Having a brand image is not a “have or have not” proposition. Everyone has one. The problem is that you might have more than one brand image, depending on whom you ask. You know yourself, but depending on whom you talk to, others may think you’re something completely different. That’s when a brand image company can help. You need to consider hiring a brand image company that identifies your most powerful brand image and then works to make it your only brand image. The phrase “brand image” gained notoriety when sales patterns began to show that feelings and visuals associated with brands were powerful motivators to purchase products. It isn’t just products that consumers buy. It’s their associated personalities and values.

People like people who are like them and value the things they value. The same goes for brands. People will buy products whose brands represent things they value and like, whether it’s fun, power, money, intelligence or numerous other qualities. Sometimes, a brand can be powerfully focused when it’s associated with an actual person who has the same type of attributes with which a company is trying to brand a product, such as, for instance, Chunky Soup and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb: hearty, strong and reliable.

Great brand images are instant, positive and unique among competitors. Brand images can be reinforced through such vehicles as packaging, ads, promotions, customer service and word-of-mouth.

Good brand images are easy to see. Volvo is a good one. Immediately you think “safety.” That’s a brand image. A weak brand image, on the other hand, elicits a slower and less certain reaction. What does GM stand for? Who knows? But GM has a few strong sub-brands. Everyone knows what a Corvette is about…HIGH-SPEED FUN!

To measure how strong your brand is copy and paste: (http://brandidentityguru.com/bightml/brandmasterpiece.html). Then click "Take the brand strength test". This is a short survey that measures the strength of any company's brand. It's a great tool to see where you are today.

Scott White is President of Brand Identity Guru (http://www.brandidentityguru.com), a leading brand consulting and market research firm located in Easton, Massachusetts, USA, near Boston. Brand Identity Guru specializes in creating corporate and product brands that increase sales, market share, customer loyalty, and brand valuation.

Over the course of his 15-year branding career, Scott White has worked in a wide variety of industries: high-tech, manufacturing, computer hardware and software, telecommunications, banking, restaurants, fashion, healthcare, Internet, retail, and service businesses, as well as numerous non-profit organizations. Brand Identity Guru clients include: Sun Life Financial, Coca Cola, HP, Sun, Nordstrom, American Federal Mortgage, Simon (America’s largest shopping mall manager) and many others, including numerous emerging growth companies.

Scott White is a very enthusiastic speaker and has the gift of being able to explain the principles of branding in a compelling and entertaining manner so that people at all levels can understand.

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