Is your brand communicating correctly? Are you leaving a positive, lasting impression?

Your brand is the most critical business asset because it represents how you look to your clients and associates.  Your business card, website, or social media page may be the only visual a prospect has of your business.

Whether you like it or not, how you represent your business in your branding can either excite or thwart your potential clients.

Say, for instance, a prospective client finds your website on Google and sees that the logo is pixelated and stretched out. Worse yet, the background is black, making the text a headache to read. You can be sure they will find another business prospect. By having an old site you communicate that you are an amateur and not committed to keeping up with the times. You could be attracting a client that is only interested in the cheapest rate!

Conversely, having a fresh & modern-looking brand will attract clients that appreciate quality service and are willing to compensate for it.

That first impression has a profound effect on human behaviour. It can make or break their decision to give your product or services a shot.

Consequently, it’s fair to say, your brand in the most important investment you can make for your company.

It’s not just extra fluff to consider buying after your business is a raging success. It is a precursor to that success. Invest in your brand now (among many other things) you will find that it will pay off now and in the years to come.

Here are 5 reasons you should invest in professional branding:

1. You appeal to the best customers

In brand research, you pinpoint who your customers are (personality, demographics, likes and dislikes) then determine how to reel them in using marketing that is specific to their needs and wants. Don’t try to market to everyone. That is a guaranteed fail.

Determine your target audience and you’ll find customers loyal to your brand that don’t need to shop around when everything they want is in front of them. They may even vouch for you, bringing in additional business to you as their connections about your amazing products or services.

2. Stay Competitive

Think about who your biggest competitors are. Chances are they have made a significant investment in their branding. They know it will yield a return on their business and understand the connection between strategic design and more sales. Got competitors with fugly marketing? Gain the upper edge and be the envy of your competition.

3. Save Time and $ on Marketing

When you take the time to develop a unified, strategic design, it makes those marketing campaigns much more effective. Instead of wasting money on multiple failed marketing attempts, nail your next marketing endeavour in one campaign as you appeal to your target audience.

Having a consistent brand brings brand loyalty. The brand becomes recognizable and memorable. In contrast, not having a consistent brand can result in wasted marketing dollars.

4. Look Credible

You’ve got a fantastic product or service. That’s a great start, but it is only the first step on your journey to business success! You also need a brand and marketing strategy that makes you look like an expert to the people you want to do business with. Sure, you can find someone to throw together a $5 cookie-cutter logo. You might be able to get by for a little while. On the other hand, having a well-crafted, custom design from the very beginning will ensure a much smoother pathway to success. A professional brand makes you look like a professional. Do you want to look like a phony or the real deal?

5. More Sales

Imagine you are a real estate agent trying to sell a lovely five-bedroom house with a massive porch overlooking the lake. Your client is excited about the gorgeous view, new appliances and open floorplan. Now imagine trying to sell a modest three-bedroom home built in the ’90s to that same client. It has a boxy layout, used appliances and a view of the neighbour’s yard. Not so much enthusiasm, eh? It’s the same concept as your brand. Having a clean, attractive brand that appeals to your target clients is going to create far more interest than a dull and outdated one.

Think of some of the biggest name companies–Mercedes-Benz, Under Armor, Starbucks—to name a few. Do they sell the best products? Or, are they marking gurus that know precisely how appeal to their consumers, using the right words and the right graphics? We’ll let you decide.