BRANDigital - Why You Can't Do One Without The Other
The key components to building brand awareness? Branding and digital. Often times people think they’re like marketing and design…they just can’t get along. Well we think that’s dumb. Our marketing and design teams get along great. Why shouldn’t branding and digital work in unison? We’ve built TIV Branding around the fact that we know they can, by merging a branding agency with a digital marketing agency.The truth is you really can’t brand without digital and you really can’t do digital without branding. Don’t believe us? Check this out…
THE DIGITAL BIG BOYS ARE PUTTING EXTRA WEIGHT ON GREAT BRAND AWARENESS
It’s true. Recent news that Google is now weighing strong brands higher in search engine placement blew some people’s minds. But we always knew that brand building was a key part of SEO. It’s part of why TIV is setup the way it is. However, when we heard the news that direct traffic to a website is the number one factor that affects Google’s search engine placement, we did feel a bit redeemed. Why? Because it reinforces our belief that SEO is only as powerful as the brand it supports.Direct traffic means you type the web URL into your browser. No searching for “agencies to help build brand awareness” or “packaging design Santa Rosa,” rather you type TIVbranding.com into the browser and there you are. Google sees this as an indication of a strong brand. And therefore wants to drive more people to that brand’s website. Check out this article for more info.Along with Google, the other digital big boy, Facebook, changed how they roll recently. And the change supports, you guessed it, brand awareness. What they’re trying to get rid of is the Facebook scroll…that endless flip of the finger past all of the stuff you don’t really care about. Facebook wants you to engage. And it rewards strong brands that engage their audience. Again, the key is great branding and on social, that means strategic content that your people want to engage with.
IT GOES THE OTHER WAY TOO
Building a brand these days without digital is…well, I don’t know what it is, because we don’t even try and do it. Every brand we build has a digital element that works in conjunction with the traditional marketing channels. The direct mail piece works in concert with the social media campaign. The YouTube video is an extension of the commercial. We even base our packaging designs on the wealth of knowledge available in online searches. It’s this marriage between the brand and the digital arm of that brand that makes what we do really effective.However, the digital will not be effective long term if the initial branding strategy isn’t developed prior to implementation. It’s like trying to build a house with no foundation. It may stand for a bit, but it’s not a long-lasting structure you’re building. And if you’re going to build something, why not put in the upfront work to make it solid? We won’t take on a client that doesn’t support, or better yet ask for, the up front DISCOVER phase we discuss in all of our materials. The strategy developed in that research phase guides all aspects of the brand and guides the digital as much as it does the traditional.
BRANDIGITAL
Yeah, that lockup is better in color. But regardless of how it reads, it’s the key to building brand awareness now and in the future. So, dig into our work a bit deeper and let us know if you want us to explain why branding and digital can’t be done without each other.
Brandt Hoekenga is the Co-CEO and Creative Director for TIV Branding–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––TIV Branding is a boutique branding firm in Sonoma County, California. We specialize in building brands by using traditional, social and digital channels in unison. If you would like to discuss a project or find out more about how we do what we do, please email us at info@TIVbranding.com.