Ever wondered why some products are popular and sell way more than others even when their quality is more or less the same? Well, I have a valid answer for you: branding.
Simply put, this is how your customers perceive you. It’s a source of a promise to your customers and what makes them believe in your product and company.
Why is branding important?
Branding can benefit your company in many ways. Especially, if you sell your own private labelled product(s) on Amazon via FBA and/or
What makes branding so powerful? Through branding, you can better connect with your prospective customers, deliver your message more effectively, and build trust.
Ultimately, though, you get to set your product(s) apart from your competitors’. In other words, your customers will choose you over others, regardless of factors such as price.
Here’s the kicker, though, building a strong brand isn’t easy. But with a brand strategy in place, you will give yourself a good chance of building a strong brand.
Want to build a brand but don’t have the funds? Check out these articles that highlight ways you can start making money online:
- The Amazon Wholesale Model Using Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA)
- How to Start Selling Books on Amazon using FBA
- Make Risk-free Money through Matched Betting
What is Brand Strategy?
Brand strategies simply refer to the collection of techniques that can help give a unique identity for our products, services, or business. Their core objectives revolve around identity and reputation. Identity refers to factors such as non-visual items and logos while reputation involves the character, quality, and interactions of your brand with consumers and
Effective strategies help us build brand equity and add value to your business. Additionally, these well-received strategies are a recipe of strong growth even in a saturated marketplace. To enjoy all the benefits brand strategies can offer, you’ll need to ensure you make informed decisions of such strategies.
There are several types of branding strategies available that you are using at the moment or should consider using. These strategies vary based on budget, market campaigns, and target audiences.
The most common types
- Crowdsourcing branding
- Private labels
- Multi-brands strategy
- “No brand” branding
- Derived brands
- Attitude branding & iconic brands
- Individual branding
- Brand extension
- ompany name.
The 10 best books on branding strategy
When I first looked into the books on brand strategy, I was amazed by the books available. And I bet you will too, especially when you’re not sure what you’re looking for.
However, I did more in-depth research and have prepared a list of the 10 best books on branding strategy that will be worth your consideration. Please read on.
Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind by Al Ries
- Year published: 1980
- Goodreads rating: 4/5, 13,724 ratings
Communicating to a media-blitzed public can be very challenging, especially when you approach from an ineffective position. Fortunately, Ries explains a revolutionary approach to a customer’s mind. In a way that will not only reflect your company’s strengths and weaknesses but also those of your competitors.
The book contains useful information on how to:
- Position a follower to occupy the niche that’s not claimed by the leader.
- Analyze of the recent trends affecting your positioning
- Make and position a leader (industry) to ensure it has a name and message that forces its way and remains in your market.
- Prevent another product from riding on the coattails of a product already established.
- Identify a name that best suits your product.
- Strategize based on the weaknesses of your competitors.
Ries has included a variety of case studies of the businesses that attained great success and those that failed. It’s been actively revised to reflect significant developments. And to ensure you get the best and relevant information out of it.
Archetypes in Branding: A Toolkit for Creatives and Strategists by Margaret Hartwell
- Year published: 2012
- Goodreads rating: 4.2/5, 72 ratings
Before looking into why this book is one of the best books on brand strategy, let’s understand what
Archetypes are important in branding to provide solutions to increasing consumers’ demand for integrity and proper accountability from businesses. Businesses, on the other hand, are constantly looking for ways they can get more power and resonance in the engagements of their brands.
The archetypal wisdom is also vital to achieving a more human and authentic way of staying in business. These are what the author put into account when writing the book.
The main benefits you will realize from using this book include:
- 100% ability to guide brand culture strategy.
- 55% ability to attract and retain stakeholders.
- 70% ability to align brand and culture.
- 65% increase in real asset evaluation.
- 85% ability to embed a unique brand identity.
By using the book, you’ll appreciate the highly participatory approach towards brand development. Plus a deck of 60 original archetype cards. These are essential in revealing motivations to your brand and what grabs the attention of different consumers. Not forgetting the empowerment to strike relationships with myriad stakeholders with influence in your business.
Designing Brand Identity: An Essential Guide for the Entire Branding Team by Alina Wheeler
- A
- Year published: 2003
- Goodreads rating: 4.11/5, 1,835 ratings.
This book is for entrepreneurs. I would say it’s essential for anyone interested in building a brand online. Regardless of the industry, this book will help you create, build, and maintain a strong brand. It has everything you need to develop and implement an effective brand identity.
This book is very practical. It has over 30 case studies highlighting different successful and outstanding brands. The latest editions contain useful information about the current trends in the branding industry which entails mostly the digital devices.
The authors split the book into three parts; basics, process, and best practices. In the basics section, you’ll learn to differentiate between brand and brand identity. And also get to know what you’ll need for your brand to be the best.
The process section contains the answers to the question concerning the length of achieving your desired results. P
The last section contains successful projects available that can inspire you to develop a lasting solution for marketing your brand. This division will enable you to access just what you need at a particular time. Sounds great, right?
Great by Choice by Jim Collins
- Year published: 2011
- Goodreads rating: 4.1/5, 14, 679 ratings.
Perhaps you’ve noticed that some brands thrive in uncertainties and chaos and others don’t, right? Well, Collins and Hansen, in their nine-year research characterized by extensive analysis have developed different principles which you can apply to your brands to make your business thrive in unpredictable, difficult times.
You’ll get to appreciate the knowledge on performance and unstable environments with unpredictable forces and shifts in your niche which you should avoid as much as possible to thrive. The book contains examples of companies that attained success and popularity to beat their industry indexes 10X+ in 15 years while in unstable environments.
The authors went ahead to critically contrast these companies with those that failed to attain significant success and popularity in similarly extreme environments. Don’t you think it will be worth having a copy of this book to learn more about the strategies that worked for successful companies?
Collins and Hansen have explained and provided proof of how greatness is possible even in chaotic and uncertain environments by choice and
Build a Brand in 30 Days by Simon Middleton
- Year published: 2010
- Goodreads rating: 3.86/5, 97 ratings.
Middleton is very convinced that you don’t need to have a degree or strong educational background in branding to come up with an attention-grabbing brand. What then do you need? Well, according to him, you only need his book, and 30 days. Huh!
Fortunately, Middleton explains in detail how one can effectively create, manage, and communicate their brand, within just 30 days. During this period, you’ll need to follow 30 vital yet straightforward exercises.
Initially, I thought it might be quite impossible to learn effective brand strategies based, of course, on the fact that I have no relevant degree. But once I took a look at the book’s outline and review, I was impressed. The book will enlighten you on how you can get a good product name, establish positioning and values of your brand, cope with different problems that may arise, and bring your brand to life among other essential information.
How Cool Brands Stay Hot: Branding Generation Y by Joeri Van Den Bergh
- Year published: 2011
- Goodreads rating: 3.6/5, 103 ratings.
This is an award-winning brand strategy book that won the 2012’s American Marketing Association’s Book of the Year Award. It is well known for its value, timing, and the ability to translate a variety of issues affecting Generation Y. What I like about this book is that it covers advertising and marketing strategies that have brought good to the general market and brands that have helped in the revamping of these strategies.
It also provides different findings of these strategies and explains how the findings can be used to understand the behavior of consumers of the generation Millennials. All the editions of this book describe in detail how creative positioning, development, and brand promotion benefits the Millennials.
You’ll appreciate the knowledge of how business people can apply different branding methods deployed by some of the top international companies such as Red Bull, Coca Cola, and Nokia among other companies to drive their innovation. I promise you, using the book will be worth your time regardless of whether your brand is old or new.
The authors have 20+ years of experience in entrepreneurship and have used this experience to provide well-researched advice.
Careerkred: 4 Simple Steps to Build Your Digital Brand and Boost Credibility in Your Career by Ryan Rhoten
- Year published: 2017
- Goodreads rating: 4.7/5, 6 ratings.
Technological disruptions and advancements have made life simpler and more convenient nowadays. Perhaps you’ve used some online platform to sell your product or for some transaction. But, probably, you’ll agree with me that digital branding can be very challenging, especially when you have little knowledge and experience about the same. Which is why Ryan is determined to make things easier for you through his book.
As a digital branding coach and founder of a career branding agency for recruiters and coaches, Ryan understands that the impression your brand makes online is vital. He came up with a simple but effective 4-step process: D.I.C.E which can help provide clarity in your branding and marketing which in the end enhances your digital trust.
Brand Against the Machine: How to Build Your Brand, Cut Through the Marketing Noise, and Stand Out from the Competition by John Morgan
- Year published: 2011
- Goodreads rating: 3.87/5, 187 ratings.
Brand Against the Machine is a brand strategy book that focuses on providing answers and guideline on how we can brand our business at a budget significantly lower than that of a traditional corporate brand. I chose this book to be on the list because it contains essential information on the steps that novices in any industry can create, set up, and market their new brands.
If you’re a first-time entrepreneur, brand manager, or online marketer eying to achieve the best results in your niche, this book will come in handy. Morgan has significant years of experience after working with TV stars, Fortune 500 companies, and other entrepreneurs. He understands all the struggles that different entrepreneurs go through as they try to create awareness of their brand in the market and, perhaps improve on their sales.
This book will equip you with proper knowledge necessary to make informed decisions that will position your brand where it can healthily compete with other brands from your competitors. It’s a book that can be very useful both to the beginners and seasoned professionals.
Kellogg on Branding: The Marketing Faculty of the Kellogg School of Management by Alice Tybout
- Year published: 2005
- Goodreads rating: 4.1/5, 215 ratings.
If you’re looking for a book with the most recent and effective strategies that you can use to build, leverage, and reimage your brand, then Kellogg on Branding is the book you’re looking for. The authors wrote the book with the idea of enhancing the benefits of having a brand strategy that’s unique and optimal for a particular product or organization.
The authors also condensed the branding art into the form it’s most attractive: the ability to solve old marketing problems and seize emerging marketing opportunities. Therefore, if you want to launch a new brand, the book will guide you through. Plus, if you have an existing brand, the book explains how you can leverage it and even manage a large brand portfolio.
By using the book, you’ll learn how you can build a brand-centered organization that’s essential in ensuring the success of a particular brand or brands. You’ll also learn how management and branding can work together for the success of your brands and business in general.
Online Brand Communities: Using the Social Web for Branding and Marketing by Francisco Martinez-Lopez and Co
- Year published: 2015
- Goodreads rating: 5/5, 2 ratings.
If you’re interested in online branding, Online Brand Communities has all you need. Through the last decade, social media has gained popularity as a possible tool to be used in marketing and advertising. Nowadays, branding has transformed into a social network, and this is the knowledge used by the authors in writing the book.
The authors also put into consideration the recent brand management trends when writing the book. For this reason, the book provides possible solutions to consumers’ motivating factors to join, take part, and remain within a certain social network. You’ll also appreciate the idea of value and loyalty creation among consumers and businesses.
This is both a practical and conceptual reference tool and can be used even by trade scholars.
Conclusion
Branding is an essential strategy you can use to inform your prospective customers what your business is about. It has a lot of benefits that your business can benefit from – uniqueness, emotional connection, and reaching your target audience.
This well-researched list of best books on brand strategy will help you make informed decisions on how to make your brand outstanding.
I personally think the book, Brand Against the Machine: How to Build Your Brand, Cut Through the Marketing Noise, and Stand Out from the Competition by John Morgan is a must-have book on branding strategy every entrepreneur should read. It has useful strategies and information for both novice and experienced entrepreneurs. I hope you’ll enjoy reading it and, most importantly, benefit your brand.