You have an existing brand in place consisting of a well-reviewed product, smooth checkout experience, and aesthetically pleasing website. Even with all of this, you have noticed a need in the market and are ready to roll out a new brand to fill that gap.
With an existing and thriving brand already in place, it can seem like (and even be) a daunting process to begin developing and implementing a new brand to present to new customers. Although it can seem like a large undertaking, launching a new brand doesn’t have to be as overwhelming as it seems. With these 10 rather simple steps, you will be able to create a digestible and actionable plan for executing a successful brand launch.
Find your purpose (or better yet, the why)
Before diving into your brand launch, you should know the purpose of your brand. The purpose is the “why” behind the brand you are launching and will provide the foundation for your brand’s vision and marketing strategies.
Know your vision
Once you have a clear understanding of what your purpose is, you should create a vision that encompasses your brand’s values and outlines marketing strategies that will be used to convey your brand’s values.
Understand your brand’s values
Before going to work on your marketing/branding strategies it is important to know your brand’s values and how they align with your brand’s overall purpose. When your brand’s values and purpose are properly aligned, you will have a better understanding of what the end product of your brand will look like as well as a “checks and balances” system to measure marketing strategies against.
What is your brand going to do
You know what your brand’s purpose is and the values that drive your purpose. Next, it is important to make sure you have identified the need that your brand is meeting. Is your brand catering to a niche group? Are you providing a needed service? Are you leveraging a product that services a need? It is important that you are creating branding strategies that clearly define what exactly it is that your brand is going to do.
Know how your brand will be positioned
An effective brand strategy will map out how you want your target audience to think of your brand and how you will leverage what makes your brand different.
Identify your target audience
Knowing your target audience is key to executing a new brand launch. Study where your customer’s attention is, what their values are, how they spend their time, how they interact with brands, what types of content they engage with, etc. All of these factors will help you develop a base for what your new product/service’s brand will look like and help you craft an engaging brand that your customers want to interact with.
Develop your brand’s personality
When launching your new brand make sure your brand’s personality and tone are clear. Variables like charity partnerships, volunteer initiatives, your brand’s values, or your overall brand story are all important characteristics that make you unique and shape your brand’s personality.
Consistent visual identity and messaging
After identifying your brand’s personality it is important to develop a visual identity and messaging that attests to your brand’s tone and personality. Whether it’s content on your social media pages, copy on product packages, or messaging on your website, you should make sure your visual identity and messaging are consistent. Before rolling out your new band you should comb through all of your customer’s touch points to ensure they are receiving consistent messaging in all areas.
Set clear goals
To monitor the success of your new brand launch, you will want to put metrics in place that will provide benchmarks for your brand. This will help define clear goals for your team and keep everyone on the same page. These benchmarks can change as your brand initiatives evolve, but should continue to be clearly defined.
Build your community to last
To ensure a successful brand launch, it is important to map out tactics you will use to continue generating buzz around your brand long after it has launched. These can be PR initiatives, contests, social media campaigns, etc. Continuing the buzz around your brand will be vital to staying relevant to your customers and maintaining your brand’s longevity.
Randy Stocklin is CEO and Co-Founder of Readers.com
Very useful set of pointers to keep in mind when launching a brand.. Good read!
Thanks for the feedback! Please let me know if I can be helpful in any way.
Thanks Randy!