THE 4 STAGES OF BRAND DEVELOPMENT

All brands stand out for one reason or another. Some stand out more than others, but every brand is known for something, and have become the generic term in their respective market. The process of Brand Development gets overlooked at times, and is often times replaced with the marketing and sales processes. Whether we realize it or not, every entrepreneur and business owner is building a Brand. It’s always best if the brand development process is intentional and not done on the fly. Brands have four stages of growth. Each stage more distinct, recognizable, and profitable than the one below, and they fall into one of these four categories, which apply to Brands across every industry or niche. THE ITEM -- An item in this sense of the word would describe something straight out of a factory. This is a brand in its most basic form. In fact, it’s not even really considered a brand yet at this point. THE LABEL -- If you want to take an item to the next level, you give it a label. This label is just a tag on the item, so that people can identify what they’re buying. Nothing fancy. Think “Private Label”. THE BRAND -- At this stage, your “label” is distinct and recognizable. Brands are akin to people, they have a very distinct look and design and they have delivered on the consistency of their product over the years. THE LIFESTYLE -- A lifestyle brand is made when it creates a deeply rooted emotional connection which alters the way people go about their everyday lives. This is the ultimate status of branding -- the “Top Floor” of the brand development hierarchy which not every brand gets get to reach. For example, Nike is the epitome of a lifestyle brand, not only in terms of sneakers, but to inspire people to be physically fit, and become the best athlete they can be. Nike embodies greatness in terms of wellness and athletics. Their consumers don’t just buy Nike, they LIVE Nike. If you want to benefit from having loyal customers who are willing to pay more for your products and keep coming back for more, you’ll need to get serious about building a brand that matters to your target audience.