Brand consistency has one massive advantage – recognition. With recognition comes familiarity. With familiarity comes trust and confidence. It’s been widely reported that before a consumer purchases a product, on average, they need to be exposed to a brand 17 times. 17 times is an awful lot! So it’s essential that when a potential customer comes across a “brand message” they know immediately who is communicating to them. This can only be done through consistency.
The following list aims to help you get organized and save time and money. Use it to conduct an inventory of your basic marketing and communication materials. You may have a killer brochure but never thought about it being
consistent with your website. You may have gorgeous business cards, but no letterhead to follow up with potential clients. This list should help you develop a more comprehensive and efficient marketing system.
Marketing Materials
- Folder: A cohesive way to hold all your print materials
- General Brochure: Describing services/products in a general way; easy to distribute or mail
- Product Sheets or Postcards: More specific, easy to reproduce, update and change
- Pens: A leave behind people keep and use with your logo, web address and phone number on it
Digital Marketing Materials
- Website: Should look like your print marketing materials, be easy to update, easy to navigate, keep it clean, update it often.
- E-newsletter: A cheap and efficient way to stay in contact with your public on a regular basis. Have recipients’ permission, have a professional HTML newsletter template designed and update the content each month.
Printed
Stationery
- Letterhead
- #10 Envelopes: These are standard envelopes for general correspondence
- Business Cards
- Forms: Invoices, donation forms, order forms
- Printed Notepads: Gives employees a way to insert a quick, informal note on something. Post-its with your logo work well, can be used as leave-behinds
- Blank Cards and Envelopes (with your logo): Great for thank-you notes or reminders
Remember, the strength of your brand relies on consistency. Consistency portrays structure, professionalism and order and speaks volumes
about how professional you are about approaching your business. One rule of thumb is that when you start to become tired of your logo, tagline, and branding efforts, that’s most likely when they are actually sinking in with potential customers.