When it comes to your business, you need to invest all your efforts into making it respected and widely recognized. One of the steps you need to take to make this happen is to write a killer branding statement.
If you’re not sure how to do it, don’t worry. We’ve put together this guide to help you write a strong branding statement for your business.
Let’s dive in.
What is a Branding Statement?
Before we jump into our guide and explore the examples, let’s define the brand statement, its goal, and benefits.
A brand (branding) statement is a summary of what your company does, how and why you do it, and what makes your business and product unique.
A branding statement aims to introduce your business to a potential customer and help distinguish you from your competitors. That’s why a brand statement is an inalienable part of a successful brand strategy – it highlights the unique characteristics of your business.
A strong branding statement brings along quite a few benefits. Let’s take a look at them.
- Better brand recognition. A brand statement is a tool that helps bring forward your brand values which customers will associate with your business.
- Competitive edge. The branding statement also highlights the main perks of your product, differentiating you from your competitors.
- Higher customer loyalty. Since a brand statement emphasizes your business’s values, it helps you attract customers whose values resonate with yours.
How long should a brand statement be?
Since a branding statement is a brief summary of your company’s primary mission and goals, it should be no longer than one-two sentences. For instance, Kate Toon, a digital marketing specialist, fit her personal brand statement in just two sentences:
Credit: Kate Toon
The shorter the branding statement is, the better. After all, its goal is to show directly what your business is doing and how it can benefit your potential customers.
Difference between a Branding Statement and Mission Statement
Brand statements and mission statements often get confused. But there’s a distinctive difference between these two notions.
A brand statement aims to inform the public what your brand is and does. It briefly describes your product and how potential customers can benefit from it.
A mission statement is more about what your employees should do to achieve your brand’s goals. It’s also more descriptive than a brand statement and outlines the path that your organization takes to reach its objectives.
For some context, let’s take a look at Adidas’s brand and mission statements. The company’s brand statement simply describes what it’s about, what its product is, and how customers can use it:
In its turn, Adidas’s mission statement describes what the company strives to be:
In other words, a branding statement is more outward-oriented, while a mission statement is more inward-facing.
Now, let’s take a look at a step-by-step guide on how to write a strong branding statement for your business.
1. Start with Your Company’s Mission
You already know that a branding statement and a mission statement are two different things. But you can’t create a strong brand statement if you don’t have a clear mission statement. These two slogans work together to bring forward your company’s values and differentiate you from your competitors.
So, start by defining your company’s mission. Two strategies can help you outline the mission statement.
Strategy #1: Defining the purpose
A brand’s mission is about the purpose you want to fulfill as a company and how you want to impact your customers and society in general.
You can define your brand’s purpose by following these steps:
- Highlight your core values. Select three brand values that drive growth and what you care about the most.
- Think about brands that inspired you. Go through their mission statements and consider how they resonate with you.
- Think about your legacy. What if your company went out of business? What impact would it leave behind?
- Select the main goals of your brand. These goals have nothing to do with revenue but rather your brand’s lasting impact on your customers.
Once you find out the answers to each of these points, you will have a clear understanding of your brand’s purpose.