Page 9 - KI Insights July 2017

Marketing Update

BRANDING

By Brittani Ferguson

Over the past few months, Ken- direct marketing campaigns and a timeless connection.
sington employees have heard trades shows might attain new
When it comes to branding, what
the word “brand” thrown around business, brand marketing is makes Kensington special?
about a million times. As we de- most effective at developing re-
velop, tweak, and nurture our peat business. The brand evolves As we developed the look of our
brand, we’re constantly provid- into more than an aesthetic piece new brand, we still had a lengthy
ing updated materials and lan- of collateral; it’s the life of the and distinguished reputation to
guage. With our approach to fi- company and the experience of back it up. Now, it’s about be-
nalizing our brand, it’s important the consumer. It’s invaluable to lieving in why we made the
to understand why so much me- marketing and should be present change. There are a lot of rea-
ticulous thought has gone into at every point of public contact. sons why companies make sig-
this process. nificant brand updates over time:
Beyond developing a loyal cus- customers change, companies
Brand has become a saturated tomer base, a brand also creates
merge, markets disappear, etc.
word. In 2017, everything seems loyal employees. It gives them
As the aesthetic of the brand be-
to be branded. College students something tangible to believe in comes old-fashioned, customers
use social media to develop their and represent, an accessible un-
chase sleeker looks. To keep up
personal brand, potential em- derstanding of our company’s
with this trend, we developed a
ployers want to see it on a re- value in the world of professional brand aesthetic that makes an
sume, and even the least attend- services.
immediate impact while retain-
ed open mics in Chicago have a If marketing is made up of the ing the strength of our reputa-
fresh logo. It’s not easy to make
tactical methods you use to build tion.
your brand stand out in the midst
awareness, branding represents
of all this, particularly with the who you are. Think of it like this: With all this in mind, yes, we
wide disseminating capabilities of want to remain trendy and up-
our brand is our market identity.
the Internet. dated, but mostly we want to be
When marketing methods evolve
Fortunately, brand marketing has to match the trend of user expe- memorable. At the end of the
an entirely different purpose riences and consumer journeys, day, it’s about the consistency
from just slapping a logo on a our brand remains the same.
with which we bring clarity to our
bunch of pieces of collateral and Competition is fierce, and with
hoping that provides enough ex- the global population expected offering and perception in the
posure to generate new busi- to reach 10 billion in the next 30 market.
ness. In fact, the main function years, it’s not going to slow
of brand marketing is not new down. A brand demands loyalty.
business development. Where It conveys expertise. It generates