5 STRATEGIC STEPS TO BECOME A VALUABLE BRAND IN YOUR LOCALITY

A VALUABLE BRAND IS SOMEONE’S REPUTATION. Simply put, a BRAND is a distinct reputation. Wikipedia defines a brand as a name, term, design, symbol, or any other features that identify one seller’s goods or services as distinct (different) from those of other sellers. This means that anything or activities that are done to make a particular self, business, or lifestyle different from competitors is known as branding. These efforts are meant to be deliberate and strategic and enjoy a fair share of (brand) equity in a locality. This is why it is important to look at the strategic steps you can take in order to become a valuable brand in your locality.

“Brand” is a common term used in the business world. There are hardly any business activities without a touch of branding. Brands are mostly used in business, advertising, and marketing for different specific reasons, – creating values such as brand equity and product and service differentiation. They are created to resonate with the strategic personality of a product, company or service in order to create a lasting impression in the minds of clients and customers alike.

The founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, reiterated that “brand is what other people say about you (your business) when you are not in the room.”

From the local’s perspective, however, whatever business name, the term (price reduction, benefits, promise, etc.), logo colours, product design, and/or features that will make one different from another person is branding. The efforts put together are what make the person a brand.

See also various examples of the world’s most powerful and influential brands.

Whether you are operating locally or globally, a brand is still a brand. The most important thing is the problem-solving mechanism or ideology, which is the sole factor for local and global recognition. This serves as an inspiration for you to become a brand in your local area and scale into global repute.

Notwithstanding the global brands to local business brands, there are always mutual benefits. The flaws of most global brands in reaching some local communities and the variance in the price system to accommodate all and sundry are welcome inspirations for brands in various localities to bask in credible economic contributions to the region.

Why Should Local Brands Have a Fair Share of Importance?

Local brands have a profound effect on the environment. This has a strong influence on customers’ willingness to purchase products or services and the price level they are willing to consider. The interpretation is that your brand has a strong comparative advantage in your locality, which credits your brand with utmost importance. Examples of local brands in Nigeria include Jumia (an online shopping arena), Qservers Network Limited, Dangote Company, etc.

The ultimate goal of a brand, notwithstanding, is to be effective, gain customers’ recognition and be remembered. If your brand does not meet the aforementioned criteria, it will be difficult for you to gain ground in your locality or global community. What strategic steps should you take to become a valuable brand in your locality?

STEPS TO TAKE TO BECOME A VALUABLE BRAND?

1. IMAGE-MAKING

What image do you want to create? And what image are you creating?

Creating an overall positive image is a fundamental step to the brand’s acceptance and approval. It effectively creates an impression in the minds of your customers and widens your market value. Brand awareness, creating local excitement and building credibility in social issues, vis-à-vis corporate practices are the veritable ways to start.

Always strive to create a mental image of how you want to be perceived in the minds of your local customers. Then make it intentional so that customers can easily understand your business brand.

2. FOCUS

What’s the focus of your brand?

“Brand” does not just evolve but is thoroughly created. Likewise, it is worked upon and designed to address a focused (single) societal problem or need. Once a brand is successful in creating a focused image in a locality, the outcome is unimaginable. More so, your business becomes a valuable brand in your locality.

3. INTEGRITY

What’s the trust gauge saying?

Local brand is limited to a confined group of customers. This, therefore, entails that what is worth the energy and time at all is worth doing with unwavering integrity. Hence, let your integrity speak the language that will complement your efforts.

4. CONSISTENCY

How stable are you?

There would be times when all well-planned marketing and branding strategies will prove abortive, resulting in loss and subsequent crash-out. Consistency is all that matters in such a period. Building a focused, image-making brand with astute integrity needs consistency to be formidable. The law of consistency attracts improvement and innovation.

5. PRAYERS

How often do you pray?

No matter the efforts concerted to build and sustain a local business brand prayers are most needed. As vague as it may sound, in the business world, prayers are the unique feature that sustains the existence of a business.

Every human mind is constantly unstable. God, creatively, wired human minds to respond differently to things at different psychological levels. This is the reason why human psychology is considered in marketing and branding. Hence, remember that whatever efforts cannot do, prayers can.

CONCLUSION

Become a valuable brand that develops localities

There is every need for you to become a valuable brand that develops your locality. Whether building a world-class brand or reputation, starting to look inward can change your local setting. Two metrics should be considered in this way – what is fast selling and what the people need.

In today’s business world, local brands are no longer ill-treated as against foreign brands. They autonomously co-exist and maintain a fair share of customer base and economic values within every locality.

The competition is growing and many local brands now have a voice on the global scene. Investors and customers are steadily appreciating the efforts of local brands.

With a strategic approach, global mindset, problem-solving techniques, and adoption of practical, realistic steps, local brands can sustain locality development.

RESOURCES

• Ten Qualities Of World-Class Brands
• 7 Steps to Create Your Local Branding Strategy to Get More Traffic
• What is a Local Brand: Advantages and Tips
• ​3 Ways to Build a Solid Brand Reputation With Social Media