Top 10 Ways to Increase Brand Recognition

Whether you’re just starting out in a new business, or already established, increasing brand recognition is bound to be one of your top priorities.

Brand recognition is the way in which people are aware of and perceive your business. It is what they associate your logo or brand name with. The greater your brand recognition, the more people will be aware of your logo or brand name.

Brand recognition is important because it enables people to recall your business and products. It gives them the impression of what you are about, building trust in you and your brand. People are much more likely to buy your products if they recognise your brand.

Brand recognition is generally seen as the initial stage of the marketing funnel, it leads onto research and decision making, followed by purchasing. But in an increasingly busy world, with so many others competing for customers’ attention how do you make your brand stand out?

How to Build Brand Recognition

Brand recognition won’t happen overnight, or with just a single marketing campaign. It requires a sustained effort to build up awareness of your brand. Here are some strategies you can use to increase brand recognition:

• Develop a Brand Tone

Your brand needs to have a personality – think of it as a person and then define what it is like. Base your marketing efforts around this personality and develop a brand tone. This will define all your marketing communications.

Brand tone is the distinct personality a brand takes on in its communications. Imagine you’re at a dinner party and you’re chatting with all the guests. One person stands out because they tell unique and interesting stories. The language they use and their personality combine to make a memorable experience. When you recall that story, you immediately think of that person. You need your brand to behave in this way.

A unique brand tone will enable you stand out from the crowd, helping people to recognise and remember you. It will also help you to develop consistency which is vital to build brand awareness.

• Create and share content

Creating blogs for your website and other websites is a good way to build recognition of your brand – it will enable you to show your brand personality and share opinions on issues – this will humanise your brand and make it stick in people’s minds.

Consider the queries users may have about your products or business and write blogs that answer these questions. Post fresh content frequently and include key words and phrases to boost search engine optimisation.

Guest blogging on other sites and posting comments, including links back to your website, is a way to resonate with your target audience and build recognition of who you are.

Content can also take the form of videos and podcasts. Video content is becoming increasingly popular on social media as a way to engage audiences more effectively. In 2023, 96% of consumers increased their video consumption, and 9 out of 10 viewers said that they wanted to see more videos from brands and businesses. In fact, as of 2023, an average person is predicted to spend 100 minutes per day watching online videos.

Podcasts are also growing in popularity. In 2023 there were over 2,000,000 active podcasts, with 48 million episodes and the number is increasing all the time. Podcasts give you the opportunity to educate, inform, entertain, or advise your audience and build trust in your brand in doing so.

• Professional logo design

A professionally designed logo will help people to recognise your brand. You need something that, when people see it, they immediately associate with you. For instance, if we see a small blue bird symbol, we straight away associate it with Twitter, and a tick is automatically linked to Nike. Using a professional graphic designer, like those at Koreti, to design your logo will help you achieve this.

Use your logo on everything – emails, packaging, letterhead, website, social media, business cards. The more people see it, the greater brand recognition you will have.

• Social media

Social media is becoming an increasingly popular way to reach new audiences and gain brand recognition. Create pages for your business on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn and post regular updates. Don’t just push your brand though, talk about current topics in the news and information that others will find interesting. Try to come up with content that people will like and share.

Facebook live is a great way to upload videos that will help people get to know you. Ideas for content are behind the scenes videos or instructions on how to do something. In addition, set up a Twitter account and post regular tweets. Instagram and Pinterest are a good way of sharing images of you and your products to all audiences. Tiktok is increasingly popular amongst all audiences, but especially younger people, for video content.

Team up with influencers who are relevant to your brand. Using them will get your name in front of new audiences.

• Exhibit at trade shows

Exhibiting at industry specific events is a good way to demonstrate your place in the market and gain brand recognition. Exhibiting has the following benefits:

• The events attract a condensed gathering of people who will have an interest in what you do. Most people attending will have buying authority and are there to source new products.
• You are exhibiting alongside the big players in your industry on a level playing field so can benefit by association.
• It gives you a rare opportunity to engage directly and in person with the people who are becoming aware of your business for the first time.
• Repetition – if visitors see you at the show every year this will engender trust and they are more likely to recognise you in future
• You have the ability to demonstrate your expertise on the spot – a rare opportunity to show people how good you are, not just tell them, like most marketing methods.

In order to exhibit at a trade show you need to reserve a booth with the show organiser and source a branded exhibition stand. For help with this contact an exhibition stand contractor, like Quadrant2Design.

• Develop a referral programme

Word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool and incentivising your customers to refer a friend can reap rewards. Dropbox, who introduced a refer-a-friend feature in 2008 grew their customer base with 3900%. This incredible growth didn’t solely come from the referral programme — they also improved their product and delivered outstanding customers too — but it certainly helped.

• Partner with other businesses

Linking up with relevant businesses can give you access to a new set of customers and grow your brand recognition. Pick businesses that have products which complement yours to give extra value to customers.

• Sponsor an event

Sponsoring an event is another way to get your brand in front of hundreds or even thousands of people that could well be your target audience. From signage to programs to water bottles, your brand name will be shown in several places if you sponsor an event.

Sponsoring an event will also associate your brand name with an event that matches your personality and interests, meaning attendees will link your brand with that event and its character.

• Email marketing

The more customers and prospects hear from you, the greater your brand recognition will be. Send out regular updates in the form of emails or newsletters to your database of contacts. This will keep your brand fresh in their minds and may lead to conversions.

• Google and social media ads

Ads on Google and social media are a relatively inexpensive way of ensuring your name appears in searches and on newsfeeds. You only pay once someone clicks on your ad and you can narrow down your audience based on age, location, interests and other factors.

Increasing brand recognition is important because it builds trust in your prospective customers and can therefore lead to sales. Following these tips will help you raise awareness of your brand and engage new customers.