What makes a company a brand?

Kya hai in brands ki growth ka raaz? (What is the secret of growth of these brands?) What is the secret of their energy.. I mean their growth? Let’s first see, what is a Company?

An organization which produces products or gives services is a Company.

And what is a Brand? Brand is an image or an identity of that business or the company. It is something that is built through consumer perceptions and expectations. 

“Your brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room” as said by Jeff Bezoz , the founder of Amazon.

It is not a game of a few months. It takes years and years for a company to become a brand, to maintain the quality, to give out the best to their customers, to keep their employees happy. 

The Vision of a company which depends on its core values, defines its future. This vision supports the business strategy and aligns it with the goals. It is a driving force of the business. 

Let’s look at some of the best vision statements-

• Tata Power– Empower a billion lives through sustainable, affordable and innovative energy solutions.
• Google– To provide access to the world’s information in one click.
• Facebook– Connect with friends and the world around you on Facebook.
• TED– Spread ideas.
• Nike- Bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete. 

Amazing vision statements and look at their growth now? Fascinating, isn’t it ? Let me know some of the vision statements that inspire you in the comment section.

The Vision statements surely motivates the company to do what it aspires to do and serve. But what else goes in the making of a brand? It is, undoubtedly- Marketing.

To understand marketing better, let’s understand the laws of Marketing. Yes, like any other scientific term , marketing also has laws which makes it a science. Marketing is a science of understanding the market, consumer behavior and their needs. 

Laws of Marketing

Example– When the whole world was in dire need of a vaccine for Covid19 , Many companies from all over the world developed vaccines, like Covaxin by Bharat Biotech, AstraZeneca vaccine by Oxford, Pfizer by BioNTech etc. The message about getting vaccinated is all clear and is reaching all the people at the very right time. The vaccine will lower the chances of getting hospitalized and help save people’s lives by developing immunity. 

With this, I just want to put it out here.. If you are from India, the government is starting with a vaccination drive for all the people above the age of 18 from 1st May 2021. So, go get vaccinated. In India we have two vaccines available – Covishield and Covaccine. Both are very safe. Please go and get yourself vaccinated. And still, keep wearing masks and stay safe.

India is going through a tough time because of Covid 19 pandemic. If anybody reading this, would like to help, I am sharing a link here. Please if you can, donate and help India fight this virus. 

Link- https://hemkuntfoundation.com/donate-now/  Thank you.

So, coming back to marketing, it starts before the product is created.

• Marketing stays when you are selling the product and the job doesn’t end there, it stays even after the customer has purchased a product or service from you- For example, Amazon is one of the leading companies of the world who takes good care of its customers and its customer service has a very clear purpose – to prevent, solve problems and delight the customers. No wonder, the founder and CEO of Amazon, Jeff Bezos is the richest person in the world. He knows how to keep his consumers happy.

• Building trust with the target audience is very important for marketing– You have to have the convincing power within you to be able to convert the target audience into customers. Once you generate the trust, it will be easier to sell the product. But that doesn’t mean neglect the quality. The quality must not get hampered. The quality and service is something that builds the trust. And marketing should never become more important than the product. They say, the customer is the king of the market. Because, there is no business that can do without customers. 

Talking about the trust, there is a company who let’s their customers know where their fruits and veggies are coming from and promotes utmost transparency to maintain a strong and lasting relationship with their customers. 

Sahyadri Farms is a Farmer Producer Company established under the leadership of Mr. Vilas Shinde. The food they sell can be traced back to the farm where it was grown and how it was produced by scanning the QR code on it’s product. With this trace-ability system ,Sahyadri Farms assures that its food is 100% safe. 

• Word of mouth, is an important tool which has been helping many businesses– If a customer is happy with the product, chances are he or she will recommend the product further to family and friends bringing in more customers for the business. 92% of customers trust a  recommendation from friends and family more than any other form of marketing. 

Like, if you watch any new series on Netflix or Amazon Prime, you recommend it further to your friends and family. This is how the business grows. 

By the way, this is how a group of 7 women started a small business of selling Papads in Mumbai in the late 1950s. Lijjat Papad is a household brand now adding a crunch to Indian meals. It sells over 4 billion papads annually. Remember the ad? karram kurram ..kurram karram 

• Being the best in the niche– When there are so many companies in the market, Of Course there is going to be competition. Marketing helps the company to build strategies and stand out in the crowd as a brand. Marketing becomes easier when you choose a category, when you choose your niche. You don’t have to be the best, you can simply be the only one in the market in your category by involving a specific target audience with a specialized offering. That way you will have less or no competition. Tesla by Elon Musk is a great example of this. 

Women face innumerable problems and hygiene is certainly one of the biggest of them all. PeeSafe is one such Indian company who has come with products for women hygiene which is their niche. It has products such as Toilet seat sanitizer spray which can be used whenever you have to use public washrooms. It also has other products like Feminine Cramp Relief Roll which is first of this kind in the Indian market, female condoms named DOMINA, menstrual cups which is a great alternative for sanitary napkins and helps reduce waste, etc. Multiple PeeSafe products are free from animal cruelty and vegan which also makes it unique.

• The purpose of Marketing is to build a brand and capture a position in the minds of the customer– For example, Fevicol is a brand of adhesives owned by Indian Company Pidilite Industries Limited. The brand has captured the mind of the customers and now Fevicol has become a household name that is today synonymous with adhesives. Dettol, Bisleri, and Colgate are some more examples.

These are some of the laws of marketing which prove beneficial for the growth of the company.

Advertising, Copywriting and Sales are some of the components of marketing. These components further help to make marketing smooth. It attracts more customers and convinces them to buy the product. 

I came across a great example of advertising recently. A friend of mine sent me a link to fill up a survey by MyGlamm Brand which offered me a free lipstick. MyGlamm is a Makeup Brand and an online-offline beauty store in India. At first I thought, it was like any other forwarded scams that we usually get on WhatsApp. But my friend really received her free lipstick. That’s when I thought, I should give it a try. I filled up the survey, put my favorite shade of lipstick in the cart and checked out. I only had to pay for the shipping and that’s it. Three days later I received my free lipstick. Yeyy… Women love free makeup gifts. Hehe.. 

Well, This is how they did their marketing, got their surveys filled up and increased the number of buyers by asking to share the survey link to more friends. Yes I got more free stuff by sharing the link with more people. If you too want to get a free lipstick, fill up the survey (and this is how I am marketing haha). Click here to fill the survey.

Personal branding

Personal branding is how you promote yourself. It is a unique combination of your values, experiences and skills and differentiates you from the competition. A strong personal brand has the power to build trust with the potential customers. People trust people and you are the most important selling point of your product or service. 

Gary Vaynerchuk is a great example of a personal brand, best known as the founder and chairman of VaynerX and its subsidiary, VaynerMedia. He is one such entrepreneur giving out quality to people and influencing through his speeches. 

Terence Lewis Dance Institute is one of the examples of Personal Branding.

There are many other personal brands who have made it big. 

Looking at all these companies that we discussed, we can say that they have made their unique place in the market. They know their niche, they have earned the trust of their customers, they keep giving quality, they know how to do the marketing. They know their ABCs very well. These are not simply the names now, they are big brands giving the customers what they need and filling the gaps in the market. 

To sum up, this is what makes a company a brand-

• The vision supports the business strategy and aligns you with the goals. 
• Marketing is a science of understanding the market, consumer behavior and their needs. 
• Marketing starts before the product is created, stays when you are selling and it stays even after the customer has purchased a product or service from you. 
• The Right message has to hit the right person at the right time.
• The product will start selling itself with right targeting.
• Trust helps to convert the target audience into customers.
• Marketing should never become more important than the product
• Word of Mouth is a great marketing tool.
• You don’t have to be the best, you can simply be the only one.
• A strong personal brand has the power to build trust with the potential customers.

That’s it for now.

Hope you like reading this article and hope I could provide you with some good information about marketing and branding. If you happen to make your vision statement and if you would like to share it with me, you can mail it to me. 

Also, I would love to have your feedback. 

Let’s get up and start building our Brands and serve humanity in our own unique ways.