At its core, the business function of a brand is to provide a distinct, easily identifiable anchor around which all other aspects of the organisation can orbit. There are many ways in which audiences, whether internal or external, might distinguish your brand from others. Symbols, logos, taglines, or tone-of-voice – all of these elements form a holistic brand.
Of course, the more distinctive and ownable these elements are, the better. In our modern world, where “brand” has evolved to become a multi-layered and complex entity, living flexibly across myriad channels, the need to remain easily identifiable is imperative.
What makes a brand asset distinctive?
It’s unique; it attracts the attention of your target audience, without running the risk of being mistaken for a competitor
It stands out – no matter where it appears. Today, brands live both on- and offline, and any brand asset must be able to adapt without being diluted
It’s well-known; enough of your target audience must associate the element with your business for it to be of value
What is the value of a distinctive asset?
Value is not so much in the assets themselves, but in what they bring to mind for your audience. Strong distinctive assets act as an invaluable shorthand for your brand, a cue for people to bring all their previous experiences and associated meanings to mind.
Distinctive assets can take a number of forms. For example, a product might use an instantly recognisable sound – like the Netflix ‘da-dum’ – or establish an iconic packaging shape, like the Coca-Cola bottle. And, once you’ve established a truly distinctive asset, it has the potential to be re-used in an almost infinite number of ways. The likes of Coca-Cola and Heinz have both leveraged the invisible shape of their products in TV spots to encourage viewers to mentally fill-in-the-brand, so to speak, demonstrating the strength and memorability of the asset.
These are very famous examples, of course, but the ambition should be the same for every brand, no matter the size. A consistent application of a core suite of distinctive assets across all channels will enable your audience to clearly associate every product, service of piece of communication with your brand.
How to measure distinctiveness?
Any business looking to invest in branding collateral will first want to know the value of what they already have. The Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science recommends that if you are planning any evolution of your branding, or intend to do any new advertising, then you should benchmark your distinctive brand assets.
By auditing existing brand elements, as well as undertaking research with your target audience on your brand, market and competitors, you can assess how healthy your brand elements are right now.
It’s critical that you invest in external research and consultancy on your assets. This is because working closely with your brand day in, day out will have rendered those in your organisation somewhat “asset-blind”. And unless you plan on only marketing to yourselves, it’s important to get a clear steer on external perceptions of your brand assets.
Where can I start?
Every brand has a myriad of assets – a “brand world” – and it can feel like a daunting task starting from scratch in the pursuit of distinctiveness. Thankfully, there are specific assets which are both easy to make distinctive and create a powerful halo effect when they are leveraged across other collateral.
Typography By creating a bespoke typeface, you’ll be the only business using it and therefore increase the chances of your brand being recognised.
Bespoke imagery Stock photography is often used by businesses of all sizes, but it has two major failings: lack of exclusivity and lack of control over style. By creating your own bespoke photography, you can establish a style which best suits and reflects your brand whilst also holding a suite of imagery that is fully ownable and protectable.
Logo A logo is the signature for your brand - as such, it needs to be unique
and identifiable. By crafting a distinctive logo, you create a mark which is exclusively yours and reflects your brand character.
Keeping them distinctive
Having spent considerable time, effort and money on creating and developing these assets, the next step is to protect them. The type of protection you need will vary. From Intellectual Property to trademarks, copyright and patents – whatever the right type protection is, it is vital that these elements which are so identifiably yours are protected as such. This ensures that you continue to see tangible value from them, well into the future.