With millions of brands throughout the world coming and going, what sets apart brands like Google and Lego from Atari and Circuit City? How could Lego – basically a multicolored plastic manufacturer – end up on Forbes ‘Most Valuable Brands’ list?
Lego has gone to great lengths in building and defending their brand identity. The toy company filed lawsuits against a number of copycat brands. In fact, they even had a page on their website detailing a case against a Chinese imitation company. The article is complete with photos of the first bulldozed, and then machine crushed copy products.
This was all done to protect their reputation of quality. As Lego has made clear, your brand identity is one of the fundamental building blocks of your business.
Here are 57 ways to build your own impressive brand:
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Think of your brand as a real person with a personality.
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Pay attention to the comments and complaints of customers.
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Launch projects and services on time.
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Keep your mind open to new products and services to offer.
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Focus on building a relationship with customers, not just the next sale.
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Ignore the critics.
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If you haven’t selected a brand name yet, consider which web domains are available.
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Aim to make your business better today than it was yesterday.
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Innovate with the ever-changing needs of your target audience.
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Reply to each comment and post by users to your brand’s social media page, even if it takes a while.
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Aim to education your target audience so they can make the right purchase decision.
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Ensure your business website is user-friendly.
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Define your buyer personas.
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Find the right investors.
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Determine what is driving your brand.
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Keep yourself motivated with inspiring images.
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Address issues head on.
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Network in your industry – and out.
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Don’t be a spammer, use qualified email lists for email marketing.
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Give outstanding customer service.
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Make lists.
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Blog regularly or hire a marketer and occasionally check prior posts for bugs.
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Attend free workshops and meet-ups.
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Roll with the punches.
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Put a lot of thought into your brand logo.
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Establish a budget and stick to it.
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Invest in learning new methods in your industry.
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If you find bad reviews about your brand, reply to them publicly and offer a solution.
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Leverage what makes your brand unique from the others.
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Keep your design and voice consistent.
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Employ continuous improvement methods like growth-driven design.
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Avoid mimicking big brands.
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Organize your leads and note special things about them such as hobbies.
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Put everything in a calendar.
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Do your groundwork, don’t just “wing” presentations or meetings.
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Have confidence in your brand.
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Don’t badmouth your competition.
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Stop making cold calls, use inbound marketing to attract leads.
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Whatever product or service you offer, maintain it’s quality.
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Mention your business during most social interactions.
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Keep reinvesting profits back into your business.
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Welcome positive employees and partners, sever ties with quarrelsome ones.
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Use fool-proof contracts.
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Own up to mistakes.
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When you’re feeling discouraged, read the uphill climbs of self-starters like Walt Disney.
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Offer discounts but don’t sell your brand short.
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Never let your ego get in the way.
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Personalize to your target audience whenever possible. Build an brand identity to reach your target audience
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Don’t create shoddy content just to get it on the web,
make quality a priority. -
Be on time to meetings.
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Triple check for grammatical errors on everything.
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Get your website ranking higher in Google with search engine optimization.
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Don’t be afraid to take a stand on something – just make sure it’s the right one.
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Encourage your employees.
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Choose a web developer to design your website focused on conversion.
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Keep updated with new marketing trends.
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Listen to advice, but ultimately you know your brand best.
Did we miss one? Clue us in with a comment below!
