When people see the Nike swoosh, what makes them think, “Just Buy It!”?
When kids see Mickey Mouse’s ears, what makes them think, “Oh Disneyland!”?
When people see the Apple logo, what makes them think, “Luxury”?
All of these layouts are the effects of brand equity, which are the attachments or perception people have on some particular brand.
What is Brand Equity?
Brand equity describes the level of influence a brand has in the minds of consumers, and the perceived value of using or possessing a brand that is identifiable and well thought of.
This is why your brand needs to be hinged upon a well-structured branding strategy.
Brands like Apple, Nike, Amazon, are well recognized and are at the highest level of their own game.
With serious exertions and planning comes loyalty, and in business, you would need to be branded in other to leverage brand equity.
Returning customers are a significant requirement to today’s business because business owners wouldn’t have to re-examine every step to convince them, and the nice part? They often begin from a little first-time purchase before graduating into bulk purchases, which is characteristic of the consumer-brand loyalty process.
Every company must see the necessity to take a position in building their brand equity.
Let’s explore the 7 secrets (or strategies) to building and sustaining brand equity;
1. Engage With Your Customers
You have to build relationships with them before they can fully trust you. Trust is a crucial tool in today’s otherwise cold world of business.
If you’ve got loyal customers, then selling to them would not be an issue — They’ll even expect your ads!
The relationship with your users helps you to create a perception of belonging and community.
Share your brand’s new and exciting developments, or news and opinions in your space to keep your users enthusiastic and engaged.
2. Invest In Brand Identity Design (or Logo Design)
Am sure without writing the names of most brand logo, many people know which brands the logo belongs to and their name.
Choosing a brand logo may mean that you have to pick the most effective elements; symbols, color(s), and type design, because you want to have some degree of control over what people feel whenever they come across your logo.
Colours like red stands for passion, and blue for trust. So pick carefully or liaise with an expert brand designer or consultant.
3. Listen To Feedback And Adjust Accordingly
Your brand equity is with your customers, you need to feel their pain and make adjustments.
You need to concentrate on them in other to satisfy their needs.
Consumers are trying to find who will provide the worth they desire, so, always create space for improvement and have the habit of meeting your customers’ demands.
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Feedback by Alice Undersky via Dribbble
Feedbacks may come after you have served the customer.
Correct your mistakes and improve on your strong points.
Collecting feedback from clients will facilitate your understanding and the precise feeling they need for your products.
Performing on the feedback you receive appropriately will allow you to retain clients within the future.
4. Be Consistent
Consistency matters a lot because it is one of the key element in building and sustaining brand equity.
You’ve got to always be there for your customers to relinquish them the sensation anytime they consume your products/service.
One of the key strategies is to under-promise and over deliver.
Read Also: 10 Common Branding Mistakes You Must Avoid
5. Give Value
The quality of service you offer to your customers will determine whether or not they will be returning or not.
It’s wise to give your customers a ‘WOW’ experience by exceeding their expectation the primary time they consume your products.
You would like to grasp what makes your customers satisfied and set standards to realize those goals.
It is hard to satisfy all customers but strive to develop a pool of happy clients if you wish to develop brand equity.
6. Target Great Customer Experiences
You have to make wise usage of available resources to deliver the simplest to your customers.
Make your customers have the enthusiasm to come back after buying.
Lukáš Straňák for PLATFORM, via Dribbble.
Customer experience simply means the experience your customers go through when using or consuming your products.
It may even be on the level of communication within which a customer drops a message and he/she expects feedback from you. Your average response time, and propensity to provide a lasting solution would all influence your customers’ experience.
7. Leverage Influential Promotions
Customers tend to trust products when famous celebrities retail them.
It another perspective of achieving equity. It is safe to see it as a fast route to attain customer loyalty and brand equity. However, depending on the type of influencers used, the effects may or may not last long.
Influencers have the facility to either build or tarnish the name of your brand because of their follower base.
Get influencers who have a way of reference to your customers and allow them to assist you with your quest for solid brand equity.
Also Read: How A Brand Ambassador Can Help Grow Your Company
Conclusion
A vital part of building and sustaining brand equity is the ability to ensure that your customers will always want to return to you.
According to a 2021 report published by Statista.com, Apple is the most valuable brand in the world. This would have been impossible without the “extraordinary” loyalty of its users.
Loyal customers are more willing to stay around, spend more, and even more likely to become the strongest promoters of your brand on their social channels and among family and friends.
By investing in your logo design, understanding what makes your customers tick, engaging with them, and promoting their tweets and posts on your own social media channels, you’ll be ready to create a familiarity with your users, which in turn promotes brand equity.
In this cold and practical world, people are always attempting to find a way of human interaction and emotion.
Invest in your users in an exceedingly personal way, gain their trust by keeping your promises and watch your base of loyal customers grow.