Sales vs. Branding: Key To Business Longevity

As a business owner, it’s vital to find a balance between building brand awareness and generating sales. Both are equally important to ensuring business success and must work hand in hand to build a lasting enterprise.

You see, there’s a difference between a profitable company and a brand name. The latter has better longevity prospects regardless of economic climate, because it’s centered on building a legacy that goes beyond short-term profits. Here’s why you should focus on both aspects if you want to create a “forever company.”

The Importance of Branding Your Business

At the end of the day, we all support brands that make us feel good about something, brands that have values we can identify with. One should get a certain satisfaction from supporting a brand aside from the value provided by the product or service.

That’s why it’s so easy to remember and support brands like Nescafe, McDonalds and Coca-Cola. Over the years, these companies have created a relationship with consumers, that’s based on more than just the quality of their products. They’ve established trust by consistently providing positive experiences for consumers over long periods of time.

It’s the legacy of these brands that grant them such longevity. Instead of focusing on short-term gain, they’ve been consistently building brand loyalty to ensure long-term survival.

You too can build a brand like this, granted you have a long-term vision that involves balancing short term profits with proper branding.

How to Brand Your Company

The key to gaining lifelong customers that are brand loyal is by providing an experience. This means your marketing strategy should be about more than just getting conversions; it should trigger an emotional response that will get your prospects talking about, and following your brand.

Think about it; consumers are inundated with marketing messages every day and it’s coming from all directions. From social media ads to billboards and print marketing, brands need to find a way to stand out now more than ever. The best way to do this is to be smart about the way you communicate about your brand.

Instead of incessantly trying to sell something, try a different approach. People respond well to brands that make them feel good or cared for and we’re all attracted to a cause, an organization with values that we can get behind.

The key to connecting with your audience is to be authentic and show that you know what you’re talking about. After all, there’s nothing new under the sun and consumers can get the same product you’re offering from a competitor at any time. The best way to set yourself apart is to make your brand the differentiating factor between you and your competitors.

Brands like Levi’s, BMW and Apple don’t specifically tell people to buy their products. They only show people the benefits of associating with their brand, and buying the products implies being a part of that brand.

This requires a creative combination of visually appealing and emotionally engaging content that results in an immersive experience. Focus the viewer’s attention on the experience that comes with buying into your brand and the benefits that they stand to gain. Touch on points such as the positive impact that your product will have on their lifestyle. Perhaps it’ll save them time so they can enjoy more precious moments with loved ones, or it’ll confer them with a higher societal status.

Focusing on these aspects of brand marketing will help you to develop a brand image that will carry your business forward for generations to come.

What about Sales?

Of course, the allure of quick profits is always tempting. But, you don’t want to be one of those brands that are here today, gone tomorrow, right? As we mentioned the key to business longevity is to run your company in a way that helps you build lifelong relationships with your clients while gaining positive cash flow.

Whatever you do, never base your marketing endeavors on getting “15 minutes of fame”. If you do that, you’ll always find yourself competing with the latest gimmick. Instead, play the long game and put your money into strategies that will help you build a company that will last for centuries.

If you don’t know where to start, look into hiring a competent digital marketing firm like Keen (Malta). These guys have a proven track record when it comes to helping businesses to set a solid foundation that’ll help them to build a lasting legacy.