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Branding is like your signature.
It should be unique and easily identifiable to your services.
The first step in branding is a
business name. This name may be different from your legal
name. A name used for branding is your "trade name".
It is used for all forms of marketing communication.
Typically a
trade name should be
registered with the state it is being used in. Most regulated
lenders and brokers MUST also register a trade name with the state's
licensing authority.
It may be worthwhile to check and
see if the name can be registered as a
Federal Trade Mark to help
protect the name against use by competing companies.
Part of your branding is defining
your position in the market. This is done with a positioning
statement after you have defined your target demographic.
Example Demographic:
Professional women 25-54 with children. Married or single
with incomes exceeding $75K, urban, suburban, affluent.
Service Positioning Statement:
Affluent females who want peace of mind trustworthy service.
Our team of loan professionals guarantee exceptional trustworthy
service and peace of mind.
Product Personality:
Friendly, trustworthy, expert, professional, success oriented.
Key Benefit: Our
company helps deliver peace of mind while families go through the
process of moving.
Once you have decided who your
clients are and what level of service you are going to deliver, its
time to take your name and position and create your
"Signature"
brand.
Your "Signature" is your name,
symbol or logo and the logotype. It should convey WHAT you
offer and the BENEFIT or positive feelings of your service.
Obviously this takes a lot of thought and also a certain amount of
creative skill to create.
One thing to understand early.
TOO MUCH information will kill your brand meaning. Your
message should be highly focused and speak benefits directly to your
target audience.
With that in mind, the next step
is developing the visual image or logo for your company that
expresses those meanings.
If you go to a design firm for
logos, you’ll
typically only get one logo designer. Also, according to the
Graphic Artists Guild you’ll pay $2,000 to $10,000 for a
corporate
logo at a traditional design firm. YIKES!
So we've made arrangements with specialty logo company
we have direct experience with. Their average prices are from $299 - $799. You'll get multiple
artist and concept submissions to choose from. We've also
negotiated a discount using the following link. $20 off Professional Logo Design
They offer a satisfaction guarantee and typically
turn in concepts within a couple of business days.
Please be aware, the satisfaction guarantee is somewhat rare, so
this is a special advantage compared to most other firms. Once you have your Signature, make sure it is
used consistently to communicate your brand.
Branding Tactics & Tools |
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