American business magnate Steve Jobs once said: “A brand is simply trust”. His vision for his brand, Apple, was that it should influence people’s lives.
But what exactly is a brand? I believe it is a name with a value, conveying an assurance that a top quality service or product will be delivered to a consumer. A brand builds on its core values and gives prominence to customers’ trust. It ensures that through a great user experience, it will retain customers by gaining their confidence.
In commerce today, brand value is an essential aspect, especially since there is an ample selection of products and services that reaches everyone easily. However, in the race to retain a brand name, we must first prioritise our customers. We must make sure that each product or service is designed while keeping the customer in mind.
Branding a product does not mean that the customer has to splurge money on the product. Rather, it means creating a product that is unique and strategically different. The idea is to stay relevant and connected, using different innovations, with the right timing. To recognise these unique selling techniques, we must first know where our services and company fit into, in the market, and what makes the product unique from the competition.
Some people prefer to go for ordinary brands rather than paying too much for the same item with better features. Needless to say, that extra penny might give us value and satisfaction because of the quality.
Branding is the art of thinking outside the box. As many successful marketers say: “Don’t sell a product, sell a dream.”
- The reader is a communications executive based in Dubai
