What does your brand stand for? What are its core values? How do you want consumers to feel about the brand?

These questions are part of the brand discovery process. It is the foundation to building a unique and sustainable brand. The results will define the purpose and culture of your organization.

What is the Brand Discovery Process?

Brand discovery is a crucial step to align business goals to a successful brand strategy and maximize the long-term success of the brand. It explores and defines the brand identity, communications, mission, and more.

The brand discovery process provokes purpose, personality, and how to deliver on the brand promise through more effective brand executions. It helps match customer insight and behaviors to well-defined marketing objectives.

The result is a personalized brand strategy to accelerate growth and strengthen loyalty.

This process can take anywhere from a few hours or days to several months, depending on the size (and expectations) of the organization.

Asking the right questions will lead an organization to meaningful answers that have a long-term, company-wide impact. Here are just a few questions from our Guide to the Brand Discovery Process.

The Basics of Brand Discovery

Start by asking questions that deconstruct and simplify your business goals. Answer them with the passion and excitement of the first day, combined with the knowledge you have acquired since. Furthermore,

What are our core values?

What problem do we solve for our customers?

How do we measure success?

What products or services are the most profitable for us?

Discover Your True Brand Identity

It is critical to establish a unique and differentiated presence in the market. This helps your customers determine why they should buy from you, and not someone else. Take time to reflect on the message your brand identity design communicates, and how it shapes perception.

What is our brand story?

What message should our logo communicate?

How do we express our brand’s personality?

What is our tagline?

Competition Analysis

The competitive landscape is ever more present and crowded with smartphones and search engine marketing. Asking “Who are we?” is not enough. It is as important to know who “they” are, as well. A competitive analysis will identify your competitors, their strengths and weaknesses, gather data on their products and services, and observe their marketing strategies.

Who are our main competitors?

Where do our competitors outperform us?

Where do we rank compared to our competition for key terms in search results?

Reflecting on Customer Data

The underlying purpose of brand discovery is to gain a better understanding of your audience, and how to better communicate with them. Examine customer data to determine your pattern of success with specific buyer personas, or your lack of attention to existing opportunities. The insight acquired here can help establish trust and like-ability with your audience.

Who is our ideal customer?

Why do they buy from us?

Where are they engaging with our brand?

Honest Assessment of the Sales Process

A deeper understanding of the buyer’s journey can lead to a better customer experience and increased revenue. Perform an audit of your sales process to reveal lead and customer behavior. Identify opportunities to increase productivity, shorten the sales cycle, and improve conversion rates.

Where does our sales process fail?

How can we improve our lead nurturing process?

What problems can marketing automation and Customer Relationship Management software solve for us?

Develop More Meaningful Relationships

Identify shared goals and values with organizations that add value to brand awareness and equity. Think first of the contribution your organization can make to the community, a non-profit, or local business. Furthermore, use this as an opportunity to connect and engage on a deeper level. It is relationships and partnerships that add real value to life and business.

Who are our brand advocates?

How can we strengthen current partnerships?

How can we develop more of the right partnerships?

Discover the Future Of Your Brand

The discovery process does not end with realizing your true identity and potential. It begins again each day as you continue to grow, visualizing the future of your brand, and evolving with the times. A business never plans to fail, more often they fail to plan for the inevitable future.

How will our industry change over the next ten years?

How will our company adapt to these changes?

Where will our brand strategy need to change to stay competitive?

What do we not know about the future of our industry?

Building on the Brand Discovery Process

The answers to these questions offer enlightenment and guidance that will improve the relationship between your brand and the consumer. They can strengthen company culture and increase employee engagement.

However, connecting this feedback to build or transform the brand experience, inspire creative advertising campaigns, or develop the next trillion dollar brand, is a challenge every organization faces. Hiring an experienced and creative branding services agency often produces the best results.

Download the full guide today or contact us to turn your answers into a successful brand strategy.