The Real Cost of Forgettable Branding

A lot of people – probably most people, in fact – think branding is all about standing out, and that’s absolutely true… but they don’t always do it. And if you’ve got forgettable branding, no matter how good it might actually look and how great the design is, it’s worthless – customers just aren’t going to notice you, and they’ll pass you by more often than they’ll get in touch and buy something. With that in mind, keep reading to learn more about the real cost of forgettable branding, so you don’t make those mistakes and can stand out for all the right reasons.

When Your Brand Is Forgettable, People Ignore You

People make swift decisions when it comes to where they’re going to buy something from, and the truth is that if your branding doesn’t say anything they want to hear or catch their attention in any way, they’ve got nothing to help them choose you, so they’ll pick someone else instead. Yes, they might really like your product, they might love your service, but if your business is the same as everyone else’s, they’ll forget about you, and that’s the worst thing that can happen to a business these days. 

You don’t have to be loud and bold and in people’s faces just for the sake of it, but you do have to offer something pretty unique so that the next time someone needs what you’re offering, your name’s the one that pops into their heads because you’re memorable. 

In the end, forgettable branding forces customers to do the work, and they’ll need to search their emails, reread old messages, search their browsing history, and so on, to work out who they bought something from, and most people aren’t going to bother to do that – they’ll just buy elsewhere. 

Forgettable Brands Spend More On Marketing 

You might be worried that something specific and catchy in your marketing is going to be more than your budget can take, and that’s often why business owners stick to more generic ideas – it’s cheaper. But you need to think of this kind of marketing as an investment because if you don’t get it right from the start, it’s going to cost you a lot more later on – more than the cost of good, standout marketing ever would. 

Remember that businesses that have forgettable branding have to work a lot harder to get attention, so they’ll spend more on adverts and social content, they’ll run more promotions, and so on. But a brand with a clear identity doesn’t have to do all that quite as much, and they can use their marketing to make themselves more memorable and trusted, which will lead to more sales down the road, compensating nicely for the cost of the marketing campaign. 

Missed Opportunities Start To Add Up

Something massively important for any business owner to remember is that branding isn’t just there to influence customers – it’s also there to help make good partnerships, press opportunities, collaborations, and anything else that relies on good first impressions. So if your brand feels forgettable, people are going to assume the business is too, and they’re not going to want to work with you or help you. 

Basically, when your design feels flat and generic, it’s much harder for someone to picture you in their publication or website, or making many waves at their event. Still, when your identity is impressive, confident, and ultimately memorable, people are going to assume your business is run the same way. They’ll want to know you more – and tell others about you too. 

And that one assumption could be just the thing that opens doors you’d never get through otherwise. 

Details Matter More Than You Expect

Where a brand can really stand out is in the little details you might not otherwise think too much about. The truth is that a good headline can do a lot of work, and so can the way you answer a phone, or perhaps the material your printed marketing is made from, and so on. Even something simple like using a good business card maker can ensure everything matches up and you’ve got all the details that are going to matter to your customers (and everyone else). 

Clarity Makes Every Decision Easier 

It’s very easy to underestimate just how much branding affects the decisions made inside and outside the business. Still, you’ll often find that when your brand identity isn’t apparent, you’ll have a lot more trouble making decisions about colours, fonts, tone of voice, packaging, website tweaks, and everything else. There’s nothing to really use as a basis for the look you want. 

A clear brand saves hours just by giving a business its own set of guidelines to work with, and not only will everything look good, but your team will be happy to make decisions as well.