the first in a series of e-books dealing with the process of branding and market presence, this will particularly look at the whole process for small and start-up businesses

2. introduction .......................................................3
then and now .....................................................5
more than just a motto .......................................6
the process .........................................................9
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3. It is a truism to say that the business world has changed massively over the
past 30 years. Every business has had to stock of the changes that have taken
place. In the case of marketing old basic forms of marketing, although they still
have their place, their function, do not have the same importance or the same
function as they had decades ago. Our faith is far less in the value of newspa-
per and magazine adverts – it is, however, placed in online and other forms of
digital marketing.
In the matter of branding it is no different. It is certainly true that the notion of a
brand in years past was basically the idea of a logo, a brand name, perhaps
a token slogan. In these days it is far more. I introduced the ideas of modern
branding as being a question of dimensions – all four, the physical ones and
time – see my blog article
the dimensions of a brand
For a little on the history A brand is the identity of a specific product, service, or business. A
and the basics of brands brand can take many forms, including a name, sign, symbol, color
and branding see: combination or slogan. The word brand began simply as a way to
tell one person's cattle from another by means of a hot iron stamp.
A legally protected brand name is called a trademark. The word
brand has continued to evolve to encompass identity - it affects
the personality of a product, company or service.
A concept brand is a brand that is associated with an abstract
concept, like breast cancer awareness or environmentalism, rather
than a specific product, service, or business. A commodity brand is
a brand associated with a commodity. Got milk? is an example of
a commodity brand.
In the automotive industry, brands were originally called marques,
and marque is still often used as a synonym for brand in reference
to motor vehicles.

4. “Brand is the personality that identifies a product, service
or company (name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or
combination of them) and how it relates to key constitu-
encies: Customers, Staff, Partners, Investors etc.
Some people distinguish the psychological aspect, brand
associations like thoughts, feelings, perceptions, images,
experiences, beliefs, attitudes, and so on that become
linked to the brand, of a brand from the experiential
aspect.
The experiential aspect consists of the sum of all points
of contact with the brand and is known as the brand ex-
perience. The psychological aspect, sometimes referred
to as the brand image, is a symbolic construct created
within the minds of people, consisting of all the informa-
tion and expectations associated with a product, service
or the company(ies) providing them.
wikipedia
For a variety of basics on branding take a look at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brand_management
http://www.bizhelp24.com/marketing/what-is-branding.html
http://www.designcouncil.org.uk/Documents/Documents/Publications/Power_of_
branding.pdf
http://www.esrc.ac.uk/funding-and-guidance/tools-and-resources/impact-toolkit/
tools/branding/index.aspx

5. Branding has gone beyond a few pieces of design, a strapline or tagline, a slogan, the
name and perhaps the basic but important elements of associated advertising and
word of mouth. The business world is a lot more involved than that of the days of papers,
magazines, posters, radio and then TV. Media come at us every moment of the day.
Because of that deluge we are so much more choosey about what we look at, what we
engage with and so we have to be more inventive, more varied in our overall marketing
activity. As a consequence of all of this the very idea of branding has been extended by
the very nature of the market itself and, of course, all of those present within it.
Far from just being an image or a name burnt or etched into a product branding has
a whole new set of concepts and practices woven in. We now have notions of brand
awareness, brand parity, brand identity, brand image and many more.
As the graphic above shows, we do things
a little differently now. Our current attitude marketo.com
to branding is the same.

6. The branding of the 21st century is a case
of an ongoing relationship, something
which develops as an interaction between
company and market, between company
and customer. Successful branding now
takes serious note of everything catch-
ing the eye, ear and general attention
of those within the fullness of the mar-
ketplace. It also takes note of time, that
it moves on, sometimes at a real pace.
A marque or a brand name was simply
that at one time. It was a title, perhaps
something burned into an object linking it
directly to those who made it. Sometimes
there was a hint of a description, a motto
now what we would call a tagline or a stra-
pline, following on from the world of enter-
tainment. It is no longer simply image and
name, but includes everything that can be
associated, on many occasions turning the
entirety of a brand into an ongoing story.
In other words it is just that - a story de-
veloping over time alongside its physical
presence, depth, width, height – here you
can continue the metaphor for yourselves.
Thus, the product or service has and continues to have a particu-
lar image. It is designed. It has an appearance. This visual form
includes not only the design of the product, everything surround-
ing it, its own direct décor and that of the places where it is pre-
sented, and everything visual associated with it. For success in
terms of branding this image or design has to have a place, it has
to have associations placing it within the mainstream or another
clearly recognised stream of current life (even if it harks back to
the past, a revival), or places itself outside of all making it its own
stream or icon.

7. Similarly in terms of the message or messages associated
with it. The language and imagery of anything attached
to our item has to help to continue to paint the picture re-
quired and to help in telling the story as a whole. Hence,
the language has to have a general pitch helping to fill
out what is – a pitch, in effect. ‘Message’ comes in vari-
ous forms – brand name, motto, tags, taglines, straplines,
and beyond into all that is descriptive or used in the
continuing pitch. The language has to have a particular
vocabulary with its own social and cultural associations in
the same way as the visual element.
The other senses have to be treated as well. The con-
tinued proliferation of music in association with the
marketplace means that use can but does not have
to be made of it. We all associate certain pieces of
music with things that we buy or consume. A voice, a
sound, these can all add to or even subtract from the
branding process. Yes, branding is a process! It can
also involve something which evolves for all of the
senses.

8. http://www.andrewsabatier.com/theory/02-models/anatomy_of_a_brand_identity.html
In times past the average business had no
chance of TV, film, video or anything of the
sort. Now, with our access to the web and
to computers each is easily reachable. It
has been said many times that given cur-
rent technology it is all too often the case
that we skip through the adverts on TV. At
the same time we are quite happy to put
up with them on youtube. Indeed, we often
search them out and are happy enough to
watch the video associated with websites.
Moving image speaks volumes by being
able to tell more of a story. It is thus a major
element of the modern branding process.

9. Branding is a process. Branding is also an effect of a pro-
cess. Branding should be an aim of the marketing process.
Marketing is more than the simple tasks – what is being sold,
where it is being sold, for how much, when it is available. It is
a whole process of engagement with your market. In a simi-
lar way branding and marketing come together …
You set the scene.
You give it a décor.
You place it and give it suitable associations.
You add an appropriate design, a form, an image.
You add a name, a message and a background text.
You give it depth, substance, to go with a height or promi-
nence, a breadth, all giving it a visibility.
The other relevant senses are also treated – a voice, a mu-
sic, even feel and aroma.
Everything is displayed in suitable places and at suitable
times, all given a proper schedule, and given the proper
platforms.
In all what you aim to achieve is a recognisable presence.
To achieve this takes effort and imagination, but it begins
with thought and discussion.

10. contact us
Get in touch if you have any ques- 08432895485
tions or would like a general chat
about any of the issues mentioned
or discussed in any of our e- 01142496426
books. We are more than happy
to offer a free initial consultation.
check out the website and our other online
presence
www.f4mmedia.co.uk (a new website is being
created as we speak)
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