Before you create a document, know your brand

“I need a new web site.”
“I need a tag line.”
“I need a press kit.”

Did you come to this web site with a statement like that in mind? We’re happy to take on those marketing projects. But before we start, we always ask, “What is your brand?”

If you can’t answer that, your marketing–like this picture–is upside down. You’re spending your time and money for communication that may not be right for you, may not speak effectively to your audience, may not differentiate you from your competitors.

But don’t worry, we’ll put your marketing right-side-up for you. Then we’ll create what you asked for.

Avoid Upside Down Marketing

Upside down marketing happens when companies create marketing materials without having a solid understanding of their brand. We hear all the time, “I don’t have time to do a bunch of research,” or “I’ve been at this for 10 years, I already know my brand,” and especially, “I don’t have time to do all that branding–I need to increase sales now.”

Great. We agree. If you don’t want to to do research and you already know your brand, we can get started. Let us see your strong brand and we’ll be happy to use it to build an effective marketing piece.

But if you want us to make a brochure or an ad campaign or web site without taking the time to base it on a strong, clear brand, you are actually wasting your time and your money. Creating a brand first, even if it’s a quick branding project, will make your communication project go by faster and it will result in higher sales.

Branded marketing is strong marketing

It’s easy to recognize strong branded marketing communication pieces. Here’s how:

Look at your projects over time

Look at your campaigns over the last year or so. Do all messages have the same “voice”? Do all graphics have a similar look-and-feel? Do they lead the audience to the same conclusion about the quality of your service they should espect? Branded marketing does all of those things.

Next to the competition

Put your communication pieces next to your competitors’ work. Are they similar? Does they lack authentic messages that set you apart? If your stuff looks like your competition’s, you need a stronger brand.

Remove the “sign off”

Look at a random marketing piece. Put your hand over the company name and logo. Then ask someone in your target audience where the ad (or web site or brochure) came from. If they can’t recognize your organization’s identity by looking at the message, the voice, and the design, then the piece was created without a strong brand.

Branded Marketing Gets Results

When marketing is based on a brand foundation the results are strong. The graphic designers and web developers you hire work faster because they understand how to focus their energies. You can make decisions faster because you have empirical information to support your decisions. Your work becomes consistent, therefore more easily remembered, therefore more effective.  Other benefits:

Gets you noticed—and remembered—in the clutter

The media environment is busy. People look at web pages for fractions of seconds. They make buying decisions that quickly, too. With a strong brand, in that short time frame, your customers will get a feel for your quality and values.

Keeps the organization top-of-mind

A strong brand allows customers to recognize your organization the way they recognize a friend. People everywhere want to do business with organizaton

Increases employee retention

A strong brand benefits every area of the organization. People who know the ideals, values, personality, and vision of the organization they’re working for are more apt to be content. Content employees have pride in their work. They sometimes even go above and beyond. And they stay put.

Gives you confidence in decision-making

Client Mei Lu said of our services, “The result of Zoyo’s work has helped every Jobfully team member in prioritizing their work and guiding both the external and internal communications.” That means her employees know how to make choices. Communication projects run smoother and have faster turn-around times. Strong brand = strong marketing productivity.

Finally, our list of marketing services

When we make marketing materials for you, we make them right-side-up. We work with you to define your brand first (if you don’t already have one). Then we refer to the brand when we create the pieces, so you know you’re on the right road. Work we perform includes:

• Logos (of course)

• Tag lines

• Web construction and content

• Press releases and press kits

• Brochures, data sheets, case studies

• Videos

• Blogs and blog schedules

• Speeches and presentations

• Have something else in mind? We’re open to new projects