What story does your brand tell? As a company, you may think you are the one who determines how customers view you, but in the reality of social media today, it is often the customer who determines what your brand says about you.
Your brand image reflects the personality of your company or product. It gives the customer a snapshot of what you’re about. It may say that you’re dependable, knowledgeable, approachable, or provide quality service, to name a few. You paint the picture for the customer, but then they are the ones who will use social media to let you know if you got it right.
What can you do to make sure your brand’s image is not only saying what you want, but what your customers think it says as well?
Here are three things to consider when branding your image on social media:
1. Color
Color speaks a language all its own. The color you use will strike a chord with your followers and they will associate that color with your company or brand. Think of the colors some soft drink brands use: Coke is red, Pepsi is blue, and Mountain Dew is green.
A color can signify what you stand for. This is particularly true for the color green and it’s association with green living and environmental concerns. Color Wheel Pro has some excellent information on the meaning of color on their page, See Color Theory in Action. It will give you a good idea on which colors to use depending on your company message and what you are trying to accomplish.
2. Consistency
Be consistent in the use of your brand image. It should be the same throughout all the social media platforms you use. The key is to remain the same in your customers’ eyes, so that no matter where they encounter you online, they will immediately recognize who you are. Your logo and its colors, your mission statement, tag line and even your background colors and images should be standard wherever you can be found.
Remember, the goal is to be identifiable wherever you are viewed. Being consistent will play an important part in grabbing the viewer’s attention.
3. Listening
Be aware of what your customers are saying about you on their own social media sites. You want to be sure your brand image is coming across the way you want it to.
Your customer will connect with you and your brand image on more than an intellectual level. Their first response is often emotional. When they see your brand, you want them to have an immediate and positive connection with you and your product or service. A verbal message is good, but your visual image is a heavy influencer on drawing people in to learn more about you.
Your brand image tells a story of who you are. Your main color should define who you are as well as the emotional feeling or motivation you want to awaken in the customer. Be consistent not only in the color scheme you use, but also in who you present yourself as on your social media sites. And then listen to the response to see that your image is accomplishing what you want.
What are some companies that you think have branded themselves successfully on social media? What is it that makes them stand out?
