athleticism.

When you build a strong brand identity, your brand evolves into more than a product; it becomes a voice.

Synergize Your Messaging With Cohesive Marketing

The importance of a strong brand identity is crystal clear. Your brand identity is the whole, now let's deconstruct it into the individual parts that comprise the greater entity.

Ultimately, you want to create a cohesive brand across all of your channels. That way, if someone finds you on social media, visits your website, contacts support, or walks into your store, their experience is seamless.

How can you synergize your brand messaging and make all marketing content cohesive? Excellent question.

Let's explore the aspects of a strong brand image:

Logo. Often, your logo is the first visual presentation of your brand. In digital marketing, the logo serves as the de facto handshake. A logo is the first introduction to the brand identity and should personify your company as a whole.
Colors. What emotions do you want to evoke? Do you want to use bold colors like red and black to make a statement? Or should your brand incite calmness with cool tones like blues, greens, and greys? Colors talk, so think about what you want yours to say.
Design elements. Visualize your brand on paper: is it minimal and understated, like Apple, or bold and interactive, like Headspace? Do you use engaging imagery that pops off the page, or does your message breathe better on white space?
Language. The language you use clearly states your brand's beliefs and values. What writing style best translates to your target audience? Is your brand voice sophisticated and high-end, or casual and personable?

The more thought you invest in these details, the more cohesive your brand becomes. Think of it this way:

The more consistent your brand image, the more memorable it is to your target customers.

Ok, you've established a stellar brand identity and your messaging is locked in, now what? Time to broaden your reach to bring in new customers online.

The next step in your branding strategy is to learn SEO, a trusted strategy marketers use to make their brand image visible online. Otherwise, you may build an incredible brand image without anyone to share it with. We don’t want that, which is why SEO is crucial.

Get Savvy On SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Perhaps you've heard of SEO, but you aren't sure how to apply it to your online business? If so, it's time to change that. I know what you're thinking: isn't SEO a task best left to tech specialists and HTML gurus? Not at all.

As a business owner, you likely don't have time to learn every spoke in the wheel of digital marketing. However, if there's one thing you need to have a general understanding of, it's SEO. It's quite simple when you boil it down to the main ingredients.

So, what is SEO?

Search Engine Optimization is a tactic used to increase web traffic from organic search results. A series of small actions optimize your content so that it's discoverable on search engines. When your target customers search for information relating to your business, your website appears higher in search results.

Here's a glance at SEO in action:

Jane is preparing to move and searches for a "moving company near me" in Google.
Moving Company A has optimized their web pages to rank on page one of Google for this search term and its synonyms.
Moving Company A also has an active blog and social media accounts to solidify its online presence.
Jane clicks on Moving Company A's website and finds all the information she needs and more.
Jane fills out the contact form and hires Moving Company A.
Sadly, Moving Company B did not optimize their content, and thus, they are sitting lonely on Page 10 of Google, and Jane has never heard of them.

As you've gathered, you want to be Moving Company A. Like I said, if there's one digital marketing strategy you need to learn, it's SEO. Fortunately, it's easy to learn and apply.

SEO basics to optimize your content:

Keywords: Research relevant keywords for your niche with tools like Keyword Finder or SEMrush.
Content: Create and publish informative and actionable content consistently to your blog to tell search engines (and customers) you're active.
Meta tags, page descriptions, and headlines are the bread and butter of SEO. Think of these as the label to your page that lists all the vital info, including the title, description of the page, and keywords you want to rank for.
Include engaging visuals on every page. Google says they "discourage pages where neither the images or the text are original content." That means you'll need every page optimized with engaging imagery and graphics. Fortunately, you can easily design website graphics with PosterMyWall!
Create a flawless user experience. If a webpage doesn't load within three seconds, no one's going to stick around. Google dispatches page crawlers to examine your page and deem it rank-worthy or not. Focus on fast page loads, user-friendly navigation, and minimize pop-ups and ads (I'm looking at you, food bloggers).
Don’t forget mobile optimization! Streamline the user experience from desktop to tablet to mobile, so that your content is responsive when people visit your site from their mobile device. Learn more about mobile optimization in this guide.

SEO is the foundation for your website to serve you and your customers best. Good things take time, and SEO is no different. It may take months to start seeing organic traffic. In the meantime, there are additional methods you can use to build on this foundation.

Roll Out Your Brand Image With Paid Marketing

Paid marketing is digital advertising, and it's an effective marketing technique to build a strong brand image while you work on getting organic traffic.

You might need a little bump to gain traction while your inbound strategies — blogging, SEO — go to work.

That's where paid marketing comes into play.

Building a recognizable brand image is like creating a perfect prototype. Up to this point, you've got all the pieces of the puzzle, now you need to put them together and test it out. With paid marketing, you present your brand image to the public and fine-tune as needed.

In return, you'll connect with your target audience because their interests align with your brand values and offerings. Inbound content marketing strategies help you do this, but paid marketing accelerates the results.

According to Unbounce, visitors who land on your site from a paid ad are 50% more likely to purchase than organic visitors.

Sounds like it's time to invest in paid marketing. Here's how:

SEM (Search Engine Marketing): SEM ads appear in the top search results, above the organic search results, placing your ad first in line to potential customers. You pay-per-click for each visit to your website.
Social Media Advertising: Create targeted ads on social media to attract your ideal customer based on their online behavior and interests.
Influencer marketing: A personalized approach to advertising in which your brand partners with an influencer to promote products or services to their audience.

Combining paid advertising with organic inbound marketing is a proven-effective duo to reach new customers with an identifiable brand image.

The good news is you're getting steady traffic and leads, but the work doesn't end there.

Now you'll need to focus on turning your new customers into brand advocates that evangelize for your brand.

Reel In The Reviews

The way people perceive your brand is largely influenced by the way other people perceive your brand.

You could invest your entire marketing funds into inbound marketing, but at the end of the day, the customer experience is priority #1.

Consumers look to online reviews to gain insight into a brand and its product or service.

For example, let's say you've got a fully optimized user-friendly website filled with relevant content. Consumers thus far have had a great experience. Except, something is missing from your product pages: customer reviews.

Without endorsement from previous customers, you immediately lose credibility. Bottom line: your reputation and brand image are contingent on positive reviews.

Customer reviews build credibility, trust, social proof, and buyer assurance. Need further proof?

According to State of Online Reviews, 91% of consumers think reviews are important enough to sway their purchasing decision when considering a new business.

That's a significant increase! Point being, when customers advocate about your products or services, they influence visitors to buy from you based on their positive experience.

Ready to get the reviews you deserve?

Set up every product or service page to accept customer reviews.
Send follow up emails to your customers asking them to review their products or experience.
Incentivize customers with discounts in exchange for a product review.
When you get a glowing review, post it to your social media to generate interest, and stimulate more feedback. Create specialized graphics to display your reviews.
Respond to reviews (even the negative ones) to show customers your brand is active and engaged.
When customers email you with positive feedback, take the opportunity to ask them for a review, which will inspire others to also use your product or service.

Unfortunately, sometimes you miss out on a review when people leave your site before following through with a transaction.

How can you entice them back to your site?

Reignite Their Interest With Remarketing

Your brand is recognizable now, but that doesn't mean customers are buying on the spot. Sometimes you'll need to give them a nudge to come back to your site, and remarketing does precisely that.

What is remarketing?

Marketers use remarketing to re-engage visitors who've previously browsed your website and left without taking action. The goal with any site visitor is to get a conversion, whether that's making a purchase, subscribing to your email list, or filling out your contact form.

All too often, the visitor leaves without converting.

They've expressed interest in your brand based on their browsing behavior, and remarketing to them circles them back to your site.

For example, imagine you're shopping for stainless steel cookware. Perhaps you found a brand you like, but are still thinking about whether you'd like to make a purchase. You move on from the website to check your email or scroll Facebook. What's that in the margin catching your eye? A specialized advertisement of the items from the site you were just browsing.

The personalized advertisement features the exact item you previously viewed.

Why does remarketing work?

Because you gain insight into a demographic that's already expressing interest in your brand. Rather than advertising to a group of non-engaged consumers, you're targeting a select group who personally showed interest in your product or service.

Ultimately, the ad is now more relevant than it would be to someone who's never been to your website or is unfamiliar with your brand.

Remarketing is effective because, on average, only 2% of online shoppers make a purchase on their first visit to your site, according to AdRoll.

And what about the other 98% of visitors who didn't convert?

Remarketing reinforces your brand image and establishes a relationship with those first-time visitors. With strategic remarketing campaigns, you turn window shoppers into loyal customers.

Increase Exposure With Public Relations

Your brand values, mission statement, and culture are vital components of a strong brand image.

While logos and imagery convey the aesthetic of your brand, PR communicates its values.

Public relations is a crucial part of your overall brand strategy because you shape the public view and interpretation of your brand.

Like reviews, public relations spread awareness about your business from outside sources, building invaluable social proof and merit. Also, you'll gain access to a broader audience because your brand appears on external platforms.

How can you use PR to get external mentions, build links, credibility, and position your brand image in the best light?

PR ideas to get you started:

Sponsor a silent auction to raise awareness about a good cause and attach your brand name to it.
Write press releases for upcoming product launches and email them to local news outlets who may interview you or write a piece promoting your launch.
Host a fundraiser and invite your local community to donate, participate, and spread the word.
Post branded banners and flyers at local establishments like coffee shops and libraries.
Publish informative case studies or white papers filled with helpful, relevant, and recent data to establish yourself as a thought leader.

A great example is Bitly's case study of e-commerce business, Vissla. In this scannable PDF, Bitly highlights Vissla's success in integrating omnichannel marketing.

The report is only five pages long, but every line counts. It has quotable stats, market research, visuals to support the claims, and a proven example of Bitly's value as a link management platform.

You can easily publish content like this on your website or blog, and drive local traffic to your report by promoting it on your Facebook business page or LinkedIn. If it’s community-related, why not make copies and distribute them at the next city council meeting?

Reinforce Your Message Offline

We've analyzed all the primary tactics for building a strong brand image online, but how can you reinforce your messaging offline?

You don't want to invest funds and energy into building your brand image online, only to divert offline. Otherwise, you risk jumbling your messaging and confusing your target clientele.

If you have a store, or frequently network with colleagues face to face, your brand's first impression may very likely occur offline.

How can you ensure that the first image that greets people aligns with your brand image?

All of your print materials should follow the brand guidelines you enforce online, including:

Business cards
Promotional flyers
Brochures
Digital signage
In-store banners
Business letterheads
Advertisements
All print media

If you're struggling to keep your branding cohesive, look to your principal design elements. Always incorporate your design colors, fonts, imagery, and language into every material you create — whether it's digital or print.

PosterMyWall is an easy to use graphic design software for creating branded visuals and marketing content. You can even use custom fonts and colors and save up on bulk purchases with the PosterMyWall Premium subscription plans.

When your branding is consistent across all channels --including print media -- you reinforce your brand image into a linear entity.

Build Your Brand Image Today!

There are many moving parts to building a strong brand image. However, the overarching goal is to root all content and messaging into a cohesive, recognizable brand that resonates with your target audience.

Ready to get started? Excellent! Use the tools and strategies in this article to build a brand image that's recognizable, consistent, and lucrative.

Remember these key takeaways:

Put your brand identity at the forefront of all of your branding efforts
Create a streamlined, cohesive brand image to act as the face of your brand
Use internal strategies like SEO to bring in organic traffic
Incorporate outreach initiatives like PR and reviews to generate social proof and credibility
Create a positive buying experience that converts customers into brand advocates who preach the good word about your brand.

Create amazing posters, flyers, and social media graphics with PosterMyWall.

Browse Templates

Jul 15 How To Reach Customers Online: Building A Strong Brand Image

Table of Contents

What Is A Brand Image?

Define Your Brand Identity

Synergize Your Messaging With Cohesive Marketing

Let's explore the aspects of a strong brand image: