The Role of Brand Consistency
Ensuring a cohesive customer experience
Your business may exist in the industry registry and it may manifest in the products and services, but it truly comes alive only in the customer perception of your brand. More than the product & business model, branding is what truly differentiates companies from the competition. And if your brand promise is authentic and consistently delivered through all touchpoints with the audience, you build familiarity, then trust, loyalty, and profit.
In today's world where everyone's attention is bided in countless marketing and sales efforts, brand consistency essentially means to continuously and consistently deliver your brand promise, brand story, and distinctive assets in order to evoke your uniqueness in the mind of customers.
Being consistent is not just common sense. It drives profit
Just consider these statistics: consistent brand presentation across all platforms increases revenue by up to 23% and companies that focus on maintaining brand consistency across all channels have seen an average growth of 33%.
Confusing your audience actually makes you lose money. You can lose a sale or a customer because he doesn’t connect with or recognize you.
Brand consistency…
Builds customer trust and loyalty: a reliable brand always meets customer expectations without hiccups in the buyer journey and without inconsistencies in identification. People are more connected to brands they easily recognize and engage with in the long term. The buying decision has as much to do with shared values and good experience as it does with the product. A loyal customer is more valuable because he is returning and he is also prone to make referrals, sharing their positive experiences with your brand.
Makes your brand recognizable: it distinguishes you from the competition and makes the foundation for an emotional reason to choose your products and services. Brand awareness and brand recognition drive sales. 56% of customers are more likely to purchase from a company they already know and value.
Builds brand authority: customer recognition and identification drive the company into a leading position in the market or industry. If you are truly consistent and relevant, the customers can come to associate a particular product or service only with your brand.
Checklist for brand consistency
Stay true to your brand values: the values that guide your business and that the brand stands for make the core of your brand identity, voice, personality, and messages;
Keep a close eye on the prize: your audience. Target them where they truly are and with what truly interests them, delivering an experience and messages aligned with their values and your promise;
Ensure a consistent customer experience on all services and products: a brand is the sum of people’s experiences with your company, so make sure to engage authentically on all stages of their journey, no matter if it's digital or in-store, direct or via distributors;
Be coherent in brand communication: strive for a consistent voice and image on all channels and media. Your content should always be aligned and match your voice, identity, and personality tapping on that uniqueness that builds perception in the minds of your audience;
Stay true to the brand guidelines that capture your identity: be consistent in design, language, voice and tone, and imagery, so you are perceived by customers as a strong and unique brand, not an inconsistent, forgettable puzzle.
Great brands commit to a cohesive customer experience on all channels and interactions to ensure recognition, trust, and loyalty. Successful companies value and invest time and resources in brand consistency to drive growth and profit.
By Alexandra Florescu