Brand insights are the heartbeat of successful brands. The more you know about your brand in the eyes of customers, the more you can tailor your brand strategy to align with what they’re looking for. These brand insights can ultimately elevate your brand to new heights.
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The best way to gather those powerful insights is through consumer market research. This will give you a deep understanding of:
- Customer preferences and needs
- Market trends
- Competitors
- Consumer behavior
In this complete guide, we explore why brand insights matter and discuss four powerful branding insights tips for your business.
Let’s get started!
Why Brand Insight Matters
Business owners often wonder what their customers are really thinking. Well, that’s what brand insights are for. They give you a clear view into the consumer’s mind. Here’s why they’re crucial for your brand’s growth and relevance:
Understand brand health
Think of your brand as a living, breathing entity. Just like checking your pulse, brand insights help you measure your brand’s health. This insight tells you how your brand is perceived, what strengths you can leverage, and areas for improvement. So if you see your brand is perceived as innovative but not approachable, with this insight, you could refine your messaging to be more relatable.
Future preparedness
The only constant in business? Change. But brand insight can give you a sneak peek into future trends and consumer behaviors. Say you discover a growing demand for eco-friendly products in your industry. Armed with this fresh insight, you can focus your strategy and stay ahead of the curve.
Understand consumer behavior
Why did a customer choose your product over the competitor brand’s? Performing brand insight uncovers the mysteries behind consumer choices. It reveals patterns and preferences, helping you tailor your offerings. For instance, if you learn that your key audiences prefer detailed how-to guides, you could shift your content strategy to meet this need.
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Creative inspiration
Stuck in a marketing rut? Brand insight helps you get back on the right track. It fuels innovative ideas and campaigns by revealing what resonates with your target audience. So if you learn that your customers love nostalgic themes you’ve got a fresh angle for your next campaign. You can create content that taps into memories and emotions that drive engagement.
There are many ways and tools for gathering this information. You can send out customer surveys, use social media listening tools, website analytics, or just analyze direct customer feedback. Additionally, integrating a hosted business phone system can provide direct insights from customer interactions, offering valuable feedback on their experiences and preferences.
Read A Simple Guide to Performing a Customer Experience Analysis
4 Powerful Branding Insights Tips for Your Business
Now let’s roll up our sleeves and dive into these four key branding insights tips you should implement:
1. Invest in brand building
Brand insights will only help your brand if you put them to good use. So, create a strong identity for your brand using these brand insights.
Your brand identity is the way your business presents itself to the world. But it should not just align with your company’s values. It should also appeal to your target audience.
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A brand like REI Coop, for instance, opts for messaging that doesn’t just reflect what it sells. It’s also reflective of the themes of adventure that resonate with its target market–outdoor enthusiasts. Just check out the images of people hiking or running on its website that reflect those themes. The brand even opts for designs that incorporate earthy colors that are reminiscent of nature, where these adventures take place:
When implementing your brand insights, you need to ensure consistency. Consistency leads to familiarity, which in turn builds trust.
So, every interaction customers have with your brand should be reflective of your strong brand identity created through these brand insights. You can do this by ensuring all your marketing platforms have the same look and feel that encapsulate who you are. Notice how REI’s Instagram account appearance matches the brand’s website above.
If you don’t have the time to create that many pieces of content to populate your marketing platforms, you can use a generative AI platform. It can assist in generating many creative narratives based on key brand insights with just a few clicks.
Read How AI Is Changing The Way We Predict Consumer Behavior
Customers’ stories
Another option is to share your customers’ stories. They became your customers in the first place because your values align with theirs. That means they’re likely to post stories reflective of these values as well.
Brand building is hard work. It doesn’t end after you’ve come up with a strong identity based on the initial brand insights you gathered. Because people’s preferences and needs change, brand building is also an ongoing process. It takes a deep commitment from marketing professionals to continuously nurture your brand’s essence, voice, and identity based on the evolving preferences of the target market.
But it’s worth it, as it helps ensure your brand remains loved.
2. Encourage your team to embrace brand insight-related challenges
Encourage your team to turn brand insight-related challenges into opportunities. That kind of mindset shift is essential for creating a resilient and innovative workplace that pushes your brand ahead.
For example, if a marketing campaign doesn’t perform as expected, instead of assigning blame, dive into the ‘whys’ and ‘hows.’ Could there have been an insight that wasn’t taken into account?
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On the other hand, when someone finds a unique solution, celebrate it! This kind of approach boosts morale and encourages others to think outside the box. Suppose your team figures out a way to effectively position your newest product offerings in the market. Recognize this win!
Equip your team with the tools they need to tackle challenges head-on. This could mean access to courses, workshops, or simply time to brainstorm and experiment with new tools like Leadpages alternatives to enhance your marketing strategies. Remember, a skilled worker is only as good as their tools–and the same goes for your team.
Show your team that it’s okay to take calculated risks and make mistakes. Share your own challenges and how you’ve tackled them. If the leader openly discusses past failures and lessons learned, it sets a precedent that it’s okay to fail, learn, and grow.
3. Embrace market unpredictability
Your brand should be flexible enough to pivot when necessary. This means having a plan but also being open to changing it based on new information or circumstances. If a new trend suddenly takes your industry by storm, don’t be afraid to adjust your strategies to ride the wave.
To ensure you’re the first to know about new trends, keep your ear to the ground, and listen to your customers, competitors, and target market. Media monitoring software, like Determ, is invaluable here. The tool will allow you to stay updated on public opinion and measure your brand awareness with confidence.
Use unpredictability as an excuse to try new things. Launch small-scale tests to explore different approaches. You could test a new marketing channel, a different product feature, or an unconventional customer service tactic.
Prepare your brand for the ups and downs. This could mean diversifying your product line, building a strong community around your brand, or maintaining a healthy cash reserve. When unexpected challenges arise, your brand will be better equipped to weather the storm.
4. Execute your branding initiatives strategically
Always put your branding initiatives into action in a strategic way.
Start with the end in mind. What exactly do you want to achieve with your branding initiatives? Increase brand awareness? Drive more website traffic? Define SMART goals, so you can track progress and stay focused. SMART goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
By setting SMART goals, you create clear benchmarks for success and ensure that every action taken is aligned with your broader objectives, making your efforts more strategic and results-driven.
Break down each initiative into actionable steps. Assign tasks, set deadlines, and establish how each activity will be measured. If you’re launching a new product line, outline the steps from product development to market launch. Also, include milestones like completing design, production, and creating marketing materials.
Make sure everyone in your team knows their role in executing the plan. Regular check-ins and updates can keep everyone on track and motivated. A sense of ownership and contribution can significantly boost team performance and morale.
Use analytics and feedback to gauge the effectiveness of your initiatives. If something isn’t working as expected, don’t be afraid to tweak your approach. Remember that flexibility is key in the modern business approach.
In Closing
Brand insights are powerful tools. Feedback, analytics, likes, purchases, etc. all contribute to a deeper understanding of your customers. They guide your brand strategy with concrete evidence and actionable steps.
Investing in brand building turns “Oh no!” moments into “Aha!” moments–fostering a resilient and recognizable identity everyone loves. Encouraging your team to tackle difficulties head-on ensures your brand remains adaptable and ready for anything. Accepting the unpredictable helps your brand stay relevant and forward-thinking. And, executing your branding initiatives strategically ensures they drive your business forward.
Brand insights ensure your strategies are effective and your campaigns are exactly what your target audience wants. Now it’s your turn to implement these tips and transform your brand from something good to something unforgettable.
Author bio Nico is the founder of Launch Space. The company works with enterprise SaaS clients, helping them scale lead generation globally across EMEA, APAC, and other regions.
