# Branding Consistency Matters

- Link: https://ip.ipdev2.cloud/branding-consistency-matters/
- Published: 2018-02-14T11:26:13+00:00
- Author: neilharner

In this digital age, [your website is your most important tool](https://ip.ipdev2.cloud/2017/07/treat-website-like-private-island/)
for increasing conversion. Whatever marketing methods you employ (digital, traditional
or most likely a mix of both), the first thing your customer will do is search for
you online and find their way to your website. When they get there, they should 
immediately have the sense that they’re interacting with the same brand they recognize
from in-person communication, phone, email, ads and social. Maintaining a consistent
brand across all channels increases the level of trust your customers have in your
company.

It’s easy to mistake a brand for a logo and a certain color palette or slogan. While
tangible graphics and clever taglines are _part of_ your brand, they alone do not
define who you are. Consider these other aspects of your company that should be 
unified as well: 

## **Personality**

Imagine when a customer calls your business, they speak with a warm and caring employee—
but when they walk in, they are barely greeted or supported in a positive way. Your
website states plainly, “Here’s what we do,” but doesn’t ask, “How may we help you?”
And your social media consists of posting the occasional sale promotion, never engaging
in conversations with others and rarely replying to the customers who connect with
you. If each experience a person has with your business is radically different, 
your customers won’t know what to expect from you. That uncertainty may lead to 
distrust and an unwillingness to work with you in the future.

Envision your business as a person. How would they speak? How would they dress? 
How would they behave? Once you know “who” you want your business to be, you want
to start injecting that personality into all of your outward communications. When
it comes to brands, there’s no “one size fits all.” Like you, your company has a
unique personality, which you want to come through in all the channels that your
potential customers interact with.

## **Shared Voice**

Everyone on your team and everyone working with your team has a hand in promoting
your brand. You want to ensure that everyone is on the same page and will project
a unified message or tone to customers. Again, the fewer conflicting messages your
customers receive from your brand, the clearer they will understand what they can
expect from you and whether your business is the right fit for them.

If, like many small businesses, you use multiple vendors to execute online and offline
marketing strategies, make sure that there is an understanding on all parts of what
the goals are for growing your brand. Creating a style guide for your brand will
give you a document that anyone can reference to maintain consistency.

**Recommended resource:** [How to Create a Brand Style Guide – 99designs](https://99designs.com/blog/tips/how-to-create-a-brand-style-guide/)

What else can you do to make sure you’re on track? Create a list of all the ways
your company touches current and prospective customers. This could be through in-
person or phone interactions, customer service, advertisements, social media, job
postings, and marketing, interpersonal, or transactional emails, for example. Then
review the list — does your company’s identity get fulfilled through those various
touch points? For every “no” or “maybe,” dive in and determine why those disconnects
exist. Implement change where you feel your biggest problems lie and periodically
reevaluate the list.

And if your assessments leave you feeling like your website could use some tweaking,
check out our article on [ways you can update your site without starting from scratch](https://ip.ipdev2.cloud/2017/07/five-simple-ways-update-site-without-starting-scratch/).
Then, get in touch and we’ll help you on your way to cultivating your brand!