10 ways to boost the value of your brand

Last week’s Interbrand report ranking the world’s most valuable brands may have been overshadowed by the death of the co-founder of one of the elite, Apple’s Steve Jobs, but it nevertheless provides food for thought for start-ups.

The report reveals Coke’s brand value rose 2% to $US71.8 billion in 2011, while IBM came in second with a brand value of $US69.9 billion.

Microsoft, Google and GE rounded out the top five, while Apple was in eighth place with a brand value of $33.4 billion.

So what can you do to boost the value of your own business’ brand? We can’t promise that you will be worth $70 billion any time soon, but these tips should help you along the way.

1. Recognise the value of your brand

The first step in increasing the value of your brand is to recognise its importance. Be aware that pretty much every decision you make, from the logo you choose to the products you sell to your website design, forms your brand in the mind of customers.

“The value creator for your business is its brand,” says Siimon Reynolds, start-up investor and founder of ad agency group Photon.

“It sets you aside from your competition, allows you to charge more and creates a desire among consumers to get your product, whatever the cost.”

2. Set out your beliefs

What does your business stand for? Not sure? If so, you don’t have a brand. You barely have a business, to be frank.

“You need three things – understanding why you’re here, what you’re passionate about and what your beliefs are,” says branding specialist Michel Hogan.

“Over time, you will build a brand. But the way you behave as a business depends on having a strong sense of where you want to go and the values you want it to have.”

3. Be consistent

A striking feature of the world’s most valuable brands is their consistency. You don’t see Coca-Cola or Apple radically change the way they present themselves to the world. You need to do the same.”

“You can’t be chopping and changing when it comes to your brand,” states Reynolds.

“Yes, be flexible. Yes, be tactical with your advertising. But the best brands speak to you in the same way, consistently. You know where you stand with them.”

4. Stay relevant

Whether it’s Apple, IBM, Google or Microsoft, it’s clear that tech companies have got a stranglehold among the most sought-after reputations in the world.

Part of this is down to the fact that they are relevant to the way people live their lives now. They have a freshness that your business also needs to capture.

“A brand isn’t about hanging your logo everywhere, it’s about being relevant to society,” says Reynolds.

“The sands shift constantly in tech, so it’s easier to stay relevant. But it can work both ways – look what has happened to Yahoo.”

5. Keep it simple

Your business model may be quite a simple one. You sell t-shirts. You’re an accountant. You develop app games.

Alternatively, you make have quite a complex proposition. Whatever you do, don’t try to over-explain this in your brand.

“Branding needs to be very broad brushstrokes,” says Reynolds. “When it all gets too complex, the memorability of the business goes down.”